You Look…Interesting…
Years ago when I was doing marketing work for a DuPont division, a professional woman would never enter the building without wearing a pair of stockings. It just wasn’t done. But as one law firm CEO explained to me, the whole dress code thing went South during the dot.com boom/bust. All those confident, rich, brilliant tech entrepreneurs dressed like they just rolled out of bed (the better to signal how confident, rich and brilliant they were) and all of their business associates followed “suit.” On this post-Memorial Day work week, you might want to look around your office to fully appreciate how low down South can really be.
There are times when I’ve walked into a company and I couldn’t tell the maintenance man from the CEO. Clothes just don’t convey status anymore. I guess that’s OK (if you’re a Communist). But I look at clothes differently.
I see them as a sign of respect.
A personal brand.
A professional wrapper that hints of the capability inside.
Edith Head, the famous Hollywood costume designer, said, “You can be anything you want in life if you dress for it.”
Dress is very aspirational. That’s why it’s so depressing to see “street” fashion creep into the workplace.
A lot of it is decidedly downward bound.
The unspoken rule used to be: dress like your customers. Well, a lot of your customers today are wearing flip flops, torn jeans, and shirts open-down-to-there (and that’s just the men!).
Actually, I had great hopes for men’s fashion when fictional ad man, Don Draper, walked on the scene in the TV hit, Mad Men. Not only did he look impossibly handsome but he looked in charge, in control (even though he was anything but). His clothes became shorthand for the man he wanted you to see, to listen to, to dine with, to do business with.
I was recently at a women’s leadership conference where the (female) speaker suggested that women channel Don Draper when they are making a presentation. Stand tall, shoulders back, arms apart, dressed to kill (I added the last point…).
I could relate hundreds of incidents where I’ve been on the receiving end of more attention, better service, a special favor, an upgraded hotel room, more wine, a corner table, extra samples, discounts, and most importantly, business contracts, because of the way I presented myself.
“Dress” -- and everything that implies -- had a great deal to do with it.
Summer is a particularly dicey time when it comes to casual dress codes at the office, especially for women.
Men offend by looking sloppy, ready to clean-out the garage. But for women, it’s too easy to push the limit with sundresses, sandals, halter tops, bare midriffs (the new craze) and short skirts.
In this “dress down” business world we live in, it doesn’t hurt to differentiate yourself with a polished, professional appearance.
You don’t want to overdress if you know your customer’s going to be wearing a golf shirt and khakis. But do dress to give the impression that your encounter with them is an important one.
So, fuss a little.
In a piece for Forbes.com, writer, Scott Reeves suggested you keep in mind three basic points when buying dress-for-success clothes for the office:
1. Presentation counts.
2. Casual shouldn’t mean slovenly.
3. Dress as you want to be seen:
Serious, professional, upward-bound and ready to meet customers.
In other words:
Clothes make the man.
Style makes the woman.
Appropriate wins the day.
Anita Alvare (bio)/Alvare Associates/610-520-6140
Comments (5)
05.28.2014
Beke Beau
Yes, “dress for the life you want, not for the life you have”.... great piece.
05.28.2014
Neal Zoren
So astute—and entertainingly expressed—as usual, Anita. I walk past shop windows and say, “Iron that suit” or “what trash.” I think movie stars are as responsible for the decline as dot.com execs, but the world is uglier. As I say in a recent review, I miss the clothes of Doris Day.
05.28.2014
Rebecca Lyles
I couldn’t agree more! This trend has lapped over into church, where I’m sometimes appalled at the way people dress. Shorts, flip-flops, tank tops ... it’s a matter of respect for the place and the occasion. These people would say, “God doesn’t care how I dress and loves me anyway.”
Perhaps, but must we make Him try so hard?
05.29.2014
Renee Chesler
Bless you for writing about this topic. Personal branding is important…and the way you dress creates an instant “first impression” because you are seen before you are heard.
05.30.2014
Kaye Lewis
I am a communication professor and stress that not only do our verbal messages have an impact but those all important non verbal messages (wardrobe included) are even more powerful and “speak” very loudly!
Great wordsmith! Glad that my dear friend Mimi Winder Hollway directed me to your site