Business Etiquette This book teaches individuals how to represent their

“I have heard with admiring submission the experience
of the lady who declared that the sense of being
perfectly well-dressed gives a feeling of inward
tranquillity which religion is powerless to bestow.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson
merson was probably right—but the opposite is also
true. Being less than perfectly well-dressed in a
business setting can result in a feeling of profound
discomfort that may well require therapy to dispel! And
the sad truth is that “clothing mismatches” on the job can
ruin the day of the person who’s wearing the inappropri-
ate attire—and the people with whom he or she comes in
contact!
E

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Business Etiquette
What can go wrong when it comes to professional at-
tire? Plenty. In this chapter, you’ll find to-the-point advice
on handling the most important issues related to workplace
attire. As you’ll soon learn, even “casual day” wardrobe
selections that carry potentially dire implications on the job
can be avoided with just a minimal investment of time, care,
and attention.
Tip #10
Tip #10
Tip #10
Tip #10
Tip #10
Know when to dr
Know when to dr
Know when to dr
Know when to dr
Know when to dress up—or dr
ess up—or dr
ess up—or dr
ess up—or dr
ess up—or dress down.
ess down.
ess down.
ess down.
ess down.
Offices vary when it comes to dress codes. Some busi-
nesses have very high standards for their employees and
set strict guidelines for office attire, while others maintain
a more relaxed attitude. However, it is always important to
remember that no matter what your company’s attitude is
regarding what you wear, you are working in a business
environment and you should dress accordingly. This applies
not only to business casual wear but to more formal busi-
ness attire, as well. Certain items may be more appropriate
for evening wear than for a business meeting, just as shorts
and a T-shirt are better suited for the beach than for an
office environment.
Your attire should reflect both your environment and
your position. A senior vice president has a different image
to maintain than that of a secretary or sales assistant.
Like it or not, you can and will be judged by your per-
sonal appearance!
This is never more apparent than on “dress-down days,”
when what you wear can say more about you than any busi-
ness suit ever could. In fact, people will pay 
more 
attention
to what you wear on dress-down days than on “business
professional” days! Thus, when dressing in “business casual”

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35
Business Dress 101
clothes, try to put some flair into your wardrobe choices;
recognize that the “real” definition of business casual is to
dress just one notch down from what you would normally
wear on business-professional attire days. Avoid jeans, worn,
wrinkled polo shirts, sneakers, scuffed shoes, halter-tops,
and revealing blouses. For men, try wearing a neat pair of
pants and a buttoned shirt with long or short sleeves that
has more color or texture in the fabric. For women, wear
skirts or tailored pants with blouses, blazers, and accesso-
ries that mean business yet convey a more casual look than
your standard business attire.
Tip #11
Tip #11
Tip #11
Tip #11
Tip #11
Know when it’s time for your or
Know when it’s time for your or
Know when it’s time for your or
Know when it’s time for your or
Know when it’s time for your organization
ganization
ganization
ganization
ganization
to adopt a new dr
to adopt a new dr
to adopt a new dr
to adopt a new dr
to adopt a new dress policy
ess policy
ess policy
ess policy
ess policy.....
How would you rate the way your colleagues or em-
ployees dress for work? Try answering these questions to
find out:
1. Do the women in your organization wear
scrunchies and mules? (For the men reading
this book, an explanation is probably in order.
Scrunchies are those brightly colored fabric
doodads that hold in place the ponytails of
adolescents and others experimenting with low
fashion; mules are shoes without backs.)
2. Do male employees interpret “permanent
press” as meaning “not needing to be ironed,
ever”?
3. Does it look like stock in Spandex must have
risen dramatically based on the clothing
choices of your organization’s employees?

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36
Business Etiquette
If you have answered “yes” to any of the above ques-
tions, ask yourself if the way you and others representing
your organization is reflective of the professional image you
want your company to project. If you are in a management
position, draft a memo that updates the dress code. Other-
wise, consider suggesting, subtly, that someone in authority
revisit your dress policy.
One simple, never-to-be-violated rule that applies to
both men and women: Avoid wearing clothes that reveal
too much or leave little to the imagination! For example,
men who wear shorts to the office—even on Saturdays—
may unintentionally signal to others that they don’t recog-
nize standards for appropriate business casual dress. The
same rule holds true for women who wear skirts that are
tighter and shorter than “business professional” skirts. Why
risk the chance of not being taken seriously by managers
and colleagues?
Remember, there are boundaries between your career
and your social life. You should dress one way for play and
another way when you mean business.
Always ask yourself where you’re going and how other
people will be dressed when you get there. Is the final des-
tination the opera, the beach, or the office? Dress accord-
ingly, and you will discover the truth in the axiom that
clothes make the man—and the woman! When in doubt,
always err on the side of dressing slightly more conserva-
tively than the situation demands. Remember, you can al-
ways remove a jacket, but you can’t put one on if you didn’t
take it with you!

