Dressing Like a Boss

I've been a boss, but I was the boss of one other worker and we worked together in a creative, business casual environment. Plus I'm not a fan of hard-and-fast style rules, so I'll have to be a bit vague, here. But I've received a few questions about how supervisors in conservative working environments should dress, and have a few ideas that might help!

Clothing itself can broadcast messages about your inner self and is a marvelous way to express your creativity. But if you are in a position of power and want people to focus more on what you're saying, thinking, or asking of them than how you look on the outside, it's best to avoid clothing, shoes, and accessories that will distract. Now, some people are distracted by houseplants, so take this advice with a grain of salt and remember that you're not responsible for anyone else's attention span. But if you're wearing earrings the size of grapefruits, a rhinestone-studded shirt, or kelly green patent knee-high platform boots, you may end up having to repeat yourself a bit more than usual.

Generally speaking anything sparkly, super shiny, outsized, neon, extremely tight-fitting, or even remotely costume-y will be at least slightly distracting. And if you think there's a chance and you're worried about a certain item, save it for the weekend or Casual Friday.

If you're going to risk distraction with an unusual or attention-grabbing item, color, or texture, just make sure it's alone in the context of your outfit. Don't wear the flashy belt AND the cowgirl boots. Don't wear the bright blouse AND the bright pants. There's nothing wrong with splashing out and being creative, and daring items will generally figure into those behaviors. But if you want to appear authoritative and need to balance your creativity with your respected boss persona, deploying one unusual or conversation-starting item at a time is a good formula to follow.

It hurts me a little to say this because I consider myself to be a champion of color, but darker, more subdued colors are generally more conservative and authoritarian. If you've got a serious meeting, a client that needs impressing, or a sticky work situation to resolve, wearing charcoal, navy, black, maroon, or forest green may work better than wearing scarlet, yellow, cobalt, or purple. Colorful accents are less likely to grab undue attention than colorful garments. Shoes, scarves, belts, and jewelry are great places to play with bold brights.

To be clear, I'm not recommending that a doctor in a supervisory role do a purple paisley skirt with a red plaid blouse. But small patterns - especially in neutral shades - can mix beautifully with slightly larger, brighter ones for marvelously rich, textured looks. Try a herringbone bottom with a polka-dot top, a pinstripe bottom with a geometric print top. For some great advice, check out this post on Pattern Mixing 101.

If you're a boss working in a conservative field and you're at all concerned that something might be inappropriate, distracting, or odd, just skip it. You can always consult a colleague or check in with HR for input, but if you're making the decision on the fly and it'll just worry you all day long, why take the risk?

Some of you may feel that creative dressing is part of your power, and serves to enrich your authority as a boss. If you feel confident that your daring sartorial choices positively influence your working relationships, you are in a different position, and quite an enviable one. But if you're concerned about the messages you're broadcasting with your clothing and unsure of her choices, these guidelines may be helpful.

If you're a boss, what are you dressing rules of thumb?

Sally McGraw is the author of Already Pretty, a daily blog about the intersection of style and body image.

Image via J.Crew.