Recently a mom called to book her son in for a college senior portrait. She really wanted a picture for herself, but knew he was embarking on his new career and would need a portrait for his linkedin profile and I thought to myself, how forward thinking!
It absolutely makes sense to have a professional portrait taken when you graduate college to spruce up your online presence, especially since it may be a little, shall we say….”collegiate” looking. In fact, now might be an excellent time to Google yourself and make sure that none of those late-night frat party selfies don’t show up because, YES, employers ARE Googling you!
For the College Senior Portrait shoot I recommend that they are styled with a more professional look. By all means, bring something more fashionable, but you should definitely bring a professional outfit.
A marketing executive at one of my favorite and earliest “career” jobs at a fortune 100 company once commented on my attire. I always dressed very well, and I guess it was noticed. His advice was to
“Dress for the job you want, not the job you’ve got”.
I did want my boss’ job, and since he was a lifer, there was no chance I’d ever get it, so eventually I did move on, but I always remembered Larry’s advice (and often wonder what he would think of me now as I write this in a studio t-shirt and flip-flops 🙂 ).
So college seniors, make the best impression possible! With all the noise out there you need to stand out! Get out your Sunday best, and have a professional portrait taken! Let’s get you hired!
Good luck!
