How to Get Taken Seriously in Your AmeriCorps Position
Published October 15, 2009 @ 03:43PM PT
I call it putting on my pointy shoes. At one point in my life, it was actually a pair of pointy, tan BCBG mules that I wore when meeting people for the first time or presenting at a conference. My theory? I might look like I'm 12 years old, but my shoes would remind people that I've been out of college longer than Grey's Anatomy has dominated Thursday night TV.
AmeriCorps members often struggle with getting taken seriously by colleagues and community members in the first few months of their service. I don't know if it is because AmeriCorps members don't get a traditional salary, or if it is because a large percentage of AmeriCorps members are recent college grads. Either way, AmeriCorps members serve as professionals... here area few tips on how to get treated like one:
Wear your pointy shoes. I know what you are thinking... really? Okay, they don't have to be pointy shoes, per se, but take some time to put together a clean, business casual look. You don't have to have fancy clothes (we all know you aren't getting paid enough to buy them). It's not what you wear, but how you wear it. Focus on clothes that are clean, appropriate, and one notch above what you would wear out to lunch.
Check your personal life at the door. We all have days when we want to share a part of our personal lives with our co-workers, and that is a healthy thing. However, silencing personal phone calls, curbing your Facebook time, and keeping Saturday night's funny story to yourself can all go a long way in showing that you mean business. Treat work time like it's work time and people will take you for the professional you are.
Act the part. As Dr. Phil (and later Liz Lemon) said, "We teach people how to treat us." If you want people to talk to you like you are a professional, communicate like one. If you want people to trust you, be trustworthy. If you want to be taken seriously, take yourself, your work, and your colleagues seriously, too.
And pointy shoes can't hurt, either.
Photo attribution: Flickr
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Author
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Meghan currently serves as the Project Manager for the AmeriCorps*VISTA Program at Pennsylvania Campus Compact. In 2004, Meghan served as a Corps Member in the Western Region of AmeriCorps*National Civilian Community Corps.
