Yesterday’s post, when I reviewed it today, seemed incomplete and wishy-washy. So I’m making a stand. Here’s how I really feel about professional attire.
When we talk about fashion, or when we choose to engage in it, we’re choosing to wear something that shows other people something about us. When an organization requires a uniform, what it communicates [both to insiders and outsiders] is that it values uniformity [and as a result, interchangeability] over individuality. Put simply, the work you bring to the table is second only to your willingness to toe the uniform line and shape up—in some cases, to extreme and ridiculous extents. [Example: I have a friend whose former office forbade sandals. When she broke her toe and her cast wouldn't fit inside a shoe, she showed up with a sandal on the injured foot. She was sent home with a reprimand for violating company policy because, as the HR rep said, "I can't play favorites. If you can wear a sandal, that means everyone else should be able to as well." Ridiculous, hmm?]
Business professional dress is merely a watered-down version of the uniform – a uniform cloaked in an image of flexibility, but deceptively restrictive. The amount that it’s watered down, of course, depends on the workplace. Some offices forbid bright colors. Some forbid heels over two inches. Most frown upon unnatural hair colors or excessive cleavage on display. But only in rare cases does violating the dress code mean you actually can’t perform your necessary office functions. [For the sake of simplicity, let's leave out industrial jobs here. I definitely don't recommend wearing heels to work in a factory or at a construction site.] So it boils down to a question of etiquette.
…which is about making sure everyone knows the rules of behavior so everyone knows what’s expected of them, and what to expect from one another. But many of etiquette’s other rules have long gone. When was the last time any of you wrote a thank-you note? Not an email, but a physical note? How many women were wearing Little Black Dresses at the last wedding you were at? And when do you ever use the shrimp fork to pick up your scampi appetizer? Likewise, no one wears hats and gloves on public transit [unless it's freezing]. No one changes dresses between afternoon and evening. Most men don’t have a wardrobe of suits for each season. So why the entrenchment of a sartorial dictatorship within the office walls?
Professionalism encompasses a lot of things, and dressing the part is just one of them. But the rest—getting your work done, respecting your colleagues and your clients, creating solutions and not excuses—is the important part. I’m not Joan Holloway; I’m not paid to serve as office eye candy. And as such, I will continue to push the boundaries with bright colors, crinolines, bows and flounces, painted nails, and big hair…at least until this contract is up, and I can go back to working from home wearing whatever the hell I want.
What do you wear to work? Do you enjoy it? What would you wear, if you could choose anything?
Related posts:
- Business Professional Dress: WTF?
- Why Fashion Matters
- My Ideal Uniform
- A Reiteration: Why Fashion Is Important
- Six Items or Less
