There is a dress code for every occasion – for casual gatherings, for parties, and also for work. The last thing you want to do is wear the wrong outfit to the wrong occasion.
If you want to climb up the career ladder, you have to be on top of everything. Your speech must be perfect, your performance, your determination, and also your presentation.
You will attract respect and reliance from your colleagues and managers if you know how to dress the part, because how you keep yourself together says a lot about you. A person who is always put together exudes a vibe that they can handle anything.
So here are a few tips on how you can look like a real career mogul and impress the heck out of everyone!
- Keep It Plain and Simple
It is better to keep things professional and simple at work. A white blouse with a black skirt can look more professional than a red blouse with a black one.
You want to maintain your color coordination to simple shades of white, grey, and black. You may look boring, but it will demand respect from your peers.
Just like your clothes, tie up your hair into a sleek ponytail or bun. Unless you have short hair, never go to work with your hair down.
Keep the color of the hair tie to the simple shades of black, white, and grey. The same goes for your shoes.
Your nails should be done with neutral nude colors. Also, avoid cakey makeup. Some mascara, light foundation, and nude lipstick are enough.
- Stay Polished and Clean
If you are not apt at grooming etiquettes, take a short course on it before you join the white-collar industry. People in big industries always look polished, because they understand how important it is to look groomed.
Career moguls always take time to pamper themselves in the spa, saloon, or the gym. You need to look respectable and trustworthy if you are to be able to convince clients and customers to work with you.
Hence take care of your body, and wear neat and clean clothes to work. Keep your nails and hair clean. Trim your hair and wax your skin often.
- Dress According to the Job Requirement
Unless you are in the fashion industry, you don’t have to dress up to stand out. But a little creativity is essential no matter which job you currently have.
Even if you hold a lower title at work, don’t sell yourself short. Maintain proper dress etiquette and excellent work performance, and you will be climbing the ladder in no time.
On the other hand, if you are a manager or someone above, be an example for your subordinates. Don’t show up to work looking shabby because you were running late.
- What Not to Do
A little accessorizing never hurt anybody. You can wear a small pair of earrings, a headband, a ring, or a watch to work.
But don’t wear all of that at the same time. Avoid large and bright accessories.
Additionally, don’t enter the workspace smelling like you just bathed in perfume. Use scented body lotion and body mists to keep things light and fresh.
Crazy colors are not acceptable – not on your face, hair, nails, shoes, or clothes. Save these for the weekends.
- Your Clothes Need to Fit You
Transform your wardrobe before you start your career. If you have everything neatly organized, you won’t stress every morning before going to work.
In addition, tailor your outfits to fit you perfectly according to your current body shape. Overly large or overly tight clothes can make you look disorganized, and unprepared, whereas the industry needs the opposite.
To make you look put together in your professional attire Faveable suggests you slip a shapewear under your clothes, especially for pencil skirts and tucked in blouses. Stick some foot gel pads in your pumps to feel less pain in heels.
- Don’t be Provocative
Yes, you want to stand out from the other members of your team. That does not mean that you should be vulgar and loud just to get noticed by the managers.
Wearing piercings, having bright-colored hair, wearing plunging necklines, short skirts, tattoos, exposed bra straps, insanely long nails and eight-inch heels are all considered provocative and inappropriate in the work environment.
First and foremost, you are working so you can sell your talent. If your talent is in the creative sector, you should work in that type of industry. If you feel like the company you’re in is suffocating you or its values are not coinciding with yours, it’s time to switch.
- Your Bag Reflects Your Personality
The type of bag you choose to carry to work says a lot about you. The shape, the color, the texture and the brand – they all reflect who you are.
Even how you keep things inside your bag demonstrates whether you are organized and clean, or otherwise.
Keep the content in your bag light, so that you don’t look like you’re struggling when you’re carrying it around. Choose a good brand so that your co-workers have an upstanding impression of you.
Moreover, make sure that your shoes match your bag. You will look like you know what you’re doing.
- The Right Pantyhose and Eyewear
Your pantyhose can cover up the little hair on your legs if you didn’t get any time to shave in the morning. Additionally, it will make your legs look sleek and smooth under your skirt. Stick to nude colors though.
Besides, be careful with your eyewear as well. Make sure it fits you, and you are not uncomfortable having it on for hours. As for eyewear, stick to black or brown colors.
Lastly, if you wear contacts, please don’t show up to work in unusually colored contacts like bright blue, emerald, or violet.
Final Thoughts
Building your career can be a fun process, if you are in the right job. Your career should definitely reflect who you are as a person.
If putting on ties, and dressing up in black and white plain shades is not for you, you should reconsider your career choice. On the other hand, if you thrive in the codes your company has set up for you, you found your destiny!
Whichever industry you are working in, make sure to set up your wardrobe accordingly. You are representing to the world your authentic self.