A good choice of clothes won’t alone win you a job contract. That’s not how it works in the interviews for any job–not in the 21st century. But wearing certain clothes can definitely help you succeed, and we will try to understand how.

First of all, our confidence grows when we feel good in our attire. When we feel comfortable and attractive in our own eyes, we do not have a tendency to think about many unimportant details related to attire anymore. And this isn’t only about clothes, but about all parts of our personal presentation:

  • accessories
  • hairstyle
  • posture and body language

All of it sends some message to the interviewers, and reveals a lot about who we are, and what we prefer in life.You should not experiment much with these things. Interview is not place fro first time experiments. Leave experimenting to your dates or meetings with friends. Here you should rely on things and clothes you have experience with, and feel comfortable in. That’s the basic principle, but let’s have a look at five other things you should consider when choosing your clothes.

 

1. Keep it simple, wear your favorite colors

Simple one colored shirt, skirt, or even t-shirt is fine in most cases. Casual, business casual, or formal–this depends on the position you are applying for. But in any case, you should keep it simple. The interviewer shall pay attention to what you say, not to what you wear.

This changes only when you apply for a job of a flight attendant, hostess, or for a similar role, or when your interviewing skills are rather bad, and you want them to focus on your clothes rather than on your words.

You can obviously mix some colors to reflect the preferences of your interviewers (female interviewers like blue and red colors, male love green, blue, and black the most), but in general, you should try to keep it simple, and avoid orange and brown. Both genders do not like these colors.

 

2. Check their dress code and learn from it

If possible (and in the 21st century and digital era everything is possible), try to learn something about their dress code. The best way to do it is visiting the offices of the company (easily doable when you apply for a job in a hotel, retail store, bank, etc), and observe the patterns and habits of existing employees.

The corporate website (or pictures on social media) can also give you some information about the clothes their employees wear to work each day. Do the female employees were skirts, or trousers? Is everyone wearing something in dark blue color, since this color represents the corporate identity of the company? Are people dressed casually, or formally? Find out as much as you can, and try to fit in.

Now, you should also fit in for the position. I remember a guy who came to interview for a job of a car mechanic wearing shirt and tie. This is an immediate sign for the interviewers that you expect something else from the job. You want to play in another league. And that can easily be a showstopper in many interviews. Remember, while good clothes can’t alone win you a job contract, bad choice of clothes (overdressing) can easily kill your chances in some interviews.

Woman in a beautiful and professional interview attire, cream jacket, cream pants, white blouse. We can see other people in the background.

3. Keep it comfortable

Uncomfortable clothes (or shoes), and little niggles we feel here and there because of wearing them, will have an impact on our concentration. You can lose only ten percent of your focus, or perhaps just one percent, which doesn’t seem very important to an untrained eye.

But at the end of the day, this one percent can make a difference between you and the second best job candidate. Try to put on something comfortable, something you feel good wearing, something you have experience with. Do not buy new clothes or shoes just for your job interview. And if you do buy them, wear them at least a few days before, to ensure you are feeling comfortable in your new fantastic pieces.

 

4. Check the weather and dress appropriately

You should also think about weather. Wearing a beautiful white summer dress is not a good idea when it rains outside (or when it is supposed to rain)–even though you may feel great in the summer dress, and it may even be a fitting choice for the job you are trying to get. Of course if you take a taxi and they drop you right in front of the company your problem is solved–and you do not have to care about the weather.

You should also avoid wearing too many layers of clothes during a hot summer day. Maybe you have an AC on at home nonstop, but this doesn’t have to be a case in the company, or on your way to the interviews. The last thing you want is perspiring heavily during your interview, or taking off your jacket and be already wet under your shoulders.

 

5. Focus on things that matter the most

Honestly, if you do not wear many accessories, if your clothes aren’t dirty or strongly inappropriate for the position you apply for, and if you feel comfortable in what you are wearing, you will be fine in most interviews. Of course, every detail counts, and you can improve your chances of succeeding with the right choice of clothes, for example wearing colors that are characteristic for your prospective employer, for their corporate identity.

But you should not spend hours choosing your clothes, or even days buying new clothes for the interview and trying everything on in front of the mirror. Honestly, you have other, more important things to address while preparing for your meeting with the employer :). I wish you good luck and do not forget to check also:

  • How to overcome interview nerves – We always deliver our best when we are relaxed. Learn how to get rid of stress and ace your interview.
  • Interview Success Package – Fantastic answers to all interview questions. Nothing matters more than your interview answers. If you cannot get this one right, you can forget about succeeding in an interview, regardless of your attire.
  • Interview questions by job title – Choose your job field (healthcare, education, finance, etc), pick your job title from the list, and prepare for behavioral and technical questions you will get in your interview.
Matthew Chulaw
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