When you head out to work, you get up, shower and dress – a no-brainer! What you wear might not always be an easy decision. That said, the chances are you’ll choose from a few items in your ‘working wardrobe’. If you’re really ‘lucky’ there’ll be no decision making, you’ll just slip on a uniform. There’ll be social, and sometimes, business-driven, policies on the dress ‘code’ around what is acceptable and what isn’t. But getting ready for work changed in March this year when we all started working from home. So, with that in mind, it seemed appropriate to write this post about the importance of the lockdown home-working wardrobe…
The Curse of the Lockdown Home-Working Wardrobe…
Have you been leaping out of bed at 6.30 am, showering and dressing in a smart outfit ready to hit your desk? Or do you lounge about in your PJ’s checking emails (and social media) until you realise it’s 11 am? By that stage, you might resign yourself to brushing your hair and dressing your top half ready for your video call. I believe this is commonly known as ‘keyboard dressing! Most people I’ve discussed this with tend to be somewhere between the two.
Does it matter?
Well, yes, it does. Getting ready for your working day can act as what we know in coaching terms, as an ‘anchor.’ An association the brain makes between the act of dressing (sometimes in a certain way) that tells the brain we are ready for work. It’s what flags up that it’s time to get productive, get going and take action. Working in your pyjamas, or scruffy loungewear (the clue is in the name) is usually not as effective.
You may have seen amusing viral videos of workers caught with their pants down (or just not on) during Zoom calls! And I have experienced first-hand, many people coming onto networking and other business calls in clothes they’d never dream of wearing to an in-person meeting (and sometimes with questionable grooming too).
Caring about your appearance is not vain; it’s not shallow. It’s about taking part in the world and saying you care about yourself and others. This acknowledgement is such an essential factor in then having the confidence to take your message, your products, or your service out to the world. Even when working from home!
“Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.”
MARK TWAIN
If you need some advice on a home-working wardrobe, I can help you be as competent and confident at home as you are in your office environment. Book a confidence call, contact me HERE.