What’s appropriate in dress now? Well, the boundaries have been blurred by such factors as people being better travelled, the influence of the mass media, and the desire for comfort and greater self-expression.
Magazines, TV, movies – we are bombarded with images that can influence our clothing choices. But trend-focused magazine stylists, fashion houses and retailers are not always the best people to provide dress cues on what works for work.
As you start out and progress in your career, you need to cultivate discernment and selectively dress in ways that will present you to your best advantage.
When looking to improve your image and the way you dress at work,
- Look at the leaders in your industry, particularly in related job positions.
- Review your career and then evaluate your current image and wardrobe items.
Know what your key strengths are, where your career is and what you want to achieve. Then, objectively examine your current image and if it will help to take you forward.
Taking dress cues from top businessmen or women can be confusing. Dressing can be a very subjective thing, so there will be extremes with all sorts of dress styles in-between.
On one end, there is the classic traditional image of political leaders and government officials in typical suits, say, US President Bill Clinton, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and, locally, BG George Yeo.
At the other end are the likes of Mirosoft’s Bill Gates, Apple Computer’s Steve Jobs and successful techno-entrepreneurs like Jeffrey Yang of Yahoo!, who have made dress-down casual wear at the office part of their charisma and thus very appealing.
Standing out
By dressing out-of-the-box relative to expected standards of attire in any job, one will certainly get noticed. But being noticed for the wrong reasons does nothing for career prospects.
As a general rule, until you have attained a certain professional credibility in your company or industry, it is advisable to stick with traditional, classic dress styles.
A good tip: Take your dress cues from the management seniors in your company, then add your individuality in small measures – in the choice of ties for men, and well-selected accessories for women.
Role models for women are fewer and more diverse. On the traditional side are high-level names like US Secretary of State Madeline Albright and, locally, Mrs Elsie Foh, DBS Bank’s head of individual banking..
A more spiffy dresser is Ms Carly Fiorina, president and chief executive officer of Hewlett-Packard and the first woman ever to head a Dow 30 or Fortune 500 company.
Her classic yet contemporary image has universal appeal that transcends organization levels and travels well across national borders.
A key image quality for success-bound professional men and women is to keep your dressing style “cosmopolitan” and “neutral” for doing business in today’s global marketplace.
Make you over
Study your wardrobe and get rid of outdated, worn and ill-fitting clothes.
As you re-build your wardrobe, consider the type of work you do, your next career goal, the occasions you most often attend and the venues.
These are key considerations that will help you re-evaluate your current image and selectively adopt dress styles that make image work for you.
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