January 9, 2009 at 7:56 am
Clothes may not affect your performance, but they most certainly affect how your performance is judged by others. In some ways we are all like herd animals in which we are expected to conform to the norm. Standouts are earmarked for culling by the voracious predators always on the prowl.
I was teaching a programming fundamentals course at a little trade school that made all the students wear dress shirts, slacks, and ties and equivalent business clothes for the women. The kids, who were mostly all High School dropouts literally recruited from roadside bus stops with promises of a real job when they graduated, all had real trouble adjusting to the schools dress code. That's when I came up with what I called my "Its a jungle out there" speech. The tenets of which are all true.
Basically, I pointed out that corporate business dress is a uniform identical to a soldier wearing camouflage battle dress uniform. It is designed to save him or her from getting shot at. People who dress radically different from the herd norm, like a mult-colored zebra, might as well as paint a big target on themselves for as sure as rain is wet, someone will be putting them into their sights. Let your professionalism and job proficiency propel you to the top not your looks.
To those who rely on dressing like the boss, I do not recommend it, unless everyone else in your department dresses the same. "Dressing for success" can stigmatize you just as effectively as showing up in dirty T-shirts and torn jeans. The boss can afford to wear $5,000 suits and if you try to imitate him, not only will everyone else (who don't wear suits) label you as an a**-kisser, the boss will too!
Its alright to try to be a little better than department standard and in so doing maybe raise the standard a little, but avoid being a standout target. The primary purpose for the school's dress code was not to harass the students into quitting, but to get them comfortable in wearing clothing they were not used to. People who are not comfortable with their own dress standout in other ways.
"Any fool can write code that a computer can understand. Good programmers write code that humans can understand." -- Martin Fowler
January 9, 2009 at 8:07 am
I actually turned down a job because the dress code required that I wear a tie. It was an IT position were I would sit in a cubicle and my only contact with customers would be on the phone. I ended up with a job were I can were shorts and a t-shirt to work. It is a very relaxed environment but also very professional and we get our work done.
January 9, 2009 at 8:09 am
I've been earning a paycheck to do database stuff since 1987. I've paid my dues to get my foot in the door, kept up with the latest technology to move up the ladder, done the manager thing and finally found my comfort zone as a senior DBA. Needless to say I have several employers on my resume. The attire in that timeline was at both extremes (jeans and t-shirt at Microsoft, suit and tie at some, business casual at most others). You earn a paycheck by being a professional so you should at least respect your coworkers by presenting an image of someone who at least -finished- the 'SQL for Dummies' book related to doing your job . If you don't have coworkers or work at home, good for you. Show up for work in a chicken costume and nobody will care (although if the neighbors spot you through a window, you might get a visit from the dudes with the straightjacket and butterfly nets).
I'm comfortable in business casual and I think as long as you don't look like you just crawled out of a freak show, a shirt with a collar, pants and matching socks isn't much of a big deal. I don't believe you need to wear a suit and tie to bang out code but presenting an image of someone who showered and is wearing clean clothes is just showing respect for those people that deal with you on a daily basis.
As far as tattoos, I can appreciate quality ink but most brick-and-mortar places prefer you cover it up.
At several times throughout a typical day I will have at least two people queued up in my doorway to ask for my help. They all walk away with what they needed and if I asked them, I'm convinced they wouldn't give a damn about whether my socks matched.
January 9, 2009 at 8:12 am
I have been unfortunate enough to be beaten with the dress code stick
Our company has no dress code and staff usually dress casual in all our offices, with various hairstyles/colours. One of the senior managers took offence to my 'non-natural' hair colour (I'm the only one in head office with a bright red mohican) as it didn't project the appropriate corporate image. I told them I'd meet them half way and changed the colour to match the company logo - a lovely vivid purple colour - and explained that I don't see clients, and that it doesn't affect my ability
Nothing more has been said 😎
January 9, 2009 at 8:19 am
I have been working as an employee and as a consultant with Oracle software since 1986, and with DB2, UDB, and SQL*Server since about 96 at a wide variety of companies and at government secure sites. Almost none required more than business casual, khaki pants and polo shirts. Very few had hard requirements at all. Some places treat dress as a sort of strange "reward" system, where "casual Friday's" or "casual weeks" were declared, where jeans without holes and t-shirts without text on them were allowed. That sort of reward system seems a bit like a junior high school approach to discipline. Clothes requirements seem to be a vestige of Victorian management practices, as if clothes control over someone helps assure profitablity.
