Men’s Business Fashion – What’s Appropriate at Work?

A few months ago I wrote an article on women's business fashion from a man's perspective. The responses I got to that article were.well, let's just say they were interesting. While the men who responded tended to agree with me, there were a few women who felt that I was way off base when I commented that women need to dress professionally in the workplace so as not to call attention to themselves in a negative manner. I find it strange that the vast majority of psychologists will agree with my comments about men being hard-wired to appreciate the female form, but I'm sure that the opinions of the few count much more than the facts of the many. So the next time you're ogled at the office in a manner that offends you, don't call your lawyer to file a lawsuit. Just chalk it up to the coffee or the weather or some other good excuse and feel safe and secure in the knowledge that your opinion counts so much more than the facts.

But I digress. I've decided it's only fair that I do a follow-up article and evaluate the way men dress in the workplace. After all, not every man who walks through the door at the office is wearing clothing appropriate for a business environment. In the process, I'll try to compare the differences in the way males and females are perceived at work.

Blame The Spouse

Somebody's going to ask the obvious question: So why don't we dog men for the way they dress at work? Well, let me answer that one by quoting from my previous article:

".By the way, I'm not saying that we men have our act together when it comes to getting dressed. Most of us have our clothing picked out by our wives or girlfriends.."

Ladies, admit it. You have much more fashion sense than your husband. So if he looks good at work, you can probably pat yourself on the back for it. On the other hand, if he looks like something the cat dragged in, he's probably been rooting through his closets again without your assistance. So gain some small comfort in the knowledge that behind every good looking man is a fashion-savvy woman.

Whether a man picks out his clothing choices himself or has his significant other do it for him, he can still get it wrong. In most cases, it has to do with the way men want themselves to be viewed by other men in the organization (strong, virile, productive) as well as by women (strong, virile, re-productive). Again, this is something that's built into a man. The problem is what an individual views as projecting these traits society may view as the antithesis to those traits. The problem is compounded as society changes and the standard for what is considered strong and virile changes. Some guys get left behind simply because they don't know any better.

Having clarified that, let's talk about the things that men still get wrong when dressing for work.