I also want to dress well because I feel like I’m also representing my firm when I’m in my classes. Almost everyone dresses very nice to my classes because they are all coming right after work. I want to be trying harder!
My work is kind of business semi-casual-formal. When I say semi-casual-formal, I mean anything besides jeans/shorts. I usually just try and wear some sort of button up or nice shirt with a blazer, and nice black or grey pants. But not this month, this month I’ve been super lazy. I always wear nice pants, but my choice for tops has been bad. Let’s just say that I’ve been wearing my Northface sweaters a little too much this month already.
Usually I dress like the pictures above, but lately I’ve been lazy.
Also, I’ve been thinking about taking a picture of what I wear everyday and posting it on here in some kind of weekly round-up. I feel like this will help because of course I wouldn’t want to take a picture of me when I’m having a lazy work day, so hopefully this will make me try harder. Also, of course since I blog anonymously, my pictures will have my head not included in everyone, so hopefully that’s not too weird.
I work mainly independently in my office, so my outfits aren’t a huge deal, but when I meet with clients, it’s much different. When we have client meetings, we have to dress more business-formal corporate. Nice pants/skirt, button up, blazer, and the like. I work in the financial services industry, and that means that there aren’t very many females or people my age in my line of work. So what I wear is definitely very important for how I want to be seen/portrayed.
There are also things that I would never wear. What are some things that you can’t wear/do when at work?
This doesn’t apply to every industry, but in mine (financial analysis services), it does:
- Super short skirts – I think the standard is that it should be no shorter than 2 inches past your knee. I definitely break this rule a lot, but I never go too too short. I’m a short person, so kind-of short skirts don’t look bad on me.
- Shorts – I would never and could never wear shorts to work, not even on a super casual day. My work would look at me like I’m crazy.
- Heels that I would wear to the club/bar – Stuff that I could wear out, I probably shouldn’t wear to work. If I have to ask myself if it’s too bar-like, then it probably is. Of course some heels serve a double purpose, but not all do.
- Crazy nail polish – My nails are usually pretty plain (since I work full-time and would hate taking the polish off after 1 day on the weekend), so this usually doesn’t bother me since I’m used to it by now. Green glitter probably wouldn’t be good…
- Tops that show cleavage – Since I work with mostly men, it would be extremely unprofessional if I did this. My boobs shouldn’t be hanging out everywhere and look like they’re going to knock someone out. I want to come across as mature and intelligent.
- Tops that are so tight that it looks like one of the buttons will pop an eye out.
A lot of this also applies to interviews. For business interviews, usually the best outfit choice is something boring. I know, not fun. You don’t want to distract the person who is interviewing you with something crazy that you have on. Of course different rules apply to different places. When I worked in retail, of course you had to dress cute and the only rule really was you couldn’t wear something that you could possibly wear to the gym.
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Alex M says
I am in a wardrobe rut. I wear the same variation of things because I had pared down my closet in anticipation of moving — but then I realized today that other than the jeans I have hanging in there, I only wear the same vest, one oxford and a hoodie out of everything else. So, I've going to make sure I wear the other stuff too. The thing is, you wash it, you fold it, you put it on the top of your drawer or in the front of your closet, then you wear it again.Maybe we need to shift our storage order around?
Free!~ says
Alex I rotate my clothes. When I wash or hang them I put it on the bottom or in the back of the closet so in theory everything gets worn. I do find myself reaching to the back for my favorites though…lol
Michelle P says
I've been wearing pretty much similar outfits everyday, I need to mix it up!
Tanner says
At work, we have a VERY relaxed semi-casual. Pants (no jeans except on casual Friday), and a fully covered top. The rest is up to you. It's only 10 of us in this office, and most of my co-workers are at least 10 years older than me. They can ever wear flipflops and college-type hoodies when it's cold, but I stick to a very boring, very limited business-casual attire. No blazers or jackets except a cardigan. I too need to expand on my clothes.That said… I don't think flipflops belong in the work place at all, even on casual Fridays on a summer day. Sorry. Same goes for extra large/flashy jewelry that belongs at an Opera viewing.
Michelle P says
I agree, I don't think flipflops would be appropriate at all.
Live Simply- Live We says
Me too. I think the winter makes me settle for black pants and whatever top isn't wrinkled. I think daily pics will help keep you accountable and make you dress a bit better
Samantha says
I used to work for a credit union and we had a similar dress code. I actually kind of miss having to look "good" at work. I work in a cubicle all day with NO patient interaction (for now) at a health clinic and can wear jeans, sweat pants, hoodies… all the good stuff. But there's just something about dressing up and looking great that makes you feel like a million bucks. 🙂
Christine says
My dress code is pretty varied because of my job. If I'm in the clinic, it's (supposed) to be business casual (though many people don't follow this) but if I'm out at the school all day, especially in the hot months, khaki shorts and a tshirt are considered totally appropriate. *In case you're wondering, I'm an Athletic Trainer (I work in Sports Medicine, I'm NOT a personal trainer) 🙂
Melissa Wilson says
Yeah, I'm totally wearing my pajamas right now. It's awesome. At my last job, the dress code was pretty business casual, and more on the casual side. The important was just kind of that we had to look put together. Some days I wore jeans and a T-shirt, other days I wore a full suit (especially if I was meeting with clients). Most days I just wore some combination of a skirt, a v-neck T and a cardigan. It worked.