I do know this. Very few people wear clothes that truly fit them well and are comfortable as intended to be worn. For example, go to a store that has them and try on an Armani suit. Even if it is yellow and green plaid, if it is your size you will perhaps be struck with how good you look in it, (and struck by the price tag, Whoa!). Consider neckties and the shirt collar buttons that live under them. If you are at all oddly shaped, say a larger neck, by the time you get a shirt with a neck size that fits you comfortably, the body of the shirt is also usable as shelter in most nomadic cultures. It is hard to look in the mirror at that combination and head off to work feeling like you are "lookin good".
The point is people have enough stress in life and wearing uncomfortable clothes does not help you work better. Thus many people gravitate towards jeans and tees, or sweaters.
Thank God they didn't invent computers in the middle ages and we had to wear suits of armour to work.
January 9, 2009 at 8:20 am
Hi Steve,
My comment below is about the comment from the HR person about your editorial photo. But first a quick comment about my place. I don't think dressing up is intrinsically good or bad. I like wearing a tie (not always a suit) just because it happens to make me feel more professional. We have a dress code, but it is fairly flexible - no ties are required, just collared shirts, and shoes, not sneakers, that kind of stuff.
If you think about it, it makes sense to enforce a dress code at times. How UPS delivery folks or cops dress essentially has nothing to do with the quality of their work (bulletproof vests and guns aside), but it sends a strong impression that you are being served by a professional, coordinated group of people. Yes, it's "just" psychological, but psychology is a powerful thing. But I would never see such image effects as a substitute for skill or experience, in myself or in others. Any sensible person can tell after a few minutes of conversation whether someone's substance matches his or her style.
Now to the HR comment:
I think it makes sense that an HR person would recommend dressing up. As a default decision, in most cases that advice holds up. But I think IT is in some ways a different kettle of fish.
For example, the IT context really matters. I don't look at your editorial photo as if you were supposed to be dressed up in a suit, and since you're not I am going to stop reading your editorials. I just read the content and understand that you have a lot of SQL experience and that is all that matters to me.
However, from a branding standpoint, the HR person may have a point that you should at least take under advisement. Unless "No More Underdog" is your site's tag line, it's at least a business decision you should make about what you want the photo to say. It is, to that extent, a form of advertising, and despite all of the scary articles about what advertisers do to showcase products, that image can have an effect.
Ironically, though, in the case of IT (as many of the posts so far show), a suit and tie sometimes has a reverse branding effect if the community in question is suspicious of suits and ties. I recall reading about what are called "badges of membership" - things people wear to affiliate themselves with certain groups. Sometimes it's piercings or hair color. Sometimes it's suits and ties. Sometimes, as in IT, it can actually be T-shirts with certain logos, and suits and ties are, for lack of a better term, a "badge of exclusion," similar to the pointy hair of the boss in Dilbert. My guess is that IT workers spend so much time "under the hood" of technology that they tend to be less impressed by outward appearances - sometimes to a fault if they pre-judge someone simply because they are dressed up.
So I would say mull it over in terms of what purpose you want that photo to serve, and you'll be fine whether you leave the T-shirt or change it.
1. If the current photo says what you like, then leave it.
2. If you want to dress up a bit, you could make a polo shirt with a large copy of the SQL Server Central logo on it and remove the SQL Server Central logo from the bottom of the photo. Although that seems silly to me.
3. You could adopt a collared button-down shirt or polo shirt and put the SQL Server Central logo in the background.
4. You could go for the suit and tie and sit at a cool-looking desk like the anchors of SportsCenter.
5. You could even zoom in to show only your face, like those ubiquitous Wrox book covers.
In other words, the HR advice needs to be placed in context, and only you can determine which solution is best.
