Business Style

Getting dressed for the office doesn't mean leaving your personal style behind. Find out which looks give you a polished, professional look and which fashions can be a career killer.

Polished, Not Fashion Victim

Your goal to getting dressed for work is to project a professional, competent image, regardless of your employment level or career path. Prefer the looking professional than looking cute or trendy. In general, the more distracting a piece of clothing or jewelry is, the less appropriate it is for office wear.

More guidelines to looking polished:

Color plays a big part in professional image. Traditional career colors include:

• red (aggressive), 
• navy (trustworthy), 
• gray (conservative) and 
• black (chic).

Most of these colors work well in pantsuits, skirts and shoes and mix back with softer feminine colors that are appropriate like ice blue, lilac, soft pink and ivory. 

Avoid to wear

• Loud colors like hot pink and wild prints are much riskier in the office, but some creative types can still pull them off.
• Jewelry that jangles (chandelier earrings, stacks of bangles) is distracting. Opt for stud earrings or single bracelets.
• Slouchy handbags look sloppy. 

Choose structured styles that project an organized image. Most of what constitutes a polished image is in the details: manicured nails, run-free hose, scuff-free shoes, neat hair.

Fit is everything when you are talking about tailored work clothes.

Career Killers

Unlike a fashion faux pas, a career killer outfit can do your professional image permanent damage.

Looks to avoid in the workplace:

• Too sexy: see-through lace, miniskirts, spaghetti straps, sheer sundresses, strappy stiletto sandals.
• Too casual: jeans, shorts, T-shirts, hats, sneakers.
• Too sloppy: wrinkled clothing, too many layers, baggy-fit clothing.

Clothes and Accessories