Shifting from College Fashion to Corporate Fashion
College is all about self-discovery as you try and figure out who you are, what you want to be doing in the future, where you want to live etc. It’s also the time where you experiment with your sense of style, and hopefully, by the end of college, you have somewhat narrowed down what works best for you.
You No longer Dress for Yourself
When you begin work, you’ll find yourself trying to figure out the vibe of the office. Some corporations are incredibly rigid when it comes to employee work clothes. You’ll spot a lot of neutral colors, suits and pencil skirts.
Other offices are a little more flexible. They expect their employees to fit into the smart-casual category. Here you may be able to pull off skinny jeans and a flowy blouse with a pair of stilettos.
Each office is different, but they all expect you to follow their rules – you are now representing them and their brand so be prepared to make the necessary changes in your closet. Don’t wear anything that makes the company look bad.
Understanding what’s appropriate
Being experimental and risqué with your style is a lot of fun when you are in college. You can’t do the same when you’re at work.
Once you join a corporation, your goal should be to earn people’s respect and be taken seriously. For that to happen, you need be to be dressed appropriately.
Showing too much cleavage or wearing something too short can cause people to make snappy judgments about you when you are trying to give an important presentation or provide meaningful insights at a meeting.
A major part of your job is to create a positive impression amongst your colleagues and your clients; to do this, you need to carry yourself as a working professional.
Dress for the position you want to be in
As a fresh graduate, you are given a bit of flexibility when you first join a corporation. No one expects you to know the ins and outs of the job when you first enter the workforce but they do expect you to be a professional.
Your ability to carry out tasks, meet deadlines, the way you deal with people in the office are all being noted when you begin working. The way you’re dressed plays a big role in what people at work think of you. Do you want to be dismissed as just another fresh graduate or do you want to be looked at as the possible future of the company?
Studies have been conducted that prove that employees that dress for the job they want and not the one they currently have perform better in the office than those that opt for casual clothing. Dressing professionally has been associated with feeling more self-confident in the workplace and create a positive impression for others. If you’re dressed the part, people automatically have more faith in your capabilities.
You can still have your style
Even when you have to operate within a dress-code, you can still have your style. Office fashion doesn’t need to be boring and generic. Each office has at least one or two people who have successfully managed to .
There aren’t many rules to office-wear. Yes, you do not want to wear anything that sends the wrong kind of message across to your colleagues. However, that should not stop you from incorporating your style into your work outfits.
Christine Rudolph is a passionate fashion and lifestyle blogger. Currently, she is associated with a Florida based woman clothing store ‘Sophie and Trey’. Follow @RudolphBlogger to stay updated with latest fashion trends and standards.
