I sincerely hope your answer involves pants.
If I had posed that question to you six weeks ago, you would have looked at me like I had twelve heads. But now that we’re all homebound, what to wear for work from home is about as topical as you can get. While it may be tempting to grab a worn t-shirt off the floor and head straight to your laptop, there’s a good case for putting some effort in. And this applies whether you’re on zoom calls all day or not.
One of my favorite style writers, Ray Smith of the Wall Street Journal, recently wrote an article on the topic, in which he quotes my and other image and style experts’ advice. You can check out that article here, and I’ve included my entire list of tips below.
Overall my thinking on the matter is that we can all be a little more relaxed right now. This is a chance to show our human side and connect with others on that level. Now is a time for relationship-building, and exploring new ways to work together once we come out of this — however that may look. After all, partnerships drive innovation. So connecting with others is paramount.
I’m using the term ‘neat casual’ (or the more whimsical ‘corona cas’) for the WFH dress code right now. You don’t want your colleagues to be sitting there wondering if today’s wrinkled t-shirt was last night’s pajama top. And you certainly don’t want them wondering what you’ve got it paired with on bottom.
Stemming from the above: avoid the outfit mullet: business on top, party on bottom. What if you have to jump up to let your dog out of the room during a call? Your underdressed bottom half (boxers/briefs/what-have-you) may have an unintended reveal.
If you typically wear a suit and tie to work, swap that out for a neat button-up shirt. It’s both realistic and respectful. It would be odd to be sitting in front of your computer in a full suit and tie.
If your office is more casual, you can wear the same sorts of things that you were in the office — so a non-wrinkled t-shirt/henley/polo in a color that’s flattering to you will work nicely.
Perhaps more importantly, it’s not just about how others see you. Getting dressed is also for yourself. Wearing pants is good for morale! So even if you’re not doing video calls, take a shower, wash your face and put a complete outfit on. This helps with mood, self-image and productivity.
If you’re doing at-home workouts, good for you! Make sure you shower up after and don’t just jump straight into work. Doing so will help you transition from one activity to the other. This is important to get you into a productive work mindset since you aren’t physically changing locations.
Beware of wrinkles, as they can be amplified over video. You don’t need to break out the steamer before logging on, but the fewer lines in your clothes the better.
Avoid wearing black or white, both of which can wash you out on video. Also, don’t wear the same color as your background, as this can make you look like a floating head.
Instead opt for colors (ideally solids or non-busy patterns) that flatter your skin tone.
In terms of grooming, it’s OK to be slightly rougher around the edges than usual. So if you’re typically clean shaven, a little scruff is fine. And make sure to take a look in the mirror before you go online. Is your hair sticking straight up? Jerky in your teeth? Eyebrows crazy? Don’t overlook the grooming basics.
Overall, use common sense and good judgement based on whom you’re meeting with and what you want to convey.
One of my WFH looks: non-busy pattern and cool tone that’s flattering for me.