Business Networking and Sex - Ivan Misner [15]
Women: http://businessnetworkingandsex.com/women-dress/
Men: http://businessnetworkingandsex.com/men-dress/
Consider these suggestions from business etiquette expert, professional speaker, corporate trainer, and author Lydia Ramsey (http://mannersthatsell.com). Lydia’s book, Manners That Sell: Adding the Polish That Builds Profits, is filled with ways to align your appearance and presence with your business goals.
• Start with a skirted suit or pantsuit for the most conservative look. A skirted suit is the most professional. With a few exceptions, dresses do not offer the same credibility unless they are accompanied by matching jackets.
• Skirts should be knee-length or slightly above or below. Avoid extremes. A skirt more than two inches above the knee raises eyebrows and questions.
• Pants should break at the top of the foot or shoe. While Capri pants and their fashion cousins that come in assorted lengths from midcalf to ankle are the latest trend, they are out of place in the conservative business environment.
• Blouses and sweaters provide color and variety to woman’s clothing, but should be appealing rather than revealing. Inappropriate necklines and waistlines can give the wrong impression.
• Women need to wear hose in the business world. Neutral or flesh-tone stockings are the best choices. Never wear dark hose with light-colored clothing or shoes. Keep an extra pair of stockings in your desk drawer unless the hosiery store is next door or just down the street from the office.
• Faces, not feet, should be the focal point in business, so choose conservative shoes. A low heel is more professional than flats or high heels. In spite of current fashion and the sandal rage, open-toed or backless shoes are not office attire. Not only are sandals a safety hazard, they suggest a certain official agenda.
• When it comes to accessories and jewelry, less is once again more. Keep it simple: one ring per hand, one earring per ear. Accessories should reflect your personality, not diminish your credibility.
Generally speaking, most women who attend networking events and business functions dress professionally, and I am probably preaching to the choir, but we all have to be aware of how the exception creates the perception. Not all men are staring at body parts, and not all women dress like they’re going to a rave, but the few that do get all the attention.
It’s kind of like a traffic jam with an accident at the end. No one really wants to be sitting in traffic and almost everyone wonders in an irritated way what the holdup is. We crane our necks to see what could possibly be taking so long. When we finally reach the cause of the problem, we too, slow down our cars, adding to the traffic jam, to gawk at the grisly accident. It’s not the preferred way to spend an hour on the freeway, and it’s not what you came for, but the scene is such a mess that you can’t help but stare. To add insult to injury, a lot of the people staring will be thinking to themselves “Now, how the heck did that guy wrap his car around a tree like that?” and the next thing they know they’ve rear-ended the motorist in front of them because they ceased to remember what they came there to do: get from point A to point B safely.
The one or two who create a distracting scene at an event by being out-of-the-box in a negative way get more attention than the people who do things right. The men wind up thinking women go to networking events to get dates, meet men, or have a good time. This is not the kind of perception we want, because it leads to this:
I find that I get hit on at networking events more than I get approached for business reasons. It’s definitely a pattern.
SALE, REFERRAL, OR BOTH?
Not only will that tight little shirt and spiked heels not help your credibility, but