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Maintaining Your Professional Identity

On Paper

  • Keep your resume updated with your accomplishments – but always remember to edit irrelevant items before applying to a new job. 
  • Keep all copies of performance reviews, thank you notes, and any other items you feel best represent you as a professional.   
  • Practice responsible emailing and use of company electronics.  Everything you do is recorded online and in files.  You do NOT have a right to privacy at work, therefore it’s best to keep everything you do professional. 
  • Keep a list of references and contact information so you don’t have to scramble when a prospective employer asks you for info.   
  • If it doesn’t violate company confidentiality rules, keep physical copies of projects you are proud of. 
  • MySpace and Facebook have their place and time, but even if your profile is kept private it’s easy for employers to find out “what you did last summer.”  If your online personality is better suited to reality TV than to reality itself, delete it.  This doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to have an interesting life outside the 9-5, you just can’t advertise it in neon lights.

In Person

  • Always arrive at work on time and dressed professionally
  • When mistakes happen, as they will, don’t “pass the blame” onto your coworkers.  If you do this you appear to be avoiding responsibility and wasting time.  It’s far more productive to address the issue at hand immediately and take action to correct it. 
  • Conduct yourself professionally.  Keep talk about your personal life to a minimum. 
  • Curtail your alcohol intake at company functions.  What you do at the annual holiday party or networking event CAN hurt you, personally and professionally.  It’s best to let loose in the company of close friends and family, not your boss and your boss’s boss. 
  • Introduce yourself frequently at networking events and conferences.  Making contacts in your field is essential to building your career. 
  • Volunteer for projects frequently as long as additional work will not interfere with your primary responsibilities.