In my experience as a student leader, a cold start private practitioner, an employer and as the director of several professional programs, one thing that frustrates me on a regular basis is a lack of etiquette. I’m not sure when this went by the wayside, but with the job hunt in full swing for many new graduates, I thought it timely to provide tips on preventing some top etiquette offenders.

1 USE EMAIL WISELY

To start, a “.edu” email address or addresses like “jedimaster1999@aol.com” are not going to make potential employers take you seriously. Set yourself up to be treated like a doctor from day one with a professional email address.

Second, reply to emails within two days. Wait a week to provide answers regarding experience for an associate position, and you’re sending the message, “you’re just not that important to me.” We all have our phones on us 24/7, for better or worse, so don’t delay.

Last, but not least, if the person who sent you an email copied other people, please reply all. It’s a pain as the sender to have to forward your replies to the others copied on the original email and then add them back in the email thread.

2 USE CORRECT GRAMMAR

“It’s,” “its,” “you’re” and “your.” Yes! Grammar matters! If I receive an application that contains spelling or grammatical errors, I don’t consider the candidate who sent it.

For me, as is the case with the practice of optometry, attention to detail is everything.

3 ALWAYS ASK FIRST

One of the most awkward phone calls I ever received was from a loan officer who said a friend of mine listed me as apersonal reference on her home loan application.

At first, I thought the caller was someone trying to steal my friend’s identity. Once I made a fool of myself about this suspicion, the legitimate loan officer asked the worst question possible: “Is she good with budgeting her income?”

This non-optometry friend is phenomenal in all other areas of life besides money. If better prepared for the call, I could have come up with an answer that sounded good without lying. But having been put on the spot, I just chuckled at the question!

The lesson: Always make sure that those you list as references have been asked first. This not only shows respect, it also prepares them to be contacted, so they won’t be caught off-guard by questions and, therefore, possibly hurt your chances.

4 DRESS THE PART

If you haven’t seen the TLC show, “What Not to Wear,” I highly recommend it, just once, so you can see what your wardrobe says about you.

• Some simple general rules I’ve come across:
• Dress for your body type.
• Clothes should appear neat.
• Cleavage isn’t cool – for women or men.
• Keep hair out of your face.
• Statement pieces, like a bangle bracelet or a bright pocket square, are encouraged as long as they aren’t overdone.

Leave the flip flops and hair extensions at home, iron your suit, and prepare to impress! It’s not difficult, it’s just etiquette. OM

DR. O’BRIEN started her private practice cold in Denver. She is heavily involved in private practice student programming with Optometric Insights, the Vision Source MentorOD Program and, most recently, began working with iCare Advisors to help others pursue their cold start private practice dreams.