How to Dress for Job Interview

DRESSING FOR JOB INTERVIEW

How to Dress for a Formal Job Interview

Dressing for a job interview can sometimes put you in anxiety. This can lead to a disturbed mind. So, if you are wondering what to wear for your job interview, then read on. I am going to talk to you on How to Dress for a Formal Job Interview.

The Way You Dress Up Plays a Crucial Role in You Being Selected for the Job.

Before you open your mouth to speak during your job interview your dress has already spoken a lot about you.

What you will wear for your job interview may not be the same way you will dress when you get that job. But that doesn’t give you an excuse not to dress properly for your job interview.

Dress to impress for a job interview. Dress up for the positive impact that you will create on the minds of your interviewer in your job interview. It also shows that you are an individual who knows how to put the right effort.

So what do you do to dress for your job interview?

"How Should One Dress for a Job Interview?"

On the day of the interview, you need to follow a routine that will ensure that you arrive for your job interview in a calm and right state of mind.

It all begins with the way you dress up. If you can look good and smart on the outside you can feel confident on the inside.

Here are few guidelines or tips that you can follow to dress up for your job interview:

EARLY TO BED and EARLY TO RISE: 

The night before your job interview you need to go to bed early. This will ensure that you get up early and fresh the next morning. Of course, it will also depend on the time you have to report for the interview. But it always pays to get up early in the morning.

FRESHEN UP:

It’s important that you freshen up in a proper manner before you start getting ready. The day before your job interview you should avoid eating something that can upset your stomach in the morning. Nothing can be worse than getting up for an important day of your life and realizing that your stomach is upset.

Brush your teeth as it should be done. Shampoo your hair properly and have a good and proper bath. Don’t be in a hurry.

DRESS UP: 

You need to dress for the occasion.

What does dress for the occasion mean?

When you go for a job interview you will not dress as if you are going for a marriage party or a picnic at the beach, will you?

The occasion here is your job interview. Here you are expected to be in professional attire. Most of the companies prefer this. Some companies are okay with candidates coming in casuals for the job interview. You need to get it clarified with the HR of the company.

Imagine arriving for your job interview in jeans and round neck T-Shirt when other candidates are in full formals.

When in doubt always go for the formal style of dressing during a job interview.

So what is the dress code for job interview for male and female?

You don't have to wear an expensive dress. There is no guarantee that if you wear branded dress you will automatically look smart in it. A three thousand rupees shirt can also make you look like a shabbily or a badly dressed candidate. 

Wear something in which you are comfortable. Now again, you can be comfortable in your pajamas also. That doesn’t mean that you wear pajamas to the interview. At the same time, you should also not wear too loose trousers that it keeps going down every thirty seconds.

The dress you wear for your job interview should serve you two purposes:

1.    It should be comfortable for you

2.    You should appear presentable in that dress for a job interview

It is advised not to buy a new dress, especially for your job interview. You might have only done a trial of that dress. You did not wear it for a complete day. You don’t know how comfortable it is on you when you wear it for a full day. Most of the times a new dress simply appears too new and moreover it may make you look like a dressed up walking mannequin.

If for some reason you have to buy a new dress especially for your job interview then do one thing – wash your new dress even before you wear it for the interview. This will get rid of the additional stiffness that some ready-made dresses carry.

Before you select which dress to wear make sure it does not have any stain on it. Your trousers should also not be torn or fabric should not be hanging from the stitches.

Once you finalize your dress make sure it’s washed and well ironed.

Carry a washed handkerchief and ensure that it is also ironed. If you are a male wear matching belt with your trousers. Make certain that the end of your belt is not hanging out from the loop behind you. It looks really untidy and funny. It shows how careless you are.

NAILS: Gentlemen, please take care of your fingernails. Just because you are a male doesn’t mean that you can leave your nails as they are.

No Way!

Make sure you have properly cut your nails using nail cutter and not using your other hand fingers or even your teeth.

It’s important because you may be shaking hands with your interviewer. If you have sharp nails and have not trimmed it, you might hurt someone with your nails. Your palm and fingers will be seen during the interview. If they are not smartly trimmed, they may stand out like something untidy.

TO DO MAKEUP OR NOT (for ladies): 

Most of the girls don’t leave their house without makeup. If you must apply makeup make sure it’s very light. Don’t put on makeup as if you are going to attend a marriage function. Your makeup should be more on the natural side. It should enhance the way you look professionally and not make you appear as a lady painted in makeup.

JEWELLERY (for ladies):

If you plan on wearing jewellery for the interview, make sure it is simple and not too jazzy. Not wearing any jewellery is not an option. You need to impress upon your interviewer that you know how to present yourself in a professional setup.

