Dave’s Diary: Warm and Fuzzy Is Not the Way to Get the Corner Office

Look around your office. What do you see?  Lots of personal pictures and mementos? If you have designs on that big corner office someday you may want to rethink your décor.  University of Michigan researchers say too many personal items in your office can hurt your credibility.  

According to the study authors, people have a mental image of how a strong businessman should appear, and excessive reminders of his personal life undermine that perception.  Somewhere in the distance I think I hear King Leonides bellowing, “this IS Sparta!”   Maybe not quite that bad, but  after interviewing 95 MBA students, the scientists found that workers who displayed numerous personal items in their work spaces were viewed as significantly less professional than those who kept offices formal.