Role Models

As seen in Catalyst Magazine
Susan Bixler's interview appeared in the April, 2002 issue.

Susan Bixler is the picture of professional cool with perfect hair and makeup, impeccably manicured nails, natty black attire and an engaging smile. She looks like the type of person you'd want on your sales team or at the helm of your Fortune 500 company.

That said, it's little wonder that Bixler has made a living for the past 22 years by teaching other people how to took the part in the workplace. After all, she founded The Professional Image in 1980, a company that specializes in corporate image development for businesses such as The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, American Express, IBM, UPS and The Coca-Cola Company. Bixler got the idea for her company when she worked for Bonne Bell Cosmetics and noticed that women changed their body language, made more eye contact and acted more confident when they put on makeup.

Catalyst Magazine"Everyone's been wounded by their image," says Bixler. "So we often have to fake it on the outside until we gain the confidence internally. That's what my whole program is based on - helping people realize their internal credentials, their competencies and the skill sets they can show on the outside immediately. Within five seconds, we make an impression. And 67 percent of those first impressions are accurate. So, if that's the case, imagine the impact a sharper, more professional sales force has on a company's bottom line."

"I'VE HAD LOTS OF MENTORS THROUGHOUT MY LIFE.
I KNEW THAT IF I DIDN'T CREATE A BOARD OF ADVISERS OR GET OTHER PEOPLE'S PERSPECTIVES, I WOULD SINK."

Bixler's five-person-strong company offers everything from books (she's penned five of them and three are still in print), to $59 CD ROMs and $20,000 executive coaching programs that teach professionals how to craft their personal brand through dress and communication.

"I've had lots of mentors throughout my life," she says. "I knew if I didn't create a board of advisers or get other people's perspectives, I would sink. You just have to be teachable and always ask for other people's advice from knowledgeable professionals."

How teachable is she? She'll even listen to her 14-year-old son. "He's his own person, has a great head for business and is good with computers," she says.

How teachable is he? Well, Bixler says, he's a typical teen.

Forty-six percent of women business owners reported
having a mentor or role model who they looked to or drew encouragement from when starting their business.

"He could care less about his hair and I wouldn't dream of buying him any clothes," she laughs. "So this is not a business he would ever want to b e in. He gets a kick out of what I do and even says, 'Mom I can't believe that people pay you to tell them what's wrong with them.' "

Bixler has franchised her business by training some 200 people to start their own companies so they can teach other people business image do's and don'ts. Two of the most popular issues: business casual and email etiquette.

"Business casual is huge right now," she says. "There's a whole gamut of things we can wear, but we need to ask ourselves: What is appropriate? At the other extreme is email. While it's created incredible efficiencies, we need to consider the context to which we use it. It's strictly for documentation and facts. Those who live and die by email will die by email. We can't be real to someone else until we show up. It's important to see faces and get a sense of the person who is sending this email. At the end of the day, we all have accountability for our own business success, so it's important to make the most of the impressions we make on other people."

Clearly, Bixler's mader her share of good impressions. -PB