Tag: how to plan

Optimizing Your Backdrop for Professional Image and Connections

Home office decor ideas, Home office inspiration, Home office styling, Hybrid working, Interior design

AI created the featured image above after it read my post. I wouldn’t say I liked the first one it chose, but I settled on this one as the colours tied in with the green and gold that I talked about this week. This week, I’m reviewing the different themes in bookshelf backdrop styling that I do for my own shelf in my 9 to 5.

Themes for your backdrops

You can theme your shelf or backdrop beyond the colours of the books. The pictures below show how I have fallen into the trend of colour-coded bookshelves and am working to curate more meaningful staging for myself.

Consider curating talking pieces on your shelves to help you connect with colleagues. Avoid those bland vanilla Items you got because the influencer told you they look great. It might be a good idea to plan your shelf styling. You could take a picture on your phone and get the AI to rehash it to produce a simple outline like the one I did below. This might give you a sense of where the lines of the styling need altering so that they form that V shape or pyramid going across.


Image above based on photo of my bookshelf and the Android AI amended it to produce other stylised versions that I then selected.

Remember that it’s all about your personal branding (the extent to which you, in your backdrop, epitomise the organisation or company brand/ strategy), especially if you are a leader. It is also about your well-being through the social connection that can arise from extended chats about you and your curated collection. So what you place on the shelves should open up tales of your interesting travels, curious pieces of art you bought because you liked what the artist said or the strange way they made their art. There could also be pieces that tell of your scrapes and how you got through things; some examples below have those.

A green themed show. Artwork and all items connect by colours, including what I’m wearing.
Caught me in the middle of styling and pointing to placement of newest item. But other items on the shelf have been used to tell stories of fires, favourite cosmetic brands and awards I have won.
A wide angle just after I realised audience thought my bookshelf was a photo I uploaded to teams.
After some careful styling this has a white black and gold theme, with lights on.

Whatever you do with your shelves in your 9 to 5 backdrop, ensure they are on message for you. Remember, it is your home, but it also plays a significant role in your personal branding and your potential in the organisation. The way we present ourselves on camera is now as crucial as the attire we used to carefully select for meetings with the boss.

Our backdrop is our new jacket.

What do you think or do about your backdrop for meetings? Think about it if you want your professional personality to shine beyond using the standard images available in Teams and Webex. Zoom, etc.