Dress for Success
In a magazine article, my branch manager stated that he feels the dress code needs be enforced more. This got me to thinking, by this I mean got me fuming. I'm suddenly reminded of my elementary school days in which we wore uniforms. Isn't a dress code for little kids to keep them from killing each other over a pair of Nikes. But yet here I am as an adult working for a company with a dress code.
What is the point? To look professional. I use to get that. As my mother always says, "presentation is everything." But the more I work in the "real world" the more the notion of being professional is such a joke to me. After all, we have to make sure we're dress professionally while people take and make personal calls. Can't dress like a slacker while people surf the internet. But I've come to the realization that dressing professionally boils down to one point: people feel the need to dress professionally because when their job finally kills them, they will already be dressed for their funernal (even in death it is all about multi-tasking).
Dress codes are designed to even out the playing field when in actuality they create more of a gap. Dress codes highlight the socioeconomic differences of employees. Everyone can dress casual and look the same, but professional clothes are expensive and thus hold much distinction amongst them. It's not hard to tell the difference between an Armani suit and a JC Penny suit, but it is hard to tell the difference between a pair of Old Navy jeans and a pair of high end designer jeans. Dress codes are just another means of oppression to keep the higher class superior to the working grunts. It's imperative to make sure you can spot the office hierarchy by the quality of their outfits because lord knows you can't spot them by their intelligence.
One the other hand, aren't we all suppose to dress the part. The American Dream. If you dress the for the dream people might actually believe that you achieved it. Perception is more important than reality. You don't have to actually work hard, you just have appear to be. If we pretend to live the dream then maybe we will think we are living it. How did we ever come to the conclusion that people have more credibility because they have a strip of fabric around their neck or a block of wood attacked to their foot. Or even that someone has something important to say when they stand behind a microphone.
But really the whole notion of a dress code is to keep people united. Sorry, I meant to keep people oppressed. The age old notion that any form of decent causes a slippery slope of to anarchy. Someone wearing that pair of sneakers will eventually lead to a Coup. We must all be parts in the same machine, making sure everything runs smoothly. Apparently, my bright pink scarf might throw a wrench in that machine.
The notion of professionalism exists because we have to separate our work life from the rest of our life. It is easy to know how to behave when you have your fancy clothes on. After all, it's not like people will behave unprofessionally if they are dressed professionally. It's not as if sexual harassment, unethical work practices, or gossip exist in the work place. How can they exist if we are dressed professionally? Professionalism is a joke and professional dress is the punchline. And trust me, I'm not the only one laughing.
What is the point? To look professional. I use to get that. As my mother always says, "presentation is everything." But the more I work in the "real world" the more the notion of being professional is such a joke to me. After all, we have to make sure we're dress professionally while people take and make personal calls. Can't dress like a slacker while people surf the internet. But I've come to the realization that dressing professionally boils down to one point: people feel the need to dress professionally because when their job finally kills them, they will already be dressed for their funernal (even in death it is all about multi-tasking).
Dress codes are designed to even out the playing field when in actuality they create more of a gap. Dress codes highlight the socioeconomic differences of employees. Everyone can dress casual and look the same, but professional clothes are expensive and thus hold much distinction amongst them. It's not hard to tell the difference between an Armani suit and a JC Penny suit, but it is hard to tell the difference between a pair of Old Navy jeans and a pair of high end designer jeans. Dress codes are just another means of oppression to keep the higher class superior to the working grunts. It's imperative to make sure you can spot the office hierarchy by the quality of their outfits because lord knows you can't spot them by their intelligence.
One the other hand, aren't we all suppose to dress the part. The American Dream. If you dress the for the dream people might actually believe that you achieved it. Perception is more important than reality. You don't have to actually work hard, you just have appear to be. If we pretend to live the dream then maybe we will think we are living it. How did we ever come to the conclusion that people have more credibility because they have a strip of fabric around their neck or a block of wood attacked to their foot. Or even that someone has something important to say when they stand behind a microphone.
But really the whole notion of a dress code is to keep people united. Sorry, I meant to keep people oppressed. The age old notion that any form of decent causes a slippery slope of to anarchy. Someone wearing that pair of sneakers will eventually lead to a Coup. We must all be parts in the same machine, making sure everything runs smoothly. Apparently, my bright pink scarf might throw a wrench in that machine.
The notion of professionalism exists because we have to separate our work life from the rest of our life. It is easy to know how to behave when you have your fancy clothes on. After all, it's not like people will behave unprofessionally if they are dressed professionally. It's not as if sexual harassment, unethical work practices, or gossip exist in the work place. How can they exist if we are dressed professionally? Professionalism is a joke and professional dress is the punchline. And trust me, I'm not the only one laughing.
posted by Whit at 2:07 PM
1 Comments:
fuck...I love your point. I love this post.
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