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37
Business Dress 101
Tip #12
Tip #12
Tip #12
Tip #12
Tip #12
A
A
A
A
Avoid overaccessorizing.
void overaccessorizing.
void overaccessorizing.
void overaccessorizing.
void overaccessorizing.
Whether you are a man or a woman, the way in which
you use accessories reveals a great deal about you. Acces-
sories can communicate who and what you are as a person,
in the way you are presenting yourself and in your atten-
tion to detail.
The most common opportunity for overaccessorizing is
probably to be found in jewelry. In this case, the basic rule
of thumb in a business environment is that less is more.
Earrings on men are strictly taboo; women should choose
earrings that are simple yet elegant and should wear no
more than one pair. Pins provide nice accents to a business
ensemble, yet they need not be the main attention-grab-
ber. Be tuned into your organization’s culture to decide
whether or not you can wear multiple-bangle bracelets; in
some workplaces they are considered inappropriate. For
both sexes, “appropriate” in a professional setting means
wearing a maximum of one ring on each hand, worn on ei-
ther the ring finger or the pinkie.
Tip #13
Tip #13
Tip #13
Tip #13
Tip #13
Skip the cheap accessories.
Skip the cheap accessories.
Skip the cheap accessories.
Skip the cheap accessories.
Skip the cheap accessories.
Make sure that (for instance), the business pen you carry
portrays a positive professional image. When dressed pro-
fessionally, avoid carrying a plastic pen, just as you would
avoid wearing a Power Rangers watch with a plastic band.
While you’re investing in a decent-looking pen, you
should also take note of your computer case, luggage, and
umbrella. Are they as well-maintained as they can possibly

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38
Business Etiquette
be? Do they look sharp? Or can they stand to be replaced?
If a “maybe” even popped into your mind, get out there
and invest in new accessories that will pay big dividends for
your career.
Tip #14
Tip #14
Tip #14
Tip #14
Tip #14
If you’r
If you’r
If you’r
If you’r
If you’re an employer
e an employer
e an employer
e an employer
e an employer, clarify
, clarify
, clarify
, clarify
, clarify
“business casual attir
“business casual attir
“business casual attir
“business casual attir
“business casual attire.”
e.”
e.”
e.”
e.”
Some companies set up a “dress-down day” policy, then
forget to tell the employees exactly what they mean by
“dress-down.” Unpleasant sartorial surprises sometimes
arise as a result!
If you are the person responsible for creating a policy
and procedure manual—or at the very least, a detailed
memo—that describes specifically what you do and don’t
want to see on business casual days. By doing this, you’ll
give your people guidelines to follow and help them plan
that (often tricky) “third wardrobe.”
Remember to mention the basics: If you want men to
wear shoes and socks instead of open-toed sandals and
women to wear hosiery or trouser socks with slacks, even if
they have a great tan, say so. By taking a few simple steps to
formalize the boundaries of business casual day, you can
clarify what is and isn’t acceptable, keep your working en-
vironment professional, and avoid the strange looks from
important visitors when your work force as a whole looks
like it just returned from Schlockville, U.S.A.
Tip #15
Tip #15
Tip #15
Tip #15
Tip #15
Refer to “the Book” to solve attir
Refer to “the Book” to solve attir
Refer to “the Book” to solve attir
Refer to “the Book” to solve attir
Refer to “the Book” to solve attireeeee
pr
pr
pr
pr
problems among subor
oblems among subor
oblems among subor
oblems among subor
oblems among subordinates.
dinates.
dinates.
dinates.
dinates.
Recently, I received a call from a personnel director
who wanted to know how to approach a woman who wore

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39
Business Dress 101
sleeveless blouses to work (whose bra and slip straps al-
ways seemed to show). The caller wanted to know how she
could get this person to change the way she dressed, with-
out shattering her ego?
I suggested that she appropriately update the
organization’s procedure manual to include a business ca-
sual code and that she depersonalize the exchange by tak-
ing a “rules are rules” approach during a private (and
low-key) meeting. It worked!
Did you ever see the cover of the Dilbert book,