How To Choose Accessories for Your Business Attire

How To Choose Accessories for Your Business AttireHow To Choose Accessories for Your Business AttireDressing for success includes your outfit, personal grooming, and accessories. Clients and investors pay attention to details, and so should you. Even the briefcase you select says something about who you are. Pulling together an overall corporate image is especially important for work-at-home moms, and businesswomen who work from home. To get big clients and contracts, your business needs to appear successful already large enough to handle the customers needs. Looking frumpy or like you just came from the grocery store, conveys a message that you may not take business meetings seriously. The following tips for adding accessories to your business wardrobe will help you look your very best. Scarves It is fine to wear tasteful scarves in the office just make sure they are accessory scarves and not winter wear.Tie your scarf in an infinity knot or go with a simple knot resist the urg e to be trendy and tuck it into your belt. Choose colors that complement your overall look and not that compete with it.If you wear a chunky scarf, size down your jewelry (and skip wearing a necklace). Jewelry Avoid wearing large or costume jewelry. Earrings should be conservative and small. Necklaces should not dangle between cleavage, and bracelets should not make noise. Do not wear ankle bracelets, but do wear a conservative watch. Purses Purse colors should coordinate with your shoe color. A good purse should be small, but easy to open in case you need to find an item inside. Hosiery Pantyhose should be a neutral tone and compliment your suit or dress. Avoid wearing hosiery with patterns and lines. Carry a bottle of clear nail polish in your purse to dab on snags and zulaufs to stop them from spreading down your leg. Briefcases and Portfolios Portfolios and padfolios are preferred over briefcases and should be padded in a neutral color. If you take a briefcase, i t should be as small as is practical for your needs and made of leather in a neutral color. If you do not need a briefcase dont bring one just for show. Never use a shopping bag, book bag, or backpack in place of a briefcase. Your Car, Another Accessory Your car is not an accessory that you wear, but it is an accessory you are likely to take to business functions. Always keep the inside of your car clean and free of childrens toys and clutter. How well you keep your car organized is a reflection of the state of your life. If your car is a cluttered closet on wheels, it sends the message you are too busy to tend to things, or that you just dont care about your image. Treat your car as another potential message to clients about how you run your business. After a meeting with my first potential investor, he asked if he could walk me to my car. When I opened my car door, he took a quick casual glance inside and then extended a firm handshake to thank me for presenting my business id ea. The next day he offered to invest the full $5,000 I needed to get started on a new business venture. The investor explained the clean car test was something he used to assess how organized and efficient a person was. If their car was a disorganized mess, he assumed that the chaos would extend into their professional life as well. Not everyone is this calculating in their decisions, but everyone looks at outward appearances and makes quick judgments about what the little things say about a person. Accessories like makeup, jewelry, and even your car should not be overlooked. They are tools that you can use to convey a positive and winning message about yourself and your ability to succeed.

ASMEs First Female President Honored by Alma Mater

ASMEs First Female President Honored by Alma Mater ASMEs First Female President Honored by Alma Mater ASMEs First Female President Honored by Alma Mater(From left) Shirley Jackson, president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, presents the universitys highest honor, the Davies Medal for Achievement, to ASME Honorary Member, Fellow and Past President nanzig Fitzroy. Photos courtesy of Rensselaer/Qua. Engineering trailblazer Nancy D. Fitzroy added another award to her extensive list of engineering accolades when she was presented with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institutes highest honor at a ceremony held at the university on May 5. More than 100 people attended the event, where RPI President Shirley A. Jackson presented Fitzroy with the Davies Medal for Achievement. Named in honor of Clarence E. Davies, one of RPIs most active and dedicated alumni, the award recognizes a Rensselaer graduate with a distinguished career of engineering achievement, public service, and technical and managerial accomplishments. Fitzroy, a world-renowned authority in heat transfer and fluid flow and one of the worlds first female helicopter pilots, became the first woman in the United States to lead a major professional engineering society when she was elected president of ASME for 1986-1987. She is also the first woman to receive Rensselaers Davies Medal. Nancy Fitzroy is a world-class engineer, a pioneer, and a spirited leader, Jackson said. Her technical contributions to the fields of heat transfer and fluid flow have been fundamental to a range of technologies, from satellites, to toasters, to nuclear reactor cores. Her leadership in engineering professional societies and commitment to inspiring the next generations of young people has helped strengthen engineering in the United States and around the world. Nancy Fitzroy (right), who served as ASME president in 1986-1987, discusses her experiences with Shirley Jackson, president of Rensselaer, during the Da vies Medal ceremony on May 5. After graduating from RPI in 1949 with a bachelors degree in chemical engineering, Fitzroy went on to work at General Electric from 1950 in a variety of engineering and managerial positions until her retirement in 1987. She specialized in heat transfer and fluid flow research, and was one of the first engineers to work on the design of heat transfer surfaces in nuclear reactor cores. Later in her career, Fitzroy conducted corporate research and development, with a focus on problems in the field of heat transfer in gas turbines, space satellites and other GE products. The author of more than 100 technical papers, she also holds three patents and is a registered professional engineer in the state of New York. After completing her term as president, Fitzroy continued to serve ASME in a number of roles, including director, vice chair and trustee of the ASME Foundation Board and trustee chair of the ASME Honors and Awards Committee and member of t he Board on Government Relations. Prior to becoming president, her ASME positions included member of the Board of Governors and senior vice president of the Council on Public Affairs. Fitzroy, an ASME Fellow, has been honored with of a number of Society awards, including Honorary Membership and the ASME Dedicated Service Award in 2008, and the ASME Centennial Medallion in 1980. In 2011, ASME established the Nancy DeLoye Fitzroy and Roland V. Fitzroy Medal, which recognizes pioneering contribution to the frontiers of engineering leading to a breakthrough in existing technology or leading to new applications or new areas of engineering endeavor. She currently serves as chair of the medals selection committee. The recipient of an honorary doctor of engineering and science degrees from Rensselaer and the New Jersey Institute of Technology, respectively, Fitzroy was designated an Honorary Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in 1988, elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1995, and inducted into the Rensselaer Alumni Hall of Fame in 1999.