Best wishes,
webrunner
-------------------
A SQL query walks into a bar and sees two tables. He walks up to them and asks, "Can I join you?"
Ref.: http://tkyte.blogspot.com/2009/02/sql-joke.html
January 9, 2009 at 8:30 am
webrunner (1/9/2009)
Hi Steve,...
1. If the current photo says what you like, then leave it.
2. If you want to dress up a bit, you could make a polo shirt with a large copy of the SQL Server Central logo on it and remove the SQL Server Central logo from the bottom of the photo. Although that seems silly to me.
3. You could adopt a collared button-down shirt or polo shirt and put the SQL Server Central logo in the background.
4. You could go for the suit and tie and sit at a cool-looking desk like the anchors of SportsCenter.
5. You could even zoom in to show only your face, like those ubiquitous Wrox book covers.
6. Get the SQL Server Central logo tattoed on your chest and wear no shirt
7. Take a picture nude and hold a sign with the SQL Server Central logo over an appropriate place
8a. Get the SQL Server Central logo shaved into the back of your head and take a reverse head shot
8b. Get the SQL Server Central logo shaved into the side of your head and take a profile head shot
If you wear no 'dressing' in your picture, how can you be 'dress' code inappropriate? :hehe:
Mia
I have come to the conclusion that the top man has one principle responsibility: to provide an atmosphere in which creative mavericks can do useful work.
-- David M. Ogilvy
January 9, 2009 at 8:38 am
Comfort is everything.
- Tony
January 9, 2009 at 8:41 am
Personally, I like Mr Klaft's suggestion of a chicken suit.
Semper in excretia, suus solum profundum variat
January 9, 2009 at 8:45 am
mhaskins (1/9/2009)
webrunner (1/9/2009)
Hi Steve,...
1. If the current photo says what you like, then leave it.
2. If you want to dress up a bit, you could make a polo shirt with a large copy of the SQL Server Central logo on it and remove the SQL Server Central logo from the bottom of the photo. Although that seems silly to me.
3. You could adopt a collared button-down shirt or polo shirt and put the SQL Server Central logo in the background.
4. You could go for the suit and tie and sit at a cool-looking desk like the anchors of SportsCenter.
5. You could even zoom in to show only your face, like those ubiquitous Wrox book covers.
6. Get the SQL Server Central logo tattoed on your chest and wear no shirt
7. Take a picture nude and hold a sign with the SQL Server Central logo over an appropriate place
8a. Get the SQL Server Central logo shaved into the back of your head and take a reverse head shot
8b. Get the SQL Server Central logo shaved into the side of your head and take a profile head shot
If you wear no 'dressing' in your picture, how can you be 'dress' code inappropriate? :hehe:
Ha ha, good additions. Number 7 would definitely prompt further comments from the HR person. :w00t:
webrunner
-------------------
A SQL query walks into a bar and sees two tables. He walks up to them and asks, "Can I join you?"
Ref.: http://tkyte.blogspot.com/2009/02/sql-joke.html
January 9, 2009 at 8:47 am
Interesting discussion thus far. I don't think any regular readers/watchers care what you wear as long as it is not offensive, of course someone has to define offensive.
I've never worked in an office where ties were required, but always business casual. I do believe that some type of dress code for an office is appropriate, even if it is just no t-shirts.
As far as dressing up fro a client, IMO, if the client comes to your site you should dress as you normally would because they are coming to your environment, but if you are visiting them and do not know what their dress expectations are you should dress up to a minimum of shirt and tie.
As far as piercings and tattoos go, sure for an interview reduce and cover what you can, and abide by whatever dress code your office requires.
Dress code definitely varies by region. Where I lived in northern NH there were very few suit and tie jobs, but in southern NH there are a lot. Since I relocated to Florida I noticed a much more casual approach to dress. So I go by "when in Rome do as the Romans do".
