Why We SHOULD Dress Better. . .

Holding up the bar in the 1930s. Maybe we don't need to dress to quite this degree in 2019, but it's a damn sight more sophisticated than what society has allowed itself to devolve to -- think cheap black pants, dusty square-toed shoes, and the ubiquitous pilled fleece with a company logo sewn to the chest -- in the last 30 years of so.

Here's what others have to say on the topic of dressing better than what has become the accepted average most places, and why doing so is necessary:

The Psychology of Dressing Well

The Influence of Clothing on First Impressions

Enclothed Cognition

The Cognitive Consequences of Formal Clothing

Mind Games: Sometimes a White Coat Isn't Just a White Coat

Dress, Body, and Self: Research in the Social Psychology of Dress

Dressing for Success and the Achievement of Your Dreams

What Your Clothes Might Be Saying about You

How Clothes Influence Our Performance

Wearing a Suit Makes You Think Differently

Business Casual Has Turned Workwear into a Nightmare

Business Casual Is Turning Into Business Whatever

Have We Taken Casual Workwear too Far?

Business Casual for Men (March 2018)

15 Habits of Well-dressed Men

Of course, it's your call to make when it comes to how you want others to see you through your choice of attire, but allow me to make a couple of related observations.

Dressing better, the perception of comfort, and economic sensibility need not be mutually exclusive after all. Perhaps if more people made the effort to dress even a tiny bit better than has become the accepted norm for most, they might feel better about themselves and their lives, gradually reducing the sheer number of people on anti-depressants.

Who knows? There might just be a link between schlepping around in bagged out sweats, cargo shorts, grubby khakis -- or some kind of earth tone top with too much scarf looped artlessly around the neck ala Oprah, leggings, and Crocs/Uggs for the ladies -- and how we feel about ourselves.

People might be surprised by how their general mood, outlook, behavior, related choices, and lives change for the better when they clothe themselves better. . . along with a wee bit of color and pattern. A few steps in the direction of 'Positive with a capital P' can hardly be a bad thing in our otherwise anxious and negative era.

With that in mind, shouldn't we hold ourselves to a marginally better standard even when we're off the clock? It's a topic that warrants some serious thought.

-- Heinz-Ulrich

Comments

J. Press Goodness. . .

F resh out of the UPS box, three examples of J. Press goodness on a Friday morning. These shirts are replacements for three recently worn-through, more than 20-year old OCBDs from Land's End (two) and L.L. Bean (one). They were purchased shortly after I took my first teaching position at a now defunct local college outside of Minneapolis, immediately following graduate school, as the fall semester kicked off in September 2003. While some professional gear hung in my closet already, a few additional items were needed at that point to round out the weekly rotation. Said shirts all finally fell prey to small rips showing up in the now very thin, but incredibly comfortable, fabric within six weeks of each other this winter and early spring. So, time for a few replacements. The old friends will find new life as summertime lawncare shirts. Of the three new items above, my favorite shirt is on the right, but one cannot go wrong with a light blue OCBD either, so we're in good

Time for the Ol' Switcheroo?

W ell, here we are approaching mid-April. And it might just be about time to swap the cool and cold weather attire for warmer weather gear this coming weekend. Mid-70s Fahrenheit yesterday, and low 70s today. Cooler after that later in the week, but I can probably stow the heavier wool items and cords in the cedar closet and safely bring out the warm weather suits, odd jackets, and pants until the fall. Still time of one last hurrah today however. Cooler enough this morning for a tan pair of cords paired with that recently arrived J. Press jacket. The latter is light enough, although it is wool, that I might just keep it handy since we can certainly have chilly days in May and June. While classes end on the April 19th this year, I'll still be on campus occasionally into June, so it's not exactly time for khaki shorts, Madras, seersucker and short-sleeved polo shirts just yet. There's also conference coming up in New Orleans at the start of June, so still some oppor

Job Talk #3. . .

C andidate #3 is, for my money, the person for the job. Considerable experience, broad perspective, well-connected throughout the college and university due to an array of collaborative pursuits of one kind or another, coherent and detailed vision laid out for the next three years and beyond. Yes. I am not on the committee that makes the recommendation to the dean, who will make the final decision and send the letter, but, were it up to yours truly, this is the guy. And he wore an actual suit (mid-gray), dress shoes, white shirt, and necktie as an added plus. 20 years or so my junior, but someone gets it. -- Heinz-Ulrich

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