Why Your Dress Code Helps You Crack The Code ?

You don’t get a second chance to create a 1st impression. This statement is universal and expresses the bitter truth. Your dress code makes a statement about your personal brand. Therefore, being concerned about the dress code when you are facing interviews is absolutely critical. The dress code showcases your attitude too.

Around 47% dress inappropriately for interviews. This is an alarming statistic. It shows that the dress code does not have focus and it’s taken for granted. The proper dress code brims you with confidence, showcases your charisma and adds colour to your personality. An interview is a significant moment in life and your dress code may make or break that significant opportunity. In the previous edition, I wrote about the “Suits” TV series and the lessons we can from it. I reckon if you really want to get an idea about the proper dress code, there is no better example than “Suits”.

The dress code or attire is not only about the clothes, it’s about the perception you create in the employer. It is recommended that you be strategic in your attire.

However, there is a psychological aspect to the dress code or attire. The term we take into consideration here is “enclothed cognition”. The term describes the systematic influence clothes have on the wearer’s psychological process. Enclothed cognition is a phenomenon connected to the psychological theory that clothes have the power to impact our mood. Enclothed cognition speaks to the clothes we choose to wear influencing the way we feel, behave and see the world. The intersection of attitude and clothing is being analysed in this concept by exploring both how the wearer understands the symbolic meaning of the clothes and “the physical experience of wearing them”.

It has long been known that clothing affects how other people perceive us, as well as how we think about ourselves. It makes an absolutely effective impact when you move forward with transformative power of a well-managed image. Clothing has effects on your cognition, attitude behaviour and productivity and it goes beyond the symbolic values of clothes. Therefore, your attire affects your thoughts, decisions, emotions, motivation and expectations. They trigger the “role” we are about to play at work and trigger memory networks associated with the attire. Even if you’ve not experienced them but, they will be triggered via TV shows, celebrities, and everyday experiences.

Dressing formally enhances your cognitive functionality and it enhances your thinking capabilities. There will many light bulb moments when you are clad in formal attire.

Therefore, the phenomenon of enclothed cognition is not a term that we cannot ignore. Dressing like an executive helps you to project confidence, authority, professionalism and a positive impression.

So, dress like an executive…

Wish You Success !

Sasanka Dias