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Subject:Why do we wear what we do? From:Melissa Hunter-Kilmer <mhunterk -at- BNA -dot- COM> Date:Tue, 22 Jul 1997 11:17:39 EST
Eric Haddock <ehaddock -at- ENGAGENET -dot- COM> wrote
>If the same males who told women to wear skirts in winter also had
>to shell out the bucks for a real wardrobe and not for a
>comparatively small collection of suit jackets and shirts and ties
>(which all look the same more or less) that can be worn again even in
>the same week, then perhaps dress codes wouldn't be as strict as they
>appear to be.
>Oh, pish-tosh. The real problem is *attitude* not cost. If I'm content to
>wear two outfits that look similar during the same week and you're not, why
>is it anyone's fault but your own that you have(?) to buy more clothes?
I guess the real question is *why* we wear what we do.
Years ago, I realized that I would be taken more seriously and
promoted more often if I dressed in business clothes every day. I
need all the help I can get, because I am not brilliant and do not put
my job before the rest of my life -- two traits that do not commonly
lead to promotion. ;-) I also used to look so much younger than I
was that nobody thought I had anything to offer.
So I started wearing suits every day, and I immediately saw that those
in power took more professional interest in me, while my then-peers
drew back. I knew I was on to something.
Now I dress not for myself but for those who can promote me. This
means that I have to have a variety of outfits, but I am fortunate
enough to have a clotheshorse of a sister-in-law who years ago gave
me a bunch of stuff that has pretty much taken care of my clothing
needs. Because of popular perceptions of women's fashion, I need to
wear this variety; I can't just jump between my navy suit and gray
suit all the time, much though I'd like to.
Clothes just don't matter that much to me. As long as I don't have to
dress in ways that violate my morals, I'll wear whatever works for the
environment and my career. You gotta pick your battles, and this one
is not for me.
Melissa Hunter-Kilmer
mhunterk -at- bna -dot- com
BNA and I do not speak for each other. The company also does not
speak for fortune cookies. Today's message:
The one who hurries cannot walk with dignity.
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