How to dress for the office
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Why is office dress code a conundrum in today’s changing workplace?
The Claire Byrne Show on News Talk. With Aviva Insurance. Now styles are changing, seasons are changing, and the workplace is becoming less formal, so how should you dress for the office now? It is a bit of a conundrum, isn't it? Eva Doonigan is here, the style bob. Conundrum for the office.
It is and I think if we look back at the last kind of ten, fifteen years, it was changing anyway, Claire. Um and when JP Morgan in twenty sixteen said Business casual, um that was a big kind of, I suppose, demarcation in in the workforce. But what they did say is business casual does not mean weekend casual. So what I tell you what I'm missing and what my clients are missing is that in the old days, Claire, we had our work wardrobe, especially in formal industries, and that was our wardrobe Monday to Friday. And we kind of knew that's what we wore. And then it came to the weekend and we could say, Okay, that's our weekend work. The lines are all blurred and added covert and this that was coined once back then as the great slobbification.
So we all just became very casual. So in a little bit, you know, it's it's great that we now have a f there's more authenticity in work. We've a wonderful, you know, many ways of showing self-expression through our clothes, but certainly it's shifted a little bit some somewhat the other way, a little bit too casual in certain industries.
Yeah, I was look I was in walking through Marks and Spencer at the weekend and there isn't much in terms of suiting, 'cause I was thinking about our our conversation when I was having a look. Like there's probably, I don't know, four or five jackety type things, but nothing that you could say, well, that's definitely work wear. That's not for casual wear. You could wear it for both. Yeah.
How did the shift from formal work wardrobes to “business casual” happen?
But do you want to be in more suity type things for the office?
So first of all, it depends on the industry. And as a lot of offices have now, is they uh a kind of code that they use as dress for your day. So that's kind of use your cop on and what you're meeting. But it's interesting that you mentioned the blazer thing because a blazer, first of all, will make you feel I kind of, you know, quite upright, quite senior, you know, very confident. But clearly you don't want to sit at an office in a blazer, you know, on your computer. It can be really well, I find it really restrictive. And you're Absolutely right. The whole suit thing is is less than what it was. But there's a lot more relaxed suiting now. And I don't know if you notice the Marx and Spencer's, they've celebrated it a hundred years and they've a whole new collection out.
Mm-hmm. Um so I personally, I mean, I do like a great suit for certain occasions, but I love separates, you know. I love a great pair of tailor trousers, a really nice top, and everybody clear is always looking for a nice top, you know?
What does “business casual” really mean and what does it not include?
I mean, who doesn't want a nice top? And I think the why nice tops are more important now in the business world is that, you know, l so many people are working on Zoom. So you can have your leggings on or your pajamas from the waist down and your nice top and top. And I think when you do that, think about as we talk about, you know, rising heating bills. We want to be at home, it could be freezing, a lovely knit, a great necklace to add a little bit of personality. Or what I'm loving, not sure if you saw them on your trip, is um the lovely new knitted polos, which actually look really nice. Um, but yeah, so many brands, if you think of Boss, which was a very corporate rare brand, they've all changed to good separates and bringing in a lot more colour for it.
What you want though is to convey authority and you know I'm I'm sensible and I'm with it and I know what I'm doing and still be comfortable. And it's not
just about conveying authority, Claire, it's it's about feeling authoritative. And what I say to myself every day in an ideal day is how do I want to feel in my clothes today? If I'm going into a situation, let's say I'm doing a talk for a company or something. I want to feel really confident, Claire.
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Chapters
4 chapters
1
Why is office dress code a conundrum in today’s changing workplace?
0:01–1:37
2
How did the shift from formal work wardrobes to “business casual” happen?
1:37–2:31
3
What does “business casual” really mean and what does it not include?
2:31–7:10
4
Why can a blazer make you feel confident yet feel restrictive at a desk?
7:10–7:41