Jack Corbett
Consultant - Straight Path Solutions
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January 9, 2009 at 8:47 am
webrunner (1/9/2009)
. . .1. If the current photo says what you like, then leave it.
2. If you want to dress up a bit, you could make a polo shirt with a large copy of the SQL Server Central logo on it and remove the SQL Server Central logo from the bottom of the photo. Although that seems silly to me.
3. You could adopt a collared button-down shirt or polo shirt and put the SQL Server Central logo in the background.
4. You could go for the suit and tie and sit at a cool-looking desk like the anchors of SportsCenter.
5. You could even zoom in to show only your face, like those ubiquitous Wrox book covers. . .
I still like the idea of having TWO photos.
Okay, a less peposterous?, cool idea:
Put on a suit with a Framed chest/head shot, portrait of you in a T-Shirt on the wall, to your right.
You can alternate this on certain days, with the opposite, you in a T-Shirt with a framed picture on the background wall, of you in a suit.
January 9, 2009 at 8:53 am
I have another sugestion -
Steve wear a T-shirt with a picture of you on it wearing a suit;
That would be better!
Hiding under a desk from SSIS Implemenation Work :crazy:
January 9, 2009 at 8:54 am
John Erdovegi (1/9/2009)
webrunner (1/9/2009)
. . .1. If the current photo says what you like, then leave it.
2. If you want to dress up a bit, you could make a polo shirt with a large copy of the SQL Server Central logo on it and remove the SQL Server Central logo from the bottom of the photo. Although that seems silly to me.
3. You could adopt a collared button-down shirt or polo shirt and put the SQL Server Central logo in the background.
4. You could go for the suit and tie and sit at a cool-looking desk like the anchors of SportsCenter.
5. You could even zoom in to show only your face, like those ubiquitous Wrox book covers. . .
I still like the idea of having TWO photos.
Okay, a less peposterous?, cool idea:
Put on a suit with a Framed chest/head shot, portrait of you in a T-Shirt on the wall, to your right.
You can alternate this on certain days, with the opposite, you in a T-Shirt with a framed picture on the background wall, of you in a suit.
go the full airplane movie joke, pose leaning forward with your hands on the desk, looking serious, have the exact same framed photo behind you on the wall
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January 9, 2009 at 9:01 am
mhaskins (1/9/2009)
I worked many years for an automation company. I wore a skirt once, and was asked - what are you going to do if you have to crawl into a machine? I wore simple and plain clothes for the rest of my stint at that factory.Well, my next job was at an office and I wore open-toed shoes and bright, girly outfits every day. As summer changed to winter, I was less and less girly and more and more comfy.
I ended up where I started from - despite my best efforts. 😀
I have worked for 20 years in IT at the same institution. Previously I taught at a couple of universities. While teaching I avoided jeans and other very casual clothing because I did not want to be mistaken for a student 🙂 When I started with my present employer, also a university, but as IT staff (developer) rather than faculty jeans were not allowed. Men wore long sleeved shirts with ties ( not jackets, except for meetings) and women wore skirts or dresses. On casual Fridays I would wear slacks and men would were polos. This dress code relaxed as we moved from mainframe to network workstations so that networking and server groups could wear jeans in case they had to crawl under a desk but developers still were in at least business casual. HR continued to wear ties 😉
This all changed due a natural event - Hurricane Katrina (I live in New Orleans)! So many people lost all their clothing ( we evacuated with 4 days worth of clothes - who knew the levees would break and flood the city), that management did not require us to purchase business attire. In one fell swoop, the dress code was effectively abolished. Even HR wears jeans now!
As a supervisor I will say that the most problem I find with a lack of dress code is with other women. Jeans and tshirt would be an improvement over camisoles and leggings. That seems to me to be too casual even for a casual office. I find that at every level of dress - business suit, business casual, jeans - it is easier for men to dress appropriately than for women.
Do other women feel the same way?
Terri
To speak algebraically, Mr. M. is execrable, but Mr. C. is
(x+1)-ecrable.
Edgar Allan Poe
[Discussing fellow writers Cornelius Mathews and William Ellery Channing.]
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