People often ask me why I dress the way I do, and I never know how to respond. Why does anyone dress a certain way?
When it comes to work attire, I have no hard and fast rules.
Mainly because I dress in work the same way I do outside of the office. Things are simple in that regard.
Since I was about 16, I’ve always dressed in what some would describe as a formal style: shirt, jacket and waistcoat.
I don’t often wear suit trousers, but that’s just because I hate having to iron them (getting that crease down the middle is a pain).
Instead, I wear chinos, generally black, as they go with most things.
I don’t wear a tie, except for funerals and weddings, because I think that would maybe be too much, even for the office, and feel a bit restricting. Plus, I would look like I was about to guest lecture university students about some poetry anthology they’ve never heard of nor care very much about.
As a journalist working for a newspaper/online, rather than broadcast, we’re less visible to the public and given a lot of leeway when it comes to our sartorial choices.
So, why do I bother to dress the way I do?
The answer is because I feel most comfortable in such clothes, hence also wearing them at home.
If I’m feeling sluggish or lethargic, they tend to make me feel somewhat better.
I’m not even sure exactly why I began to dress like this. It may be because, as a child, my grandfather was always “suited and booted”, and I looked up to him immensely.
Regarding work attire, I don’t think there is a “right way” or “wrong way” to dress.
Obviously, though, it depends on what kind of job you do.
Because you don’t want to see a priest in a kimono or a swimming pool lifeguard wearing a tuxedo.