LIPSTICK (for ladies): 

Not every girl wears a lipstick. It’s not mandatory. But if you have the habit of wearing lipstick or want to wear lipstick for your job interview make sure that it is not some super bright color that is shown in lipstick advertisement.

Do some research and see which shades will suit you in a professional setup. Do a dress rehearsal if you want. It is a part of your preparation for a job interview.

NAILS (for ladies): 

Take care of your fingernails and toes. If you don’t apply nail polish just make sure they are neat and clean. If you apply nail polish make sure your nails have a fresh coat of nail polish before you leave for your job interview. Again, it should not be too vibrant or flashy. It should be a color to go well with your attire.

DON’T TAKE BATH IN PERFUME: 

If you have to put perfume make sure it’s not very strong. The perfume should make you smell good and at the same time, it should not make it difficult for your interviewer to breath in your presence.   When you leave the interview venue after giving your interview, you should be remembered for the skills that you discussed rather than being remembered by the strong scent that you applied.

FOOTWEAR:

1.    For Gentlemen:

Make sure you wear washed and clean socks.

If you have socks that you have been wearing since last one month chances are it would have started to stink. Remember, most of the interview happens in a closed cabin. Some of them may even have Air Conditioner. If you wear the same socks for your job interview, the stink of your socks may spread in the small cabin making the interviewer or interviewers feel uneasy. The smell can become unbearable. They would not invest time interviewing you and get rid of you as soon as they can.

Because of your stinking socks, you lost the opportunity of getting a job.

So you have to make sure that you wear properly washed socks.

Next thing you need to take care of your socks is that it should not be torn from anywhere.

Most of the time the socks get torn in front where you have your toes and sometimes it gets torn at the ankle. Chances are in some job interviews you may be asked to remove your shoes and go inside the cabin.

Imagine, your socks are torn at the toes and as you remove your shoes your toes start to peep out of your torn socks, what impression will you be giving to your interviewer?

You might be okay wearing torn socks, but the market where you are going to perform is not okay with such untidy dressing up.

Don’t make a laughing stock of yourself. Make sure your socks are also not torn.

One last thing you need to avoid when it comes to wearing socks is wearing colored socks. Avoid wearing colorful flowery kind of socks. Instead, go for plain and dark color socks. It should be matching with your shoe color.

Make sure your shoes are in good condition.

When I say in good condition, I want to point a few things –

1.    It should be formal

2.    It should not be torn from anywhere

3.    The heels of the shoe should be proper

4.    It should not be too tight or too loose

5.    It should be well polished

I have seen candidates walk in wearing a formal dress but when you look at their shoes they are wearing sports shoe or casual shoes. Some even wear floaters and come for an interview.

When you look at their dressing style there is no unity in what they are wearing.

Again, don’t buy new shoes especially for the interview. As you walk a long distance, being new, it might start biting your toes. This will affect your walk. You might limp as you walk leaving a bad impression on your interviewer.

Just keep in mind the above tips and you should be good.

2.    For Ladies:

There are few tips that you need to keep in mind when it comes to footwear –

1.    Whatever footwear you wear, it should be formal and should match with your overall dress

2.    Ensure that it’s not torn and is comfortable for you to walk in

3.    Make sure your footwear appears neat and clean

4.    Avoid wearing new footwear on the day of your interview, it might cut your feet

If you are wondering how to dress for your 1st job interview?

The above guidelines are good for those who are attending the job interview for the first time.

IN CONCLUSION

The purpose of taking care of your dress code during your job interview is to make sure your interviewer is not distracted by whatever you are wearing.

If there is something on your body that distracts him, his attention will keep on diverting and he may not be able to focus on the interview. This can go against you and you may lose the opportunity of getting that job.

Remember, your dressing also adds to your smartness and intelligence.

Today’s market scenario is very competitive. You need to learn to market yourself; nobody is going to do it for you.

When you dress for the occasion and show up for the job interview, you are marketing yourself. 

And the first impression people get of you is when they see you. If you appear well behaved and presentable to them they may think positively about you and will love to interview you.

Clearing a job interview is the addition of lots of elements. You might find a few things irrelevant or not important to focus on but, little, little things add on to create your personality in front of the interviewer. You never know what the interviewer may notice about you. If it is something positive he may be impressed if it’s something negative you may be rejected.

So, when it comes to dressing up and showing at the job interview, don’t ignore even the most trivial things that you wear or don’t wear on your body.

An Intelligent Mind without proper grooming Loses its Shine!

Have you attended a job interview before? What dress did you wear for the job interview? Share it in the comment box.

In addition to what is mentioned above what else would you do to dress for your job interview? Let me know in the comment box.

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