74 How to Sell Yourself
Mark Twain said, “Clothes make the man. Naked people have
little or no influence on society.” Well, neither do inappropriately
dressed people. Clothes should fit well, look comfortable, and be
appropriate for the occasion.
I also think you’re at your best when you feel comfortable in
what you’re wearing. I don’t function as well in a heavily starched
shirt collar, so I don’t wear starched shirts. Do what works for you.
I remember the book Dress for Success had a warning to busi-
ness people that brown was out—until Ronald Reagan appeared
regularly in brown suits. He looked terrific, and brown made a
triumphant return. The colors you choose should look good and
help you feel good about yourself.
I like leaving the question of the buttoning of the jacket to you
and your comfort factor. I hate watching the politician get up,
start to walk to the microphone and automatically button the jacket.
It looks robotic. Here again, whatever works best for you is usu-
ally easiest on the eye.
Looking good while seated
When you’re sitting, it’s usually best to leave the jacket un-
buttoned. Television anchors are about the only ones who look
like their clothes were tailored for the sitting position. Most of us
wind up looking like we left the hanger in the jacket when we put
it on that morning. Seated, the jacket tends to crawl up in back
and the top of the jacket winds up a couple of inches above the
shirt collar. It looks sloppy.
The film Broadcast News had a wonderful scene showing how
the tail of the jacket is pulled down and sat on to keep the collar
from traveling up.
Bare skin will get all the attention
Bare skin that isn’t supposed to be bare is distracting. Bare
skin is for the beach. We should never see more than we ought to
see from the speaker in any professional situation.
For men, I advise long-sleeved shirts and over-the-calf socks.
When short-sleeved shirts are appropriate, it’s probably also
appropriate to shed the jacket, but a lot of bare arm under the
jacket sleeve looks underdressed, if not undressed. The same goes
for socks. We don’t want to see the skin under the trouser leg.