My money, my life says
I do semi formal wear at work, so it's suits (pants and skirt), shift dresses with a blazer, pencil skirts with girly tops etc. I definitely agree that having some kind of "special attire" for work makes me more alert and signals to me that "hey, you're at work!". I wear pajamas at home pretty much all the time, but if I wore it too work I wouldn't feel like doing work!
shopping2saving says
Luckily we don't have to dress up business casual. Although I work in a corporate environment in middle management, it's very laid back. It could be because I live in San Diego though. When our VP took over a few years ago, apparently he changed the dress code from business casual to semi-business casual. Meaning I can wear leggings, boots, jeans, etc. I even wear gym clothes (not shorts, mostly cropped leggings) with my running shoes heehhe.
joyofdebt says
I work in IT so I could get away with super cas, but I don't like to. I too am a firm believer in Dress for Success. It doesn't ever seem to go out of style really. I have thought often about taking pictures at the end of the day of what I wore if it made me feel comfy and professional and keeping it someplace handy. Sometimes I forget what I wore that really worked!!
Lauren says
I've been dressing super lazy for work lately and I completely blame that on my pregnancy. The awesome thing is though, my maternity work clothes are all pretty sharp looking (thanks GapMaternity for work pants that actually look nice and professional) but they FEEL LIKE PAJAMAS. I don't like getting fat, but I do like feeling like I'm wearing PJs at work.
Michelle P says
That sounds amazing!
McVal says
I work from home and have never met anyone I work with. But I always get dressed out of pjs every day into at least jeans and a sweatshirt. Have to take the girl to school and stuff after work… I usually only dress up for church and only put on make up if I'm going to church or a school activity.
Stephanie says
I've definitely been getting a bit lazy with the cold weather. I haven't been veering into "unprofessional" territory, I usually do a lot of layering to keep things interesting (camisole + button-down shirt + cardigan or blazer with trousers or a pencil skirt), and lately I've just been relying on a nice sweater with a pair of trousers, so really I've just been boring moreso than "dressed down." 😉
Free!~ says
I work from home so I wear PJ's pretty much all day until I need to go somewhere. Even then it's usually jeans and a hoodie. Yesterday I wore a nice top and heels with my jeans and Teenager asked me why I was so fancy.
kris @ Simple Island says
Ha, my post today was a "what to wear to work" post! Funny. I'm trying to figure it out – job interviewing, etc. Right now I'm homebound, so I wear shorts and tank tops. But I have no professional wardrobe, which is frustrating to me…all my suits are obviously from 8-10 years ago. Need some updating.
Meg {henninglove} says
i love those outfits you posted for work. that type of attire is definitely what i have to wear to work. and unfortunately no casual fridays around here 🙁
Becca Christensen says
I have been lazy too. I think I get office outfit complacent sometimes. I loved this post…I'm going to step it up too!
Drew {Coral Cafe} says
I definitely miss the dressing up for work days!!
Serendipity says
I work with kids so I wear jeans 99% of the time although I am wearing dress slacks today because of a special event. I look foward to your outfit posts!
Michelle P says
I'm glad it's not just me who is feeling lazier!
Samantha says
I'm a new follower- thank you for your comment on my tutorial! Have a great day!
twiggy@thedirtlife says
i'm not gonna lie, a headless fashionista is something i would TOTALLY look forward to.do it.
Cori H. says
I've found that I'm more of a lazy dresser during the winter months just because I dress more for warmth. My office is also business casual. They pretty much don't care what we wear as long as we don't wear sweatshirts, shorts, jeans (except on Fridays), super short skirts, etc.
Peace Love Applesauc says
The Limited and New York & Company are my two fav places for work wear!
Lena says
Beautiful outfits! Being a SAHM and WAHM, I kind of miss dressing up for work:(
Recently Roached says
Love these outfits! That scarf is fabulous. Finding outfits for work is hard. You want to be stylin' but you also want to be somewhat conservative. Times like these that I'm glad I work from home 🙂
lowcarbhighstyle says
My office is very casual and I can wear whatever I want, but I am with you on the look better, work better thing. I put myself together everyday because I feel better when I do. It isn't about other people, it is about the confidence it gives me. Plus, I can assure you that taking a picture of yourself each day definitely will give you more motivation to not get sloppy : ) I've also found it has really made me more creative! I love using Pinterest to keep track of fashion inspiration, that might help give you ideas each day!
Married...with a Pup says
Ahh I have the most strict dress code at work. It's suits every day! Oh, and if I wear a skirt, I must wear panty hose. Lastly, closed-back and closed-toe shoes are the only options! No fun here, haha!
khaki pants says
I work in IT so I could get away with super cas, but I don't like to. I too am a firm believer in Dress for Success. It doesn't ever seem to go out of style really.