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Posted by  BrendaTx on 5/4/07 12:12pm
Dressing Professionally (Long)
Posted by kcg of IN on 5/4/07 11:18am Msg #188783
I did some in-house closings for a local company recently and they had so many they brought in another notary - she was as bright and shiny as a new dime dressed in her Dockers, a bulky brightly striped sweater and her new Reboks. The LO's kept looking at her strangely. It occurred to me that some of the young notaries have never worked in an office situation and honestly do not know what "dressing professionally" really means. I'd like to offer some suggestions.
When you go into a financial institution, you will note that everyone working there is in business attire. As a signing agent, when you go into a borrower's home you are representing a financial institution. Often, you are the ONLY human the borrower will ever see and it inspires confidence in him/her when you look as though you actually work in the industry and are not the pizza-delivery person.
Footwear:
If your footwear are held to your feet by a thingy between your first and second toe it is NOT a shoe, it is a flip-flop. I don't care how many sequins, plastic flowers or pictures of Spiderman are on them....if they slap the soles of your feet when you walk, they are NOT business shoes. Also, if they bear the name Nike, Rebok or any other athletic company, again they are NOT business footwear. You may see people scurrying down the street dressed in business attire and tennies, but I can almost guarantee that they are either carrying their business shoes or they have a pair under their desk at work.
Slacks:
Business-attire slacks are not normally folded on shelves under the the Lee's or Dockers banner. They are hanging up in the section of the store where you will find tops and jackets to match. You don't have to spend a lot of money on them......JC Penney's, Kohls, etc., have an array on sale almost every day of the week. You can get a polyester blend that you just wash/dry and put back on without the need of an iron (Iron - def - a flat metal thing that, when plugged in can be used to take wrinkles out of clothes). There are other materials that business slacks are made of but they do NOT include anything held up by a string. Those are usually almost always sold in the Pajama/Loungewear section and that is just what they are. Not appropriate
Tops:
T-shirts are unacceptable. Doesn't matter how much you paid for that diamond-studded shirt that says "Spoiled", "B$$CH" or "I'm With Stupid" ....it's a T-shirt. Invest in a couple nice tops or blouses to match those ever-so-lovely polyester blend slacks or skirts. No, this is not the outfit you would wear to meet friends at the mall or the local bar but hey, you're working - representing a financial insitution, not playing. Also remember that you are NOT auditioning for Girls Gone Wild or to play a CSI agent on tv running from lab to lab solving crimes with your boobies hanging out. No need to have Mr. B's eyes glaze over while he concentrates more on your cleavage than the papers and Mrs. B would appreciate it also.
Grooming:
Along with lack of deoderant, greasy hair and armpit hair hanging out, nothing says "I'm simply NOT into personal grooming" more than chipped fingernail polish. Look at your nails before you dash out the door.....if the polish is chipped, fix it BEFORE you go to your signing. If you have no polish on and your nails have dirt (eww) under them, CLEAN them. Your hands are on display constantly during the signing. Remember, you are going for that professional look, not the grunge look. 4-inch decorated nails? Well, I won't even go there.
Makeup is a choice.....if you have lovely skin and can get by without wearing it and not have people (as in my case) say..."oh, you look so tired" or "oh, don't you feel well", then you're fine. I personally feel it completes my look - also I don't scare people when I'm wearing makeup.
If you are clean and have used your deoderant, then there is no reason to douse yourself with so much perfume that the borrowers pass out or have to fumigate when you leave. Some people have allergies to perfume - be considerate.
Don't wear clothing to try and show off all your tattoo's. Most of the borrowers are middle-aged or older......they are NOT impressed. In 10-20 years when EVERYONE on this planet has tats, then it'll be a different story. Also, ease up on the "bling" - it's pretty distracting for the borrowers.
Perhaps if we can all dress professionally, the companies we work for can stop sending pages of instructions on HOW to dress. And can concentrate on getting those docs corrected before they send them to us.....and can concentrate on paying us in a timely fashion....and.........
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