Think budget projections, not bobble heads. If your office resembles your college dorm room, you may be kneecapping your career, says a new study from the University of Michigan.
When asked to imagine the office space of either a "professional" or "unprofessional" colleague, people tended to associate a lot of personal items--like photos of friends, joke calendars, and sports memorabilia--with a lack of professionalism. They also rated an office with few or no personal effects to be roughly three times more work-appropriate than a space littered with stuff related to private life.
Displaying an image of professionalism is absolutely crucial to success in the U.S., the researchers say. Thanks to the country's strict Protestant roots, Americans put a premium on separating work life from personal life, explains study coauthor Jeffrey Sanchez-Burks, Ph.D. "And when people aren't aware that others use this criteria to judge their professionalism, they can run into career troubles," he adds.
What's a personal item? Basically, anything that portrays your hobbies, interests, or life outside of work. You don't have to banish all of these artifacts from your workspace-- just make sure no more than 15 to 20 percent of your office is occupied by personal effects, says Sanchez-Burks, citing his study data. So for every buddy pic or signed football, you need 4 to 5 neutral or job-related items. (Plants, clocks, or landscape paintings fall into the "neutral" category.)
One caveat: The study asked experienced MBA candidates to be the judges of professionalism, and didn't break down the results based on different industries. It's possible--and probably likely--that you can spice up your office a lot more if you work in a creative role like advertising, Sanchez-Burks says.
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