Most certainly so.
Personal quirks, and especially the bad ones, have a habit of surfacing at the most inopportune time, like during a critical product presentation to a prospective client.
We also assume that we leave these troublesome idiosyncrasies at home each day and are not likely to be hassled by them at work.
Not so – they are an integral part of us and quite often, we are not even aware that we are displaying them in public.
Bad habits are probably more likely to manifest themselves in the way we conduct ourselves on a daily basis and the impact on the business is usually holistic, for example, if you are constantly tired because you watch TV into the early hours of every morning, this bad habit is going to permeate down through your entire business and will negatively impact on almost everything you try to do.
Related article: 10 Bad Work Habits to Eliminate before Becoming an Entrepreneur
However, there are also bad habits that will affect your business on a more one-on-one basis, with a customer, a partner, employee or supplier.
The problem with these more personal quirks is that in many cases the very people who are irritated by them are the most unlikely to point them out.
For that, your home partner, kids or a mentor are your only source of recourse. It is not a bad idea to ask, from time to time, those closest to you to let you in on these habits that other people may find annoying.
I don’t have any bad habits. They might be bad habits for other people, but they’re all right for me. Eubie Blake
From a customer’s perspective, these are some of the bad habits that I find most irritating.
Meaningless words and phrases
Some people giggle or laugh hysterically when nervous or under pressure. Others have the habit of repeating nonsensical words or phrases.
My two favourite irritations are “like” and “you know”.
I recently watched and recorded an interview with a local rap artist who was being interviewed about his latest release. His 74 word reply to the question “what is the piece about?” contained 15 likes and 11 you knows. Doesn’t leave much room for a rational or intelligent answer to the question.
The continuous use of “you know” by a counter clerk or sales person when describing a product or service, especially when the pitch trails off into the sunset with “well, you know”, tells me that the individual lacks detailed knowledge of the product or is not confident in their sales approach.
When someone uses this phrase repeatedly when answering a question, I am tempted to respond with “no I don’t know. If I did, I wouldn’t have asked the question.”
If you tied his hands behind his back, he wouldn’t be able to talk
Ever heard this said before?
It is used when describing someone who excessively waves their arms around or uses their hands to emphasise a point or expand on a particular topic.
For me, I find this conductor like behaviour difficult to ignore, particularly when listening to a presentation or public speaker. I get decidedly distracted.
Not managing your time and making excuses are two bad habits. Don’t put them both together by claiming you ‘don’t have the time’. Bo Bennett
Try and find something to do with your hands that does not distract the listener or hide your face from your audience.
I once attended a 3-day seminar where the lead speaker had a really bad habit of sticking his hand down the front of his trousers while he was talking– so annoying was this that many of the women attendees did not return on day 2.
Fidgeting
This includes playing with a pen or pencil or a cell phone or most irritating of all, a bunch of keys.
I always get the impression that the individual is wishing they were somewhere else or are bored by the conversation.
Not paying attention
You often hear about how a public figure “captured the room” when he or she entered or someone describing a personal interaction as “I felt like I was the only person in the room”.
The art of making people feel important and interesting.
If I am in discussion with someone (which could, from their perspective, be a boring discussion), I like to have eye contact and not have the person looking over my shoulder at other people or appearing to be more interested in the conversation going on next to them.
One sure-fire way of losing a potential customer.
Ignoring health issues
The hero – “no stupid cold is going to slow me down” as you have to sit through a monologue accompanied by endless sniffing, coughing, spluttering and throat clearing, all which makes the content being imparted difficult to understand.
Never mind the fact that you may actually be infected by the wretched virus.
If you are sick, stay at home or get someone else to attend your meeting.
Other irritations
In an article 6 Personal Habits That Can Kill Your Business; the author highlights some of the other irritating behaviours that could be annoying to your customers or employees:
“This might include the following: turning up late for a conference; wearing a T-shirt when meeting potential clients (most of us aren’t Mark Zuckerberg and can’t get away with this); chewing gum; failing to make eye contact; using too much business jargon; always going for the hard sell; tapping away on a keyboard or eating while on the phone.”
Talking to someone who is chewing gum is probably my most favourite PET HATE!
Be considerate
As difficult as it may be to acknowledge that we actually do have faults, habits and mannerisms that could be annoying to other people, if we intend to portray the most professional side of ourselves to our customer, staff, and the general public then we need to ask “a friend” to be honest and have the courage to point out the blemishes.
Once we have ended that friendship with the turncoat we can begin to focus on eliminating or minimising these demeaning handicaps.
Know of any other irritating bad habits?
Image courtesy of Flickr by Rachael Towne