What does casual Friday attire say about your image?
If you are dressing too casual, you may be perceived as lazy, careless, or sloppy. These are not positive images. When you are getting dressed, take a moment and consider how others will perceive you. Think about people you have met over the years who did not dress appropriately for work. They stand out (and not in a good way). I remember being at a business meeting where one woman said during an ice breaker that she pole danced. Her outfit had a very revealing mid-drift. It was very hard to take her seriously with the proclamation of her social activities in combination with her attire.
By the time Friday rolls around, many professionals are in count down mode until the weekend begins. As a member of a rotational leadership program, I get to spend every 6 months in a new office. From my observations, most offices are the same—by the time Friday rolls around, people want to come to work dressed down, do the minimum amount of work, and then call it a day (the earlier the better). Of course, this is not always the case—but it happens frequently. Gen Y professionals who are conscious about the image they project, should be cautious when deciding whether to dress down for Friday or be consistent in their dress every day of the week. Consider those professionals in your office who dress up every day. Are they respected and admired? Do they seem more professional than those who dress down on Fridays?
When deciding how to dress on Friday, consider the rules of your office dress code. Is your office business casual or business professional? If people are dressing business professional, changes are your casual Friday outfit should be pretty polish. If your office dress code is business casual, you should still look professional, although you may be able to relax your style.
Casual Friday Office Dont’s
No flip-flops or crocs. Even if you have the cutest pair of flip-flops that seem dressy—they are not appropriate for work. Leave the Crocs at home. Yes, they are comfortable but garden shoes are not work appropriate.
No visual tattoos or piercings. Keep your tattoos and piercings to yourself. Put your tramp stamp away. Seriously. Nothing says unprofessional more than seeing Tweedy Bird hanging out from your Capri pants or a butterfly hanging over your no-no areas.
Don’t wear inappropriate jeans/pants. Throw ratty jeans away so you will not be tempted to wear them to the office. Don’t let your jeans hang too low. Don’t wear jeans that are too baggy.
Don’t be too revealing. When a woman puts on a shirt standing up, it may fall very well and look great. However, do a sitting test to make sure cleavage is not too revealing. Make sure your shirt doesn’t ride up when sitting down.
No wrinkles. Throw some water into your iron and make sure your clothes are wrinkle free every day of the workweek.
If you are mindful of how you are perceived, you should be able to avoid being perceived as sloppy, lazy, careless or overly casual any day of the week.
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April 25th, 2008 at 9:28 am
I know my attitude about work dress is unusual, but the only time I dress casually for work is when I have no other clean clothes to wear — and then I still throw in something like heels or pearls to offset the jeans. I’ve noticed that dressing professionally affects my attitude at work, putting me on that “I’m-on-a-mission” mode and making me more productive. And as you mentioned, others perceive me as being more competent. (And it never fails: The day I wear jeans I’ll run into an important client or my boss will introduce me to a key contact.)
Andrea Emerson
http://christianprofessional.blogspot.com
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April 25th, 2008 at 12:45 pm
@ Andrea-
Great points. Dressing up does make you feel like your on a mission. In regards to running into important clients or new key contacts, you give the perfect example of why it’s good to say dressed well every day of the week.
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April 26th, 2008 at 3:18 pm
There are some GREAT basic tips in here. I will probably toss this up on my blog with a link back to you!
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April 27th, 2008 at 7:09 am
Jennifer -
Forbes just did a article on this called “What not to Wear”:
http://www.forbes.com/leadership/2008/04/23/work-office-attire-lead-careers-cx_tw_0423bizbasics.html
Here’s the lead-in:
“As the temperature rises each spring, so do hemlines. And as they rise, necklines plunge. Many uncomfortable conversations can be avoided by asking a simple question: Do I want my boss gazing at my cleavage? Even worse, do you want a view of your boss’ upper thigh?”
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April 28th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
I LOVE this post! I work for a large tech-company with a very casual dress code. Things tend to get crazy in the summer - especially with the low cuts tops! Ladies - wear a white tank top underneath.
I would also like to add that casual friday is not a time to wear your three-inch gold platform sandals - no matter how decent the length of your skirt. My vote is to keep heels to three inches or less, particularly if you’re not wearing pants.
Thanks again for the great post! For those who haven’t heard the timeless advice that has often served me well: “Dress for the job you want, not the job you have.”
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April 29th, 2008 at 6:48 am
Dan: Thanks for the link to the Forbes article. Nothing is more awkward than catching management’s eyes wander to wear it shouldn’t.
Jenny: Love the quote, “Dress for the job you want.” It’s personally motivation to me!
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April 29th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
At my company the dress is business casul Monday through Thursday and casual on Friday. Some people fail to remember the business aspect during the week and are one item removed away from being at the club, bar or in their house-clothes, especially women. For those who get it right, I actually feature them on my blog feature, Style From the Cube.
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July 7th, 2008 at 9:32 pm
One compliment that seems to follow me as I travers through the professional arena is that I’m the best dressed Engineer that many have seen. I consider the workweek from Monday-Friday, so I dress with class from Monday to Friday. I eve add a little flare with my signature Bow Ties and shined shoes.