How to Keep Your Job Skills Current

How to Keep Your Job Skills CurrentHow to Keep Your Job Skills CurrentThere are many factors involved in getting hired. Some are out of your control, but there are others that you can work on to enhance your hireability. If youre seeking a promotion at work or are looking to make a job change, taking the time to enhance your skills and your qualifications will make it much easier to take the next step up the career ladder. Individuals who continually upgrade their skills to keep pace with developments in their field will have the best chance of doing well in their career, both with their current employer and when job searching. 10 Ways to Keep Your Job Skills Current 1. Check out the Most In-Demand Skills for Your Occupation The first step in keeping your skills current is to identify the talents which employers value the most in your field. Reviewjob titlesfor positions in your career field. Also review thetop skills required by employers, both general and job-specific. Search j ob sites like Indeed or Monster using phrases related to your job to find the job titles most appropriate for your current job and for any positions that youd love to work at, if you could. Review job descriptions and make a list of the skills which employers are most often seeking in applicants. 2. Get the Scoop Speak with human resources staff at your current employer to gain more insight into the most preferred skills for your profession. Analyze the background of standout performers at your employer or stars from your professional associations and identify any skills that have helped them to excel. The descriptions within the LinkedIn profiles of high-level performers can provide insight, too. Note the skills which their reference writers mention in LinkedIn recommendations for these individuals. Review the agendas forconferencesandzugnglich workshops for your field to gain insight regarding other areas of knowledge or skills which people in your field are eager to acquire. 3. F ollow Industry Leaders on Social Media Many corporate CEOs and industry leaders now post regularly on social media sites like LinkedIn in order to establish themselves as thought leaders or influencers. By following them on social media, youll be better able to identify new directions in your profession, learn about the skills employers most often seek in your field, and decide upon which skills would be the most important for you to focus upon. 4. Make a Professional Development Plan Once you have identified your target skills, make a professional development plan to chart your career trajectory and then strengthen or gain the most in-demand skills for your occupation. Professional associations offer workshops at annual and regional conferences and throughout the year. Many organizations have online tutorials or workshops. Review agendas and speak with leaders of those organizations to identify opportunities. 5. Attend a Workshop Technology workshops or online tutorials are often o ffered by software providers and third-party groups. For example, there are free or low-costonline programming classesavailable. Speak with IT professionals at your organization to determine what your employer offers and to get recommendations about other reputable learning providers. Many professional organizations will have a technology committee, and the chair may also have some useful suggestions. 6. Go to School In addition, check with local colleges and adult education programs since they will often offer courses or seminars to help employees upgrade their knowledge and skills. Check outcertificate programsandonline educational coursesyou can take to revamp your skill set quickly. 7. Attend Professional Networking Conferences and Other Events Professional networking conferences are a great way to both build your professional conference list and to compare your skills to those of others in your career field. These conferences will also often have seminars or workshops dedicated to professional development, and thus provide a wonderful opportunity to swiftly learn about the job skills you should add to your career toolbelt. 8. Read Professional Journals Professional journals and trade magazines are one of your best resources to keep abreast of technology developments in your industry and to track changes in best practices. By reading these regularly, youll be able to keep a running list of the rising areas where you might improve your knowledge. 9. Volunteer Volunteer to take on projects at work or volunteer at organizations where you can develop and apply the skills youre working on. Your ultimate goal should be to be able to document your key skills when you want to land a new job, gain a promotion, or justify a pay raise. Yourvolunteer work can be included on your resumejust like paid work experience. 10. Develop Both Hard and Soft Skills While its vital that you remain current on the hard skills of your profession (the job-specific skills you learned i n college or in a training or certificate program), there is always room for improvement in interpersonal soft skills as well. Take a hard look at how well you communicate with others, organize your workflow or bro space, or manage your time. If there are areas where you find yourself lacking, it may be time for you to focus on strengthening these soft skills. Additional Tips on Updating Your Skills Highlight Your Applicable Skills When Applying for JobsBe sure to reference your most relevant skills in your cover letters and resumes. Its important that what you include in your job application materials is as close a match to the job as possible Thecloser a match you are, the better your chances of getting the job. Start OverOnce you have done some or all of the above, start over. Keeping your skills current is an ongoing process. Technology is constantly changing, and your skills need to keep pace in order for you to be as marketable as possible. If you plan on spending some tim e engaging in professional development on a regular basis, youll be able to upgrade your skills without too much effort. Its easier to plan ahead than it is to scramble when youre job hunting and realize that you dont have the qualifications employers are seeking.