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When I came out of college in the early 80's into the white collar world, it was suit and ties. Many many years later I was working when casual Friday was first started. Now dress codes are more lenient.
I always hated the suit and tie. I felt that how I dressed was not an indication of who I was. It did not make me a better worker. Of course there are some standards. You don't want to look like an unshaven unkempt schlump. I still want to look decent at work, but I own my Company (I'm a CPA) and dress as I please. In summer a nice pair of casual shorts and a polo shirt works for me. I think I look fine, and clients don't seem to care either.
Other than not looking like a complete mess, and going out looking neat (showered, hair brushed back (unless you're bald of course), smell good (deodorant, brush teeth), how much do you really care about what one is wearing if it looks clean and neat?
When I came out of college in the early 80's into the white collar world, it was suit and ties. Many many years later I was working when casual Friday was first started. Now dress codes are more lenient.
I always hated the suit and tie. I felt that how I dressed was not an indication of who I was. It did not make me a better worker. Of course there are some standards. You don't want to look like an unshaven unkempt schlump. I still want to look decent at work, but I own my Company (I'm a CPA) and dress as I please. In summer a nice pair of casual shorts and a polo shirt works for me. I think I look fine, and clients don't seem to care either.
Other than not looking like a complete mess, and going out looking neat (showered, hair brushed back (unless you're bald of course), smell good (deodorant, brush teeth), how much do you really care about what one is wearing if it looks clean and neat?
Any place I interview if I still see a suit and tie I figure the job is similar, not really about the work but all about some people or others trying to make appearances for other people. Thus not the best of situations when you see that at a position still. It all depends, if it is just one person or something or if it looks common in that job to still be all suit and tie (many people). I never like looking like a mess, but I don't go for the work environment where people are wearing suit and tie because usually that says it isn't going to be about accomplishment but other factors in that position and those "other factors" are not on paper and not in the job descriptions.
From the "Intovert Discrimination" thread: the two subjects are related.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GravityMan
The problem here isn't introvertedness or extrovertedness or discrimination. The problem is these silly attempts by management to FORCE interaction, via environment or other methods. Social interaction is vital in most workplaces, but it tends to work a lot better when it's allowed to happen naturally. That's more likely to happen when you hire the right people in the first place...people who fit the culture and team dynamic well. Even most introverts will happily become quite social if they're in the right environment and around people they mesh well with. Likewise with many shy people. Humans are social creatures after all...very few people are truly anti-social. Trying to force interaction spaces will just make some people more unhappy and feel more pressured and awkward.
Assuming that you're a full-time "tradional" student, when you complete your bacaulaureate program, you "advance" (??) from an environment in which substance (measured in GPA) is usually far more important than form; In most of the corporate world, it's a polar opposite. You are participating in the production of a product or service of (hopefully) uniform high quality. but the market consists of a wide variety of individuals with unlimited insecurities and foibles you likely don't know about -- let alone understand or know how to handle.
So the First Ironclad Rule is "Don't Run the Risk of Offending Anyone!"; and the emphasis increases rapildly (rabidly??) in 9-to-5 professional environments such as law or accounting.
Consider, as a prominent example, the behavior of a recently-widowed dowager of sufficent means suddenly charged with new personal responsibilites in an unfamilar environment; she will often seek out the youngest (preferably male) employee who's "profressionally" dressed.
And some of us just aren't prepared to accept that quantum leap; the problem is compounded by a "straight salary" system of compensation. There are few opportunities (with the possible exception of sales-commision incentives -- anathema to many introverts) to earn additional direct pay. We're told "It will be rememberered at your next salary review", but the only thing that's likely to be remembered is some aspect of your personal style of living and working which the Masters of Conformity want to eliminate.
You have to fawn, smile, and suck your way upward, and some of us just aren't geared to that. The sociological changes of the forty years since I went to work have provided "the system"
with a much larger supply of fresh meat.
Last edited by 2nd trick op; 07-02-2016 at 11:26 AM..
I think there is a fine line. My office is really casual, but we've still had people go to far. We had a woman who was in a client-facing position who came in wearing what looked to be a see-through men's undershirt, a tube tub with colored bra straps peeking out, a really short shirt dress, etc. People wear jeans and sneakers and no one really cares, but when it gets to the point where it is indecent, then it starts to matter.
On the other hand, I worked at one place that got a new (male) agency head who changed the dressed code effective immediately. Any pants that displayed the ankle or more were not okay but women could wear short skirts, tank tops, spaghetti straps galore and that was no problem. Being in a warm climate, capris or cropped pants are completely acceptable in the workplace. There were meetings and meetings about the cropped pants, even though the affected people were for the most part non-client facing. The dress code issue was just reflective of the general environment created when he took over, which was horrible.
When I came out of college in the early 80's into the white collar world, it was suit and ties. Many many years later I was working when casual Friday was first started. Now dress codes are more lenient.
I always hated the suit and tie. I felt that how I dressed was not an indication of who I was. It did not make me a better worker. Of course there are some standards. You don't want to look like an unshaven unkempt schlump. I still want to look decent at work, but I own my Company (I'm a CPA) and dress as I please. In summer a nice pair of casual shorts and a polo shirt works for me. I think I look fine, and clients don't seem to care either.
Other than not looking like a complete mess, and going out looking neat (showered, hair brushed back (unless you're bald of course), smell good (deodorant, brush teeth), how much do you really care about what one is wearing if it looks clean and neat?
Being the Owner is way different than being the "Cog in the machine" companies have rules, some of those rules pertain to dress....Follow them or get let go....
When I came out of college in the early 80's into the white collar world, it was suit and ties. Many many years later I was working when casual Friday was first started. Now dress codes are more lenient.
I always hated the suit and tie. I felt that how I dressed was not an indication of who I was. It did not make me a better worker. Of course there are some standards. You don't want to look like an unshaven unkempt schlump. I still want to look decent at work, but I own my Company (I'm a CPA) and dress as I please. In summer a nice pair of casual shorts and a polo shirt works for me. I think I look fine, and clients don't seem to care either.
Other than not looking like a complete mess, and going out looking neat (showered, hair brushed back (unless you're bald of course), smell good (deodorant, brush teeth), how much do you really care about what one is wearing if it looks clean and neat?
I agree with what you are saying as it pertains to comfort. The suit / tie look, while comfortable for me, serves a different purpose.
It's up to you, you are the owner. That said, what you wear is important as people make quick judgements about you based upon how you look and present yourself. It's natural we only have a few minutes usually to size someone up. Personally I think shorts are too casual, the polo shirt and dress pants or khakis would be as casual as I would go in your situation.
I'd be totally fine with shorts and a polo shirt. I wear that to work occasionally (if I go to work). Usually jeans and a patterned shirt and driving loafers or something. I like to throw some color into the mix too. Then again, I work in technology, so even with my limited amount of effort, I'm usually dressed better than everyone else. But I'm in upper management, so I like to step it up a little.
Suits aren't my thing. Most guys don't wear them well anyway. They rarely look like "well dressed" guys, rather just "guys wearing suits". A few men put a little personality and color into it (shirts and ties), and it really brings them to the forefront. I like seeing that. But that's probably too nonconformist for most suit people.
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