Lowercase Letters
We were having a discussion about professionalism the other day. Being the grammar-obsessed writer I am, we critiqued a recent email. The high-up businesswoman wrote her email in all lowercase letters. Now while this may not seem like a big deal, it definitely is not professional.
Example. My friend applied for a job once and didn’t capitalize any of her words (not even the pronoun “I”). While she didn’t think it a big deal at the time, we later found out that the person who received her email immediately disregarded it because she didn’t think my friend was taking the position seriously. And that’s crazy because she’s one of the hardest workers I know.
So when I received that all-lowercase email I was immediately reminded of the situation and it really did strike me as unprofessional. Don’t get me wrong, from time to time I’ll send an all-lowercase email to a friend just because. I don’t exactly know why I do this, given my OCD with grammar, but I do. However, first impressions are oh-so-important. It’s the first meeting or interaction with someone and it’s how you may be perceived for a very long time. So what does professionalism entail?
1. Dress to impress. If you want to be taken seriously, you need to dress like it. Depending on your job, however, you don’t necessarily need to be wearing a business suit. Perhaps you can wear a cute dress with a nice, toned-down pair of heels. Or a polo with a freshly-pressed pair of slacks. You just don’t want to dress like you’re going out to a club. There’s professional and there’s plain old promiscuous. Be sure to differentiate your wardrobe.
2. Interviews. They require a ton of professionalism. Linda Matias shares some insight in her book, How to Say It: Job Interviews (Prentice Hall Press, 2007). From what to wear, to what to ask, to appropriate behavior, the book has lots to say about preparing for that fateful meeting that will have bearing on the rest of your life.
3. Grammar. In this day and age of spell-checking programs it’s pretty hard to send something out with a misspelling. But those things don’t always pick up your mistakes, especially if you write to instead of too. Proofread because a grammatical error is just as bad as not capitalizing your words. Especially in the case of a resume or cover letter, you should make sure to have others read over it as well. And be sure to address letters or emails to “Mr.” or “Ms.” It’s definitely more professional that way, as you do not know this person in an informal environment.
To be as professional as possible, be polite, concise, and put your best foot forward. It is through professionalism (and not just capital letters) that you’ll be able to succeed.
-Amanda Fornecker
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