Where Image Matters
Opportunities have a way of hiding themselves in the unexpected. Take the time to look at the world and all you are presented with to see what hides beneath what you can see.
It is ignorance to take life at face value. If you do not truly look you will never really see all that is possible.
Business Classic workwear is becoming more common in the corporate workplace. Gone are the days where it is necessary to wear a suit every day to work. Casualisation has taken over and we are becoming more and more relaxed. But what does this mean for you? What does it mean for your professional appearance? More than anything it means you still must be wearing the best you can afford and keeping your business and your work clothing separate as much as possible as it can be the difference between distinguishing what is work and what is play.
The greatest challenge many of my clients have is keeping their work wardrobe fresh as spending hard earned money regularly on work clothes, when you would prefer to spend it on play clothes, can be disconcerting. Keep in mind though that you are in your work clothes for more than 50% of your waking hours if you have a full-time position. Why wouldn’t you want to spend those hours in nice clothes that make you feel good? Don’t put your work wardrobe into the second-hand pile as that is how you will feel – second hand.
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Level 2 – Must have a jacket |
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JACKET Blazer or Sports Coat Belts-embossed or smooth leather; calf skin or reptile skin. |
Shirts-Collared solid colour, patterned, long sleeves only or polo tops.
Ties– bolder and brighter, woven, knit, silk. Jumpers– turtleneck, crew neck, V-neck. Cashmere, cotton or wool and must be worn with a shirt and jacket. |
Pants-wool, linen, silk blend, light to medium weight, cuffed or uncuffed
Socks-dark, plain or discreet pattern. Shoes– thin to medium sole. Lace up or loafers in leather. Black or dark brown |
Watches-gold or silver face and matching band; gold or silver face with fine dark leather band.
Accessories cufflinks – gold, silver and coloured enamel |
| Making it work–
Always wear a jacket. Wear smooth fabrics that co-ordinate colour, fabric& pattern. |
Overall Impression- Professional, authoritative, dependable, organised, reliable, Conscientious, consistent and detail oriented. |
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So, as you will see here, the primary consideration is ensuring that you have a jacket on. I recommend to all of my corporate clients to keep a jacket in their office, no matter what. It will ensure that what ever comes their way during the work day, that they can pop on the jacket, and immediately lift them from casual to corporate to attend any meeting that might spring up.
The colours are not overly colourful, however, they are brighter and more colourful than Level One. The clothing is tailored and well finished.
Companies are forever moaning about the dress standards of their staff and what to do about them?
The simplest solution is to have a dress code that is relevant to your industry, your brand and your clientele.
The way you dress speaks volumes. make sure your clothes are sticking up for you.
Business Clothing Level One
This article is rich in content for you to understand exactly what works well and doesn’t work well when you are dressing for the workplace. You may not plan to work in a corporate environment, which means a lot of the information regarding the most traditional of suiting is irrelevant to you. Keep this in mind, no matter what industry you are in, if you plan to be successful you are going to be expected to look successful. It might be that you do not wear suits because you have to but you might end up wearing suits because you want to. This chapter will start explaining for you how to look your best in the clothes you are wearing and to ensure that the accessories you use are right for that look.
When we talk about corporate dress, it is easiest to describe it in 4 levels. There are many different schools of thought and many different ways to describe these levels. I know of another consultant who describes them in level 1 as the most casual and level 4 as the highest – kind of like a building. Myself, I work the other way around as I think of dance gradings I have done in the past where you worked your way up to level one and being the best. You can really give these any name or number you like. The whole idea is to ensure that you know what you are doing, what impact you are giving and what people are seeing.
The benefit to a business having a dress code is to stop the confusion os what is and isn’t acceptable by your staff at work. It is important to remember that dress codes should be important for ALL staff. It may be that different departments have a different uniform and that may be a formal uniform or it might just be a standard of dress due to work requirements. Businesses which do not bother with a dress regulation or grooming guideline are asking for trouble. If you need to counsel a staff member about their grooming you have nowhere to begin as it isn’t laid out and expressed anywhere and it can be deemed that your comments are based on a personal dissatisfaction and not a brand adherence.
