Dressing Well for Success for Men

Many hurdles have fallen by the time an offer for an interview arrives. Your resume has impressed, your cover letter has sounded the right note and your references have all come through with glowing testimonials. You have accomplished a lot and you deserve congratulations. For the first time, however, pieces of paper cannot act as your stand-in. The face-to-face experience is a whole different beast.

There are a number of ways to tame that beast, including all sorts of interview practice and preparation, but first you need to look the part for the job. First impressions do count and your attire should give potential employers the right impression. Looking the part also comes with a nice psychological bonus: It can make you feel more comfortable in the inherently stressful interview situation.

The mantra for your interview look should be "overdressed, conservative and understated."

Overdressed

Admittedly, modes of dress are much less formal now than they were in bygone days, when men who left the house in anything short of suit and tie were under-dressed. Dress codes have relaxed but the interview remains one of the last bastions of formality regardless of the style of a given workplace. Never assume that you can dress down for an interview based on what current employees are wearing. Suit and tie are absolutely required, even if your future colleagues are sporting flip-flops and sweatpants.

Conservative

Dressing for an interview means donning the uniform of business. For men, its specifications are simple:

· Dark, conservative suit, preferably gray or navy blue
· White or very light long-sleeved shirt
· Conservative tie
· Leather shoes with a decent shine
· Jewelry kept to a minimum
· Neatly trimmed hair

Clothes should be cleaned and pressed. Consider carrying a decent briefcase as a repository for extra copies of your resume and any other documents that you might like to have on hand.

Understated

Play it safe. Your look should not make a statement, be cutting edge or call attention to itself. The goal is a look that is forgettable. Interviewers do not generally remember what the person they hired wore. Instead, they remember the outfits that made them wonder what the applicant could possibly have been thinking.

Many of these principles apply to your first day on the job. You can certainly take your cue from what you have seen when you were interviewed, but, in any case, err on the side of simplicity and formality. If you are really unsure, opt for an outfit that gives you some flexibility, but make sure that your clothes actually give you a choice. You can remove a tie or a jacket for a less formal look, but turning a casual outfit into something formal is a much tougher proposition.