Am I sending mixed signals to people?
This is a great question. We in the working world could be sending mixed signals to individuals. It could be done intentionally or not. Most of the time some will dress a certain way to get some attention from others, changing behaviors around some co-workers to become a smooth operator or feeling needy to get what you want. This can lead to cheating, but also can send a bad image to that individual. You can try to smooth your way in the corporate world, but you need to realize a few things.
Corporate world is always changing you can have people you are working closely with that will be moving to other positions or living the company. If you are the one sending those kinds of signals to individuals that are working with you directly and indirectly you should be careful while people around you could be moving out of their position you could be left behind. This could open a new door of challenges. You could become the target of someone else that will make your working life uneasy. You are not going to be able get away with everything. Instead you are becoming accountable for your job performance.
The corporate world is like a fishbowl, people are watching each other spending their time keeping taps on “whose doing what”. You could become the target of someone’s wrath if he/she feels you are a “threat” to them because of your intelligence or other attributes. But you will also become someone’s target if you are acting improperly, by the way you dress or your gestures to other co-workers.
Navigating the corporate world can be challenging. But we need to be able to keep our integrity without sending mixed messages. We are not on a fashion runway neither are we here for the bachelor or bachelorette show.
We can act friendly without crossing someone else’s boundaries. We can dress appropriately without looking like we are from the eighteenth century or rock stars.
Sending mixed messages will not get you where you need to be. But you could land in unwanted situations that you created. Remember the pendulum effect? What you are sending out will come back to you.
My question for you today is: What signals are you sending out today in the world?