Ah, the good old days of Wine and Roses and Mad Men and cashmere sweaters, three piece suits, wing tip shoes, sheath dresses and three-inch high heels. In the office, that is. There was a time when you could go into a department store and ask to see the office attire, and they would direct you to an area stocked with tailored suits and dresses, alligator handbags and briefcases, leather pumps (you know what I’m talking about), and the like. I don’t think those departments exist anymore. Neither does the concept of dressing for the office.
I will admit that walking down Chicago’s Michigan Avenue in January in a snowstorm in high heels, a suit with a skirt (no pants for women) and a little pillbox hat perched on my head (and anchored with at least five bobby pins against the fierce Lake Michigan wind) is not something I would wish on today’s generation. But, once I arrived at my office on the Near North Side, I looked every bit the executive secretary that I was. Today, looking like you just rolled out of bed or left every bit of suitable clothing at the cleaners just doesn’t cut it.
When I was a supervisor at Marriott Corporation’s Headquarters in the 90’s, we introduced Casual Friday. Our mistake was not explicitly defining “casual.” I remember gasping in horror when one of my best employees arrived to work on our first casual Friday dressed in white spandex toreador pants and an orange tube top. She was casual, alright! And promptly sent home to find something casual and suitable for the office.
Today’s office attire spans several fashion genres and generations. Whatever your preference, here are three general guidelines I believe would serve any office well in the area of dressing for success:
1. Cover it up. Cleavage, butt cracks and any bare skin above knee level is not something I want to look at from nine to five. They are distracting, can give mixed signals and can awaken responses you don’t want to have to deal with.
2. Come clean. Now clean is a relative term, but perception is reality. If you are in love with your favorite plaid shirt and want to wear it hanging out and it’s OK with the dress code, fine. But how about running it through the washer occasionally and running an iron over it? Clothes that look like they sat in the dryer overnight or were just run over by an eighteen-wheeler make a negative statement about the wearer.
3. Meet the Boss. What if you were asked to sit in on a meeting for your boss? Would you feel comfortable sitting across from your biggest customer? Opportunities come when you least expect it. Even if you wear a uniform, opt for the cleaning/laundering program if it is offered. It may be less hassle to wash them yourself instead of hauling them in once a week and picking them up, but a sharp crease in the uniform pants makes a statement no matter what your position or level.
Mary Nestor-Harper, SPHR, is a freelance writer, blogger, and workplace consultant. Based in Savannah, GA, her work has appeared in "Training" magazine, "Training & Development" magazine, "Supervision," "Pulse" and "The Savannah Morning News." You can read her blogs at www.skirt.com/savannahchick, www.workingsmartworks.blogspot.com/ and on the web at www.mjnhconsulting.com.
I will admit that walking down Chicago’s Michigan Avenue in January in a snowstorm in high heels, a suit with a skirt (no pants for women) and a little pillbox hat perched on my head (and anchored with at least five bobby pins against the fierce Lake Michigan wind) is not something I would wish on today’s generation. But, once I arrived at my office on the Near North Side, I looked every bit the executive secretary that I was. Today, looking like you just rolled out of bed or left every bit of suitable clothing at the cleaners just doesn’t cut it.
When I was a supervisor at Marriott Corporation’s Headquarters in the 90’s, we introduced Casual Friday. Our mistake was not explicitly defining “casual.” I remember gasping in horror when one of my best employees arrived to work on our first casual Friday dressed in white spandex toreador pants and an orange tube top. She was casual, alright! And promptly sent home to find something casual and suitable for the office.
Today’s office attire spans several fashion genres and generations. Whatever your preference, here are three general guidelines I believe would serve any office well in the area of dressing for success:
1. Cover it up. Cleavage, butt cracks and any bare skin above knee level is not something I want to look at from nine to five. They are distracting, can give mixed signals and can awaken responses you don’t want to have to deal with.
2. Come clean. Now clean is a relative term, but perception is reality. If you are in love with your favorite plaid shirt and want to wear it hanging out and it’s OK with the dress code, fine. But how about running it through the washer occasionally and running an iron over it? Clothes that look like they sat in the dryer overnight or were just run over by an eighteen-wheeler make a negative statement about the wearer.
3. Meet the Boss. What if you were asked to sit in on a meeting for your boss? Would you feel comfortable sitting across from your biggest customer? Opportunities come when you least expect it. Even if you wear a uniform, opt for the cleaning/laundering program if it is offered. It may be less hassle to wash them yourself instead of hauling them in once a week and picking them up, but a sharp crease in the uniform pants makes a statement no matter what your position or level.
Mary Nestor-Harper, SPHR, is a freelance writer, blogger, and workplace consultant. Based in Savannah, GA, her work has appeared in "Training" magazine, "Training & Development" magazine, "Supervision," "Pulse" and "The Savannah Morning News." You can read her blogs at www.skirt.com/savannahchick, www.workingsmartworks.blogspot.com/ and on the web at www.mjnhconsulting.com.
Become a member to take advantage of more features, like commenting and voting.
Register or sign in today!