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"Dress' Speak" n, often cap [United States, colloquial] (1978): