A good quality business photo is an essential part of any professional’s business toolkit. I have head shots that I use for publicity, speaking engagements, on blogs, websites and in articles etc. I have a selection of 3-4 photos that I can choose from depending on the situation. So, what was I thinking when recently I put my profile up on the CrossFit Games Open site? (The 2011 CrossFit Games Open is an international event that 35 members of our gym (and over 30,000 in total) are participating in. Though only the top 3 men and women’s scores count towards the team score, the rest of us – me included – are participating for the fun* of it and to support the team.)
To register for the competition I completed my profile on the CrossFit website, like to you do on many community websites, and added a profile picture. I went into autopilot and added one of my professional shots. When I went to visit the site this week I realised how ridiculous I look. Others photos depict them in various stages of athleticism and me, I look like I’m posing for a glam business shot! See Sample Pics here:
It was a doh! moment and highlighted to me the importance of being appropriate for the context of any community that you join.
While I made a blunder that is pretty pain free (the CrossFit community won’t judge my professionalism but may judge my athleticism from this pic)… had it been the reverse, and I had a terribly inappropriate pic up on my LinkedIn or Twitter page then it COULD impact on my credibility as a businesswoman. Yet, every day I see examples of BAD photos used on professional networking sites, on article submission for our newsletter, within our very own Member Directory.
I’ve even authors who self publish using ‘home spun’ photos on their books. Yikes! It really doesn’t do you any favours to use photos of you taken at social occasions (No. You at your daughters wedding is probably NOT the right look for a corporate picture. Nor is the one with your best friend (or glass of wine) cropped out of the pic, or a blurry or badly framed picture. And, an out of date photo of a younger, smoother-skinned you can also create embarrassing moments when people DO meet you in person. [I just updated my pics in October after five years, which is too long.]) Me, I’m going to find a better photo for the CrossFit site (one that makes me look mean, lean and threatening – hmmmm, wonder if I can find one of those). At least it will be one that makes sense for this context.
What about you? What photo do you need to update? Do it this week. Suzi *The word fun is used here in the loosest possible sense. I don’t find this ‘competition’ fun. I stress each week before the designated workout and were it not for the wonderfully supporting environment at the gym I go to I wouldn’t be doing this at all. Each week should get easier though. I hope!
