SUBTEXTeffects. If the job is not too conservative and a jacket is not
required, a vest gives an outfit polish and fashion savvy.
Working at home presents women with different subtext chal-
lenges. Most may dress more casually, but some still take time
to apply makeup every morning.
Luci R. Knight, who operates a marketing office from her Pleas-
antville, New York, home, believes that wearing makeup gives
her confidence and a business persona when she talks on the
phone. "It makes a definite difference in how I come across,"
she claims.
Joyce Matz, a public-relations consultant in Manhattan who
works out of her home, uses some makeup because "I like to
have it on if the doorman or UPS man comes up." Some women
find that wearing makeup helps them send out a subtext of profes-
sionalism.
Joyce Grillo sums it up: "When you dress up, even to work at
home, you are more productive. Wear something that makes you
feel good about yourself. The way you dress sends out a subtext
of how you feel about yourself and your work."
HAIR—THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT
I asked Joyce Grillo about women's hair, and she suggested that
in most business situations short, neat, and polished sends a subtext
of competence. Long hair, while it is attractive, is often perceived
as inappropriate in a business setting. As Ms. Grillo remarks on
the paradox of hair in the workplace, "A lot of women tell me
that when they cut their hair they feel freer, more aggressive,
more energetic. Of course there are some who feel naked and
vulnerable!"