Dress for Comfort

I'm not a writer, but sometimes I get so riled up about a subject, I have to jot my thoughts down. This is strictly my opinion, based on decades of anecdotal experience. However, I may throw out some links to actual studies that might or might not have significance, depending on your perception.

Recently, and repeatedly over the years, there has been a resurgence of the "Dress for Success" trope snaking its way in and out of business and workplace consciousness. Admittedly, I have some serious emotional reactions to this concept. 

Articles like the one above are purely anecdotal and should be tagged as opinion. There isn't a single link to a scientific study and the tone is judgmental, cavalier, and fosters a culture of exclusion. 

The idea that what you wear is an indicator of authority or influential power reminds me of how manipulative and corruptible the concept really is. For example, let's look at the concept of authority: How many of you know about the Milgram experiment? Milgram's team measured the willingness of subjects, pulled from a diverse range of occupations with varying levels of education, to obey instructions from an arbitrary authority figure, to perform acts conflicting with their personal conscience. It's scary stuff. Put on a lab-coat, a suit, or a uniform, and suddenly you're bigger than someone's conscientious objections. While this experiment happened 50+ years ago, it has been replicated again and again.

How you dress, how you look, or how you present yourself should have no bearing on your ability to be recognized for the expertise and unique perspective you deliver. If judgments made by an organization are based on your dress, you can almost guarantee that those same judgments will be made about your skin color, your gender, your background, your age, your social status, etc. Why would anyone want to work for an organization that isn't holistic?

Let me share a story from my own experience: All through my teenage years and into my 20's, my parents would tell me, "You'll never get a job looking the way you do!". At one point, my father suggested I read "Dress for Success" by John T. Molloy. I tried hard to take in what was being proclaimed in the book, but even now it still comes across as the handbook for a white, male-dominated workplace. I eventually got a job working where my father used to work. Based in a very conservative, image-oriented community (Provo, UT), I would show up to work in jeans and a t-shirt, with hair down to my belt every day. No one batted an eyelash. 

"The prize is the pleasure of finding the thing out, the kick in the discovery, the observation that other people use it [my work] — those are the real things, the honors are unreal to me. I don’t believe in honors, it bothers me, honors bother, honors is epaulettes, honors is uniforms." ~Richard P. Feynman

I moved my way up the proverbial ladder in position and salary very quickly. This went against everything I had ever been told about the workplace. Then I landed at a major financial institution. There was a bit of a culture clash. We were a satellite office far away from corporate, and we had the license to do what we do, despite corporate rules. The only time I ever put on a tie was when we flew out to corporate HQ in Omaha for orientation. That was a great 3-year stint that awarded me the biggest severance package of my career. 

In conclusion, while my experience is certainly anecdotal, so is the idea that how you dress affects your ability to succeed. Individuality, choice, passion, and results that give you a sense of accomplishment are the key indicators for one's success. There's really no concrete, measurable objective that defines success. So dress for comfort, and do what you love.

~Lucio Saverio-Eastman - Shyfrog Studio - @atonalmuse