As a student in college and grad school, I always dreamed about the days I would dress up for work and walk into my workplace feeling like a model on a runway. Clear a path and cue the music....
When I started my journey as a full-time professional, I was excited to strut in the office with heels each week, and I did! I knew my feet would be elevated most days of the work week, but early on I would stand in my closet staring at all my apparel options changing my mind countless times or wishing I had more. After repeating that cycle for many months in the beginning of my career I thought back to grade school where uniforms were required and the most variety of options were purple or white top and pants, capris, skirt or skort. I would have fun dressing up our uniform with shoes and accessories. After analyzing my style and options based on the clothing I already had, I adopted a strategy to help me narrow my options and spend less time deciding what I would wear, whether I was preparing the night before or the morning before work. Since adopting it I continued until we reached remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it helped tremendously.
Wearing buttons on Mondays makes me feel empowered and “about my business” as I kick off the week and my outfits become more and more relaxed as I get closer to the weekend. On Wednesdays I wore dresses and skirts because I would leave work and head straight to a midweek church service. Because of my religious upbringing, I’m still not comfortable wearing pants to church, so that was an easy solution. They are cute and comfortable and many styles and materials don't require an iron or steamer, which is an added bonus.
When I worked at United Way two days of the week were spent out of the office participating in community events like Chamber of Commerce meetings and or visiting businesses to share about the work we were doing, recruiting volunteers and building support for our programs and events. On those days I would wear a black or white polo. At TGR Foundation, the bulk of my time is spent at a desk or computer in the corporate office, but before the pandemic on Fridays the creative team worked from our TGR Learning Lab. The dress code there is much more relaxed as my colleagues are teaching or working with students; because of that I reserve branded T-shirts, sweatshirts and/or polos for Fridays and give my feet a break from heels.
Although my uniform options have expanded immensely since grade school, I love having parameters to help me decide what to wear on any given day of the week. During the pandemic my workwear wardrobe sat still as I relied heavily on t-shirts, tights, shorts and robes. I wear tights every morning for my walks because it’s always a bit chilly. When I return from my walks I would shower and change into shorts and a t-shirt on the days I was planning to get out or work out and a sweatshirt or branded apparel when I had meetings that required me to turn on my camera, which was/is rare. On Tuesday, June 1 our organization will release its full remote work policy and employees will return to our offices on a hybrid schedule. We’ll continue working remotely on some days, which I’m grateful for.
My work life uniform options work for me. Follow the steps below to create your own.
Take inventory of your wardrobe including clothes, shoes and accessories.
Reference your employer’s dress code policy to know what’s acceptable and what’s not.
Assess your lifestyle, schedule and work conditions.
What happens before or after work?
How can you adapt your wardrobe to fit your lifestyle?
What happens during a typical workday? Should you wear heels or flats? If you wear heels should you bring back up flats or keep some in your trunk?
Is it always cold in your office?
Identify your style.
What styles and trends do you like?
What ensembles make you feel confident?
What’s a signature component or staple of your style (tennis, red lips, bold socks?)
Set your schedule and personal uniform policy, head to toe. Remember it’s OK to repeat looks or categories. Ex. Dresses or skirts on Mondays and Wednesdays; Polos and chinos on Tuesdays and Thursdays; Fitted or branded T-shirts and denim on Fridays.
Setting a work life uniform can save you time and help you see and understand what you have and what you need. It can also help you determine your budget by category. If you know you plan to wear heels or chinos every day, you might be willing to spend more on them so they can last longer. If you’re adopting fitted tees you may want to add one in every color to your wardrobe or buy five of the same shirt.
How do you decide what to wear to work? Do you have a work-life uniform you created or assigned by an employer? If assigned, how do you add your personal style? Share below in the comments or connect with me on social media @JASMINECTATE.
Hugs & Handshakes,
Jasmine C. Tate