As seen on CNNfn
Susan Bixler's interview appeared on December 8, 1999.
By Staff Writer Nicole Jacoby

NEW YORK (CNNfn) - It appears the clothes do make the man -- or at least create the manager.

Despite a trend toward increased casualness in the workplace, experts say what you wear still matters if you want to climb to the top.

Unfortunately, figuring out what to put on has become more difficult, as suits and starched shirts get shoved aside for khakis, miniskirts and blue jeans.

"Dress has become very situation sensitive," said Nancy Nix-Rice, the founder of image consulting firm First Impressions and author of Looking Good: A Comprehensive Guide to Wardrobe Planning, Color & Personal Style Development. "We’ve moved past the time when one rubber stamp set of rules works for everyone."

Relaxed dress requirements were supposed to simplify employees’ lives by putting less pressure on them to conform to specific molds. But in many cases, business casual has only complicated matters.

For one, the widespread acceptance of more relaxed dress has left many workers wondering where to draw the line. Are leggings and sneakers OK if your boss is wearing them, too? Can you be punished for being too dressy -- especially if you work for one of the many young and hip startups that have sprung up in recent years?

"The business casual trend has been such a double-edged sword," said Nix-Rice. "There was a lot of research initially that seemed to substantiate that it improved morale and performance... but what seems to have happened is that it has decayed to such an extreme (that the opposite is happening.)"

With telecommuting, e-mail, pagers and cell phones increasingly becoming the norm in workplaces across the country, some employees might wonder why appearances matter at all anymore.

But ironically, the reduction in live contact may have actually bolstered the significance people put on the real-life interactions that do take place.

"When we are face to face, it has become even more important to be extraordinarily professional -- to match the image people have already created in their minds," said Susan Bixler, president of The Professional Image, Inc. and author of The New Professional Image: From Business Casual to the Ultimate Power Look. "You don’t want them to think: ‘Oh gosh, she sounded so much more professional on the phone.’"

Fashion not the issue
First impressions can have a very real impact on your career. They can influence prospective job offers, whether you secure that much-needed promotion or land that multimillion-dollar deal. And like it or not, clothes are a big part of those initial meetings.

Having said that, there’s more to advancement than what you wear.

"Obviously, you can’t be an idiot and have a great wardrobe, but it does open up mental doors to what you have to say and offer," said Nix-Rice.

Dressing for success does not translate into being a slave to fashion. In fact, in many cases, fashion is completely beside the point.

"It’s not about what trends dictate about what’s in and out. It’s more about understanding clothing and getting an excellent fit, getting colors that make you look healthy and finding styles that are good for your proportions," said Nix-Rice.

Many employees lose points not for lacking style, but for overlooking details, such as slips that peak out from under skirts or hair that has been combed in the front, but not back.

Dress for the job you want -- not the job you have -- is advice commonly touted. It might be all right for an office assistant to wear jeans and a t-shirt. But his boss might have a hard time picturing him giving important presentations if she’s never seen him in a tie.

Fitting into your environment may be at least as important. While looking professional is certainly necessary, coming off as too dressy can backfire if casual dress is the norm at your firm.

"You don’t want to look so formal that it seems like you are trying to intimidate or put distance between you and the other person," said Nix-Rice.

When younger isn’t better
There’s nothing like being mistaken for a recent college grad for many 30-something professionals, but sometimes looking too young can also set your career back.

"We all want experienced people handling our legal affairs, financial affairs, consulting with us," said Bixler. "If someone looks so young and is just too fresh-faced, we might wonder, does this person have the experience to help me and be credible?"

When your wardrobe says more about your age than your resume, a makeover may be in order. Wearing matronly dresses probably won’t do the trick, but avoiding youthful outfits - such as jeans or short skirts - might be a good idea. You might not be able to look older, but you may be able to emit a more serious demeanor by choosing clothes that are low-key and conservative.

Dressing too old can be a problem as well -- especially among the clunky-shoed, messenger-bag-toting crowd that has come to dominate the workplace in recent years. An employee whose wardrobe is stuck in 1983 may come off as stiff, unapproachable and unable to "lighten up."

But before you trade in your pressed navy blues for a pair of Dockers, remember that dressing outside your age range can result in another problem altogether.

"A lot of times you see older people trying to act or dress young, but they just don’t have the body to do it," said Bixler. "...Golf shirts and khakis are great if you’re young and trim, but they don’t do much to camouflage that tummy and all the late meals you’ve been taking in."

For older employees, Bixler recommends a crisper business casual look, such as slacks and a blue blazer.

The bottom line
No matter how casual the workplace, it is almost always easier to dress down, than dress up. So if you’ve got a big interview or an important presentation planned, going for the jacket and tie is probably a good idea.

"If you’re overdressed, you can always take off the jacket or push up your sleeves to get down to the appropriate level," said Bixler. "But if you are underdressed, all you can do is apologize."

If you’re interviewing at a new company, try and find out what their dress codes are before you go in for the meeting, so you can get a good sense of what is appropriate and what is not. But remember that the interview may be your only chance to make a statement, so you might not want to be too casual even if the general atmosphere is relaxed.

"At an interview, the employer is thinking: ‘This is the best (the job candidate) is ever going to look,’" said Bixler. "So you don’t want to take it down too far."