The levels I use when I am training staff are the following
Level 1 is the most formal and professional – a suit is required (formally known as Traditional Business)
Level 2 it is a tad more relaxed – a jacket is necessary (formally known as Business Classic)
Level 3 is everyday office/retail wear. It is smart and professional. (formally known as Business Smart)
Level 4 is for casual Friday. It is relaxed it is the most dressed down you can be at work. (formally known as Business Casual – that’s an oxymoron to me but more about that later)
Today I am going to focus on Level one. Over the next few posts, I’ll go into detail on the remaining three dress codes.
Insights
Level insights
| Level 1
Traditional or Classic Business Dress |
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| Suit- Dark serious colours. Black, navy, charcoal, pin striped and chalk striped.
Belts– Belts or Braces are applicable with a suit. Belts should be made of black smooth leather. |
Shirts– Long sleeved, solid or patterned in traditional colours of pastels or red or blue stripes on a white background colours. Regular collar not buttoned down.
Ties– Strong colours with a small print or pattern. Best to use Base Colours Jumpers– Not applicable |
Pants– Same as Suit Coat in darker core colour. May be cuffed or uncuffed depending on your frame and size.
Shoes– Thin to medium a leather sole. Lace –up. Socks– Dark, plain or discreet patterns. Long to the knee (no one wants to see the top of your socks) |
Watches-gold or silver face and matching band; gold or silver face with fine dark leather band.
Accessories Kerchiefs, gold or silver cufflinks, tie pins, pinkie ring |
| Making it work
Ensure your suit is crisp at all times. Never try to dress it down |
Overall Impression
Authoritative, credible, respectful, solid, analytical, precise, dominant, logical and reliable |
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Look the part. Unless you are in the fashion industry – dressing too faddish will have your bosses wondering if you are more concerned with your wardrobe than your job
There are 5 simple steps to draw out more information from the person you are having a conversation with. It might be that you are the introvert and need a hand, or that the person you are speaking with is an introvert and if that is the case, it can be a challenge to have them open up.
The Simple, How When Where why and Who questions are starting to run dry and you want more details.
Follow this process for probing and you will discover all that you need.
Probing Questions
Probing Questions
Probing questions can also help you to investigate in more detail.
Many people are better at presenting their own point of view than they are at drawing out information from others. Your role as a good communicator is to draw out information from the individual that will help you understand the issue. A good name for this skill of gathering information from others is probing.
When you probe, you:
Probing Methods
There are five ways to probe, each are described below.
1. Ask an open question
One of the most common ways of probing is to ask an open question, such as:
The difficulty here is that if you ask too many of these probing questions, the other person begins to feel like they are being interrogated. Be thoughtful about what and how you ask. Consider how many probes you really need to offer.
2. Pause
A second, very effective way of probing is a pause. Stop talking. Let the other person fill the silence.
3. Ask a reflective or mirroring question
A third way is to ask a reflective or mirroring question. For example, let’s say the person has just said, “What I really want is more variety in my work.” You may respond by just reflecting back to them, “Variety?” The reflective question usually provides you with an expanded answer without you needing to ask more questions. Of course, it is best used in conjunction with a pause.
Reflective questions or statements focus on clarifying and summarising without interrupting the flow of the conversation. They indicate your intent to understand the sender’s thoughts and feelings.
4. Paraphrase
A fourth method that is particularly useful to make certain you understand what has just been said is paraphrasing in your own words. An example: “So if I understand you correctly, you…”
You can use this response to show that you want to increase the accuracy of your understanding of what has just been said. You may also want to use it to ensure the sender hears what he has just said. Finally, paraphrasing reassures the sender that you are trying to understand what they are saying.
5. Ask a summary question
The fifth method, most often used as a conversation is winding down, is the summary question. Example: “You have tried ignoring the scent of your colleague’s cologne, you have talked with him about how it affects your allergies, and you have tried shutting your door to keep the scent from your workspace. None of these has worked and now you are asking me to intervene. Have I got it right?”
Now you should find all communication clear, easy and fulfilling. Do let me know if this or any of my other communication posts have helped you at all.