By John DiPietro

What you look like speaks so loud that what you say, I can't hear! That is a powerful statement. And it has so many different implications.

When you enter a room, regardless of your purpose, you are judged INSTANTLY by your appearance. It is not possible for another person to remain neutral in their opinion of you after they see you. This can work to your advantage or to your disadvantage. Its all up to you.

There are two aspects of what the visual signal contains. First, people notice how you "carry yourself." Do you walk into a room appearing like a dog walking with their tail between their legs? Meaning they are timid, intimidated and afraid. Or do you exude an air of confidence when you enter an area or presentation space. Do people move out of your way when you walk in a crowd or do you get pushed and shoved and deterred from reaching your destination? Keep in mind that there is a very fine line between an air of confidence and conceit. Its a line not to cross. So, be aware of what signals you may be giving off when people spot you for the first time. You want it to be positive.

The second aspect is the clothing you wear. Are you dressed appropriately for the occasion? Are you overdressed or under dressed for the function? One rule of thumb you may want to remember is that you should find out the attire of the group and dress one level above them, if you are speaking from a stage. If you are presenting to a group at a conference table, then you should mirror their dress.

A few issues that people often overlook are their footwear, their hairstyle and the time of day they are presenting. Let's look at each aspect. First, footwear. If you are wearing a very expensive suit with a cheap pair of shoes, then the value of your look is brought down by the shoes. Often men wear shoes that are not polished or are the wrong color or have holes in the sole of the shoe. What is the message that this appearance sends? Not positive for sure!

Next, hair style. Women run the risk of appearing unprofessional if they spend considerable time moving hair from their face during the presentation. This appearance screams "teenager" to the rest of the group.

The third element is time of day of the presentation. If you are presenting in the morning, you are usually not too far removed from your personal grooming routine, Hair is combed, make up is freshly applied and have a close shave. However, if you are presenting in the afternoon, several other factors need to be considered. What did you have for lunch? Is there an odor from the restaurant you had lunch at? Did you consume something that could give you bad breath? Do you smoke and the smell of smoke is a distraction from your presentation? The final point, which I am noticing is more of an issue lately is for men who appear to need to shave again at 5 pm. So, if you have a heavy beard, and are making an afternoon presentation, it is wise to check to see if you need to shave again. A heavy beard growth oftentimes referred to as the "five o'clock shadow" can be a turn off. Invest in a portable shaver that you have easy access to.

What you say is very important, but what people think of you BEFORE you speak your first word is vital in determining the success of your presentation!

Let me invite you to learn more about the fascinating world of social networking. John DiPietro is the author of YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE PERFECT TO BE GREAT and speaks world-wide to companies and trade associations about increasing their productivity. He has over seven MILLION connections on LinkedIn. He suggests you learn to master LinkedIn too. Find out more at http://bit.ly/3ZjPqV.

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Tags: appearance, public speaking