Dress Codes

[rah]

I can be casual at work unless a client is in.
I still have a closet full of formal stuff from my younger days, including a few tuxedos. So I'm ready for any formal occasion. (thank god they all still fit)
My first job it was suit and tie EVERY day. You could only take off your jacket if you were sitting at your desk or in the cafeteria.
It was always funny to see everyone wearing jackets standing at urinals.
Only two colors of suits were allowed, Dark blue, and they were picky about the exact color and black.

I'm glad those days are in the past. I like blue jeans.

 

[The_J]

Working at an uni hospital, as researcher, there's not really anyone who tells you what to wear.
Besides security measures, which is the only thing which prevents everyone coming with shorts and sandals.
Normally only the professors come in a buttoned shirt, and only the head of the department in some sort of suit, but that's it roughly.

Therefore, I've used my suit exactly 3 times: Once on a wedding, twice during ceremonial duties at a PhD defense. I'll wear it in the close future once more for my own, but then it'll probably not come out of the closet for quite some time.
For presentations at conferences dressing up a bit is probably warranted, but in a real suite would probably look a bit out of place. I might dress a bit better when I have to give a lecture to students later this year, but haven't really decided.
I normally also dress a bit better when I go to big parties. Because the other gender, but my effort there is rather minimal.

Shirt and tie (but not the suit jacket).
I may be ICT Support but I'm public facing enough that the general rule is "wear something that you feel is appropriate if you were to be called into a meeting with a customer at 2 minutes notice".
Each of us in the team interprets that differently, but that's fine by me.
Looking around it seems to be higher up the chain you go, the more formal you're attire becomes....so maybe I'm just casting the right vibes to be noticed by the next level up!! ;-)

I linked to this guy in the Chinese thread too, but this is relevant since he has strong opinions about work clothing. And he echoes many here in saying that people take you more seriously when you have a suit. And he was an IT guy. So Morty here might be on to something.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oqp5zI4Ng_s&t

Yeah, it's all about how much importance you give to a situation, and that the people realize.
e.g. you often come a lot better dressed to your job interview than you'll ever show up in your job. Because you want to show that you'll consider this situation to be important. Not because you'll show up every day like this.
In the same way bankers and doctors need to be well dressed. Their matters are of high importance for the people they communicate with. Scientist and engineers on the other hand would not dress up, because they mostly communicate with people for whom the subject matter is just daily life.
If you then intentionally overdress, like the guy in the video, you'll radiate an aura of importance, giving the whole situation more worth.I guess I'd disagree with him that it's appropriate at most situations. While dealing iwth customers/clients yes, but if you're dealing with peers, you might come over as very pompous, IMHO.

 

[stfoskey12]

I think there's something to be said for dressing up more for work than for regular activities, as it provides a sense of professionalism. And it makes a sort of sense to have an extra level of formality for job interviews, weddings, funerals, etc. But the problem with typical western men's formal clothing is it doesn't work well in hot weather. Wearing a suit outside even as far north as Minnesota in June can be uncomfortable. Generally when I have a job I like to wear a polo shirt in summer and a button down shirt in winter, with khakis year round. Sometimes I might wear a sweater. The only job I've had so far where I've had to dress up was doing IT for an office, but I should soon have a meteorology related job with a similar dress code. When I am a student I wear a T-shirt and pants or shorts, with a sweatshirt if it's chilly. I only have to wear a tie about once a year, which means I'm bad at tying them and it takes a few attempts before I get it right. I wouldn't mind if ties fell out of fashion completely.