Stand Out from the Rest: Dress the Part ? Five O'Clock Club

There have been many volumes written, and seminars given, about how to dress properly for interviews. Believe it or not, John Molloy?s Dress for Success has been around for 35 years! But I?m surprised that so many people haven?t gotten the message. They still find a way to be too casual in job-search situations. Within the last year, I conducted a little research of my own. Here are some examples.

At a summer networking meeting of more than a hundred people, about 60 percent of attendees wore blue jeans and many wore T-shirts or skimpy tops. About 20 percent of the women wore sundresses and only about a third wore closed-toed dress shoes (most opted for flip-flops or sandals). In fact, I would say that not even 10 percent wore business attire; only about 20 percent were in what could honestly be called business casual attire. Yet everyone-everyone-reported that they were looking for connections to a job.

?What are the employability assumptions you make about people, based on? the way they dress??

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At the end of the summer, I was sitting in the waiting area of a temporary employment agency. There were seven women in the room and two men, including myself. I was the only one dressed for business. Three of the women wore thin, very brightly colored and flowing blouses better suited for a night club. One wore clothes so tight that you could tell?.well, I won?t say more. The other man had on a wrinkled, collared golf shirt and chino-style pants. I was curious enough to ask why they were there: everyone was applying for a professional office position.

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?When we ask for assistance, we need to give the best impression possible.?

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The Spirit of the Times

America has become a very relaxed culture. We tend not to hold doors open for others, greet passers-by with a simple

?I would?ve dressed better, but my tie was dirty?

?hello?, and or say ?please? or ?thank you? as often as we should. Given this easy-going attitude, dress-down Fridays, and summer work hours, too many people have forgotten that, when we ask for assistance, we need to give the best impression possible. And a very important component of the first impression is the way we look.

The best advice a job seeker can remember, to overcome the urge to go casual or dress down, is always put yourself in the shoes (no pun intended) of your prospective employer. Ask yourself, ?If I saw me dressed like this, would I hire me?? This won?t help if you?ve totally adopted the casual mindset, but look around you: What are the employability assumptions you make about people, based on the way they dress in different public situations? If you were the hiring manager, would you be inclined to interview them based on these impressions? One CEO/President who attended the summer networking event referenced above, commented that he would consider interviewing only about 10 of the people at that meeting, based solely on what he saw. How many opportunities do job seekers miss out on because of their casual approach to dress?

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?It is much easier to dress correctly for the situation than to change someone?s first impression.?

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Look the Part?for Your Next Job and Beyond

Remember this bit of wisdom from one of the Five O?Clock Club books, Shortcut Your Job Search: The Best Ways to Get Meetings: ?How you act and dress is also important to your image. Look like you?re worth the money you would like.? Career coaches often recommend that candidates dress at least one step higher than appropriate for the position they?re interviewing for. Show that you are worthy of the position and possibly more. You want to be sure that the people you meet have a positive impression of you. This may mean dressing a little more nicely, but appropriate for the event, than you may otherwise dress.

There are also lessons to learn from communication research. It is widely accepted that roughly 55 percent of communication takes place visually, by the cues we receive through our eyes. Thus how we look may count for more than what we say or what people see on our r?sum?s. While we cannot completely control another person?s perception of us, we certainly can control how we look and behave in their presence, so it?s largely up to us if we will be perceived in a positive light.

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?How we look may count for more than what we say.?

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What is the lesson here? Always consider what others will think about you when you?re out in public ? you never know who you might run into! When going to the store or running errands, it may be easier to leave on the sweat pants and tank top ? but don?t.? Take a moment to put on clean, neat casual clothes ? even clean jeans look better than dingy, ill-fitting sweat pants.

When attending networking meetings the minimum standard would be business casual, but you may want to step it up a level to stand out from others. I know of at least one person who always attends networking events in a suite, or sports coat and tie, and he is widely regarded as a very professional person.

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An Interview Is a Business Meeting

An interview always requires business attire. Aren?t there some settings in which casual would be okay? Maybe, but be very sure about the setting, dress codes and expectations before showing up for an interview in casual dress.

For most interview situations, keep your clothes conservative (in most cases a suit) and dark colors (but not black) with white blouses or shirts. Be sure your clothes are clean, pressed and neat. Always wear dress shoes, not sneakers, sandals, all-weather boots or flip-flops. It is easy to make business attire more casual by rolling up sleeves, loosening a shirt collar or removing a jacket; but you cannot dress up casual attire if you don?t have the jacket or tie with you in the first place! Wear clothing that fits properly; otherwise you may present an unkempt image. The increasingly popular tattoos and piercings should not be visible.

Remember: consider what the employer is learning about you just from the way you look. How will this impact getting the desired results from a meeting or event?

It is much easier to dress correctly for the situation than to change someone?s first impression. Let?s all dress to impress!

Source: http://fiveoclockclub.com/2013/02/stand-out-from-the-rest-dress-the-part/

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