The perfect outfit for your career — the job interview!
You have done it — your application was successful and you have now been invited to a personal interview. Now you stand in front of your wardrobe facing the big question: what do I wear?
Our blog article “What to Wear to a Job Interview — For the Advanced” aims to raise awareness of what our clothing reveals about us in an interview.
And as Oscar Wilde so beautifully put it: “There is nothing so deep as the surface.”
Career starter or top manager
The job interview is always an important topic for everyone. It concerns those just starting out in their careers just as much as candidates for senior management.
Choosing the right clothing for your profession or job interview is not so simple. On the one hand, it must be appropriate for the position, the employer and the industry; on the other, you should also feel comfortable in what you wear.
How clothing affects those around us
What you wear has a great influence on how you feel about yourself and how you are perceived by others. It is not for nothing that the saying goes: “Clothes make the man!”
We would like to draw your attention to the impact of the right outfit, so as to support you on the right path in your career:
For: through their clothing, the wearer can appear more assertive, more competent, more communicative or simply taller or more distinguished.
The ideal outfit should suit both your own type and your professional situation.
And here are our examples of the perfect interview outfit:
Career starters:
Let us start right from the beginning. What does “application” actually mean? We want to advertise something — namely ourselves. Marketing for myself, so to speak! We want to bring a good product to market, and of course the packaging has to be right.
Anyone starting out in their career should choose their clothing according to the credo: understated, restrained and adapted to the environment of the new workplace.
Not every industry requires the traditional suit; you can also reach for something a little bolder. Here we recommend our two blog articles on the subject of “smart casual”.
> What is Smart Casual? And what is neither smart nor casual?
If you are applying to a bank or a law firm (just as an example), you should choose your suit in understated colours; after all, the person opposite you should be able to focus on you and your abilities.
Please do not choose a black suit — black is reserved for a tuxedo or a funeral!
Rather reach for a dark blue suit and combine it with a white shirt. That way you are always well dressed!
And even if it may sound strange to you, please never reach for dark or, worse, short-sleeved shirts.
Because the right colours or cuts can influence the impression you make on a potential employer. Strong contrasts and dark colours often come across as cool and distant, while harmoniously coordinated tones appear friendlier and more communicative.
Ladies:
And these rules apply to ladies too — go for skirt suits and trouser suits in muted colours. Ladies may reach for slightly lighter tones, as women are allowed to play a little more with colour, and of course discreet jewellery can also be worn.
The crown of style — the shoes
It is said that in an outfit, the colours grow darker from top to bottom.
For both sexes this means always wearing dark shoes to match the look.
It is also very important to note that shoes must always be polished and gleaming!
And dear ladies, please do not wear high heels to your interview! A beautiful, classic business shoe with a heel of up to 7 cm looks good and is also considerably more comfortable and safer!
Tie required?
If a tie is worn in the industry to which you have applied, then you should wear one in your interview too.
We have already written a very detailed article on this topic:
CEOs and top managers
Of course, exactly the same rules apply to this professional group, but if you are already at this stage of your career you may dare a little more. Be it a suit in a lighter tone or an item of clothing that emphasises your personality.
An important tip for you: in an interview, wear the clothing worn one hierarchical level above yours — or simply, in the words of fashion designer Giorgio Armani:
Always dress for the position you want, not the one you already have.
And this is perhaps the most important tip of all: you should always prepare well for a job interview, gather all the information about the company and mentally engage with the situation.
Do try on your outfit beforehand; it will give you a feeling for what suits you and your potential employer. We also recommend wearing something in which you feel comfortable.
With these tips, nothing can stand in the way of your career — and we wish you every success!