Well Dressed is Best

That which is before you and that which is behind you cannot compare with that which is within you.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Packaging Your Product

Presenting an Attitude of Success

To Dress Like Employees of the Company
... or for the Interview?

De Rigueur Interview Attire

The Check List

1. Clean clothing is mandatory.
   Your suit should be freshly dry cleaned and pressed. If you have worn it once or twice, check for stains everywhere, as well as smelling for odors under the arms. Women should wear skirts with a suit jacket or blazer, or a business dress. Hems should be knee length or mid calf. No short or long hemlines for interviews. They are distracters. Consider other colors for blouses in addition to white and off-white that enhance your skin and eyes.
2. Men's shirts should have starched collars.
   A limp and/or frayed collar on a man can be considered a sign of weakness and/or carelessness, which are both highly undesirable. Buy a new suit for the interview if yours looks dated. Have a sales person hold up a white and an off-white shirt to your face and being sure to hold it under your chin. Which color enlivens your face and which washes you out or turn you into Mr. Tomato Head? Colors that drain your face give a strange, incongruent impression to your words and enthusiasm. While clothing salespeople often match shirts with ties and/or suits, they may not look to see if the shirt color is a complement to the person's complexion. Keep your eye on this. Make sure your colors make you look grrrreat!
3. Select ties that pick up a color in your shirt or suit.
   You may have to bring your suit jacket to the store when selecting a tie. Colors in the tie should blend well with your skin tone and eye color. Men with ruddy complexions might have that tomato-head look with a red tie. Consider a darker blue to cool down the redness in your face. Striped ties can be very boring. Find a pattern that is interesting and tasteful. Be sure there are no stains on ties or anything you are wearing.
4. Men's socks should be a dark color to match the suit and should be mid-calf or knee-high in length.
   If your ankles show during the interview, you're going to get some minus points. Women: bring an extra pair of stockings in your briefcase in case you accidentally catch your hose and have to make a quick change when you arrive.
5. Shoes should be polished and have new heels, soles and tips, if needed. Worn down heels and scuffed tips make you look unsuccessful. Women's pumps that are missing a heel spell failure. If you cannot afford a new pair of shoes, take your old ones to the shoe repair shop. They can be made to look like new for under $20.
6. Unless you are in the trades, your nails must be clean, clipped and manicured.
   Your hands and nails will be in the spotlight as you shake hands and take notes. Rough, callused hands and torn cuticles are unsightly. Men can have their nails manicured and buffed. Women's nails should be trimmed. For the interview, light colored or no polish is better than bright. Long, nails are definitely out-especially those with stars and stripes or hearts and flowers. These are not nails, they are events-and they cause distraction. Cut them for the interview to avoid being dinged. Nails, like hair, grow back. I know, some of you will struggle with this, but after you get hired, you can wear them however you like. Better to be safe than sorry.
7. Fragrance is taboo during the entire interview process.
   Some smells are offensive. No matter how many people tell you that you smell soooo good!, you will be taking a big risk by wearing fragrance during the interview process. Some people are allergic to smells. In fact, in Marin County, California, an ordinance was voted to ban people from wearing fragrance on public transportation. The initiative lost, but the point was loudly made. Don't risk the possibility of having your interviewer sneeze or have runny eyes because of your fragrance. Personally, I am one of those people who become ill from certain fragrances, and have asked friends not to wear theirs if I find it offensive when we are out together. However, if I interviewed someone to work with me, whose fragrance made me sick, I wouldn't want to offend them by telling them so. I would simply drop their candidacy. This is an innocent error that your competition will make. Don't let it happen to you.
8. Your hair should be clean, style cut and groomed.
   Hair falling in your face will cause you to be distracted by it, and the interviewer will be watching you repeatedly brush the it from your eyes. This, too, is not considered professional demeanor. You will receive minus points in the interview, and if you do manage to land the job, it will probably cost you in credibility among your peers. Therefore, men with longer hair should have it trimmed above the collar. Call the company receptionist and find out if beards or long hair are acceptable there. Ponytails for men are out unless you are interviewing in an artistic or less formal environment. Some companies are okay with ponytails for men, but the key is: make no assumptions. Women must wear their hair in a simple style and use a headband, combs, clips or a bow to manage it. Go light with the hairspray. No wild do's with gobs of hair glued or pinned into one spot. Everyone will be drawn to it, like moths to a flame. Before you go in, be sure to check your face and clothing, especially forehead and collar, for scalp flakes. If you do have dry scalp, ask the pharmacist for a good, non-detergent or fragrance based shampoo to control or rid the problem.
9. If jewelry is worn, it must be light.
   Select a simple, attractive necklace, such as a strand of pearls or a thin gold or silver chain. A small ring on either or both hands is acceptable, as long as neither is bulky or ostentatious. Watches are important; bracelets are not. No big or dangling earrings. Smaller ones that fit close to the ear lobe are appropriate. No earrings in your eyebrows or nose, unless it is part of a religious function and you look like a person who comes from the country where that religious custom originated. If you look very different from everyone else because of your jewelry, it could count against you. Religious jewelry is best covered or left at home until after you are employed, because religion is a personal choice and should not be exposed during the interview process. Save them and your flashy jewelry for other events, or until after you are hired.
10. It is true that a pen can make you feel successful.
    If you don't already have a high-quality one, you can purchase a good-looking pen for under $20, and a classy looking Cross or other fine pen for under $50. It looks very professional and is a nice touch for your self-image. If you cannot afford a better pen, find a sleek metal pen for your interviews, but no ball points that you may tend to click during the interview.
11. Carry a briefcase with a pad for writing notes, or a binder that has a pad on one side.
12. Always bring a set of extra resumes for each person with whom you will interview.
    Women should carry either a briefcase, or a purse and a binder. The combination of purse and briefcase is too bulky, and shoulder bags can do weird things to suit jackets. Check yourself in the mirror before leaving for interviews.
13. Makeup must be light and even for women.
    Eye shadows should always be applied lightly. You don't want the interviewer looking at your eyes and wondering how you made those interesting lines. Use a light foundation and blot the excess with a tissue or sponge or it may show on your collar. After applying powder, take a brush and use downward strokes to remove any excess. Rouge should be light and blended so that there are no streaks. Those little round red dots painted on one's cheeks, thick makeup and mascara cam make a women look like a painted doll. Again, another distraction from the important part - your skills and ability to perform the job. If you need help applying your makeup before going on an interview, go to any department store cosmetic counter. Tell the cosmetics consultant that you are headed for an interview and that you need to like finished but lightly made up. She will enjoy helping you. It's a free service, and you will feel very special for your interview.
14. Men never wear make up to an interview, unless they are trying out for a part in a production.
15. Before the interview brush and floss your teeth, and look in the mirror to check for food that may have gotten caught in a visible place, like your front tooth or under your lip. No garlic, onions or spinach salad before your interviews! Keep breath mints with you, and always freshen your breath before going into an interview. The very best breath freshener on the market, in my opinion, is BreathAsure^TM. Swallow three or four gel caps after eating along with a big glass of water. They should prevent you from having a breath problem regardless of what you have eaten, and you won't reek of mint.

Simple, Tasteful Attire is Best - Forget the Fads