Debra Benton 
With all the communication tools available to us, there is still massive mutual mystification when it comes to clearly understanding each other. Many factors contribute to that, including the languages people speak in our diverse workforce. A US Census report on findings from 2009-2013 found that sixty million Americans speak languages other than English at … Read more
Every day, all day long, each one of us “acts” for whatever role we are playing at the time: spouse, friend, parent, boss, subordinate, and so forth. It’s not that you’re faking it, rather you are learning, adapting, and taking responsibility for your effect on others. You are choosing who you want to be each … Read more
As workplaces begin to open up again, now seems like a good time to remember that, unfair though it may be, people often form impressions based solely on what they see. It’s to your benefit to avoid having a sloppy appearance at work. The following excerpt from my newest book Executive Presence For The Modern … Read more
People like to say business isn’t personal, but it is personal. All of life is people personally interacting with other people. Work is people interacting with people but with money and title attached to it. (Personal, in this post, doesn’t mean inappropriately intimate; you needn’t border on sexting.) Every interaction in business has the potential … Read more
What is your face telling the people around you? Whether it’s fair or not, people are making assumptions about you based on your facial expressions, especially if you have resting b*tch face or resting fart face. Having a resting b*tch face (RBF) certainly doesn’t mean you’re a b*tch, but that won’t stop people from assuming … Read more
It’s time to put on some real pants. Yes, your sweatpants are cozy, but in-person work and work events are happening again and unless you work in a very specific industry, you’re going to need to “up your game,” so to speak. But it’s more than just your clothes that may need changing. You have … Read more
The following is a brief excerpt from my new book, Executive Presence For The Modern Leader, available from Amazon and wherever books are sold. Emotional Intelligence Intellectual intelligence will always be important; that’s how you do your work and it’s certainly a prerequisite for leadership. But executive presence requires something more rare and more valuable: … Read more
A reputation for integrity and trustworthiness is worth whatever it may cost to build it. Integrity can make or break your career. Building trust at work makes you more likely to be promoted, motivates your peers and subordinates to follow you, and helps you stand out from the crowd. Conversely, break trust (even once) by … Read more
If you want to improve effectiveness at work, start by slowing down instead of speeding up. I was in a meeting with two executives discussing group training for some of their managers and department heads. Suddenly, a woman burst in to inform one of the executives about a change in appointments. With rapid-fire words, she … Read more
I wore a yellow dress to my mother’s funeral. It caused the wags of the relatives to whisper in disapproval but my mother had instructed me to wear it before she died. She knew I’d be sad and she wanted to remind me to be untroubled and lead a cheerful life like she had taught … Read more