15 ways you’re undermining your credibility

Being passed over or dismissed? You can ask people why but they’ll rarely come up with anything tangible, anything you can actually DO about it.

If you’re looking for reasons, for not being taken seriously, here are 15 of them.

Which ones are you guilty of?

1. Your point is unclear. People are left guessing why you’re talking or what you’re getting at.  Mangle your storytelling and make your point confusing or abstract.
2. Your body language isn’t in line with your words. We naturally use gesture in tandem with vocal emphasis thus if you don’t, you’ll not seem to have that much conviction.
3. Unclear pronunciation. This isn’t always to do with accents (although I personally need subtitles with some Glaswegian ones).  I’ve referring to sloppy speech that needs captions, not the odd dropped ‘t’.
4. Too much mass email communication: 4 emails a day Inc weekends? When you really have something important, no one’s listening.  Making your email habitually impersonal means looks like you’re not really interested in the individual.
5. Don’t use silence. You fill your pauses with ums and ahs, sounding uncertain.
6. Oversharing.  Oh lord, people are doing this more often than ever in the swirling pile of debris that pops out of social media.  Even when your personal revelation or that piece of gossip is interesting, you risk compromising the esteem in which others may hold you.
7. You don’t follow through on your commitments. This erodes trust. Without trust, you can’t sustain either personal or professional relationships.   Also, if you can’t stick to your commitments, why should anyone else?
8. Fidget. Stroking your hair, rubbing your neck insecure, and any other self-grooming gestures give you that air of insecurity.
9. Make your voice shallow and high by speaking from the thorax, in the upper chest.  This minimises vocal power and depth.
10. Don’t show physical engagement. Slump, Lean back.  This body language is a double whammy because this can diminish your status.  Look away while the other person is speaking for that extra touch of disinterest.
11. Don’t remove distractions.  Have all your notifications on so there are more bleeps than a metal detector in a steel works.  Keep your phone face up so you can see all your messages and alerts. Ensure doors are all open and the dog is both hungry and needs a walk.
12. Uptalk to make everything sound like a question. If the voice drops at the end, you’ll sound decisive, and why risk that?
13. Lack projection. If we can’t hear you, then no one can criticise what you’ve said, right?
14. Apologise. For everything. All the time.
15. Mock yourself. If you laugh at yourself, you’re permitting others to do the same.

Hang on…some of these things are OK at times, aren’t they? Like which?  Answer in the comments below…

Your Action Steps:

1. Identify maximum two of these traits that you may do – when you really want to be taken seriously.
2. Do the opposite.

What if you don’t know how to do the opposite or if you don’t know what the opposite actually is?  Contact me here or put your question in the comments.

Want to increase your impact face to face as well as remotely??  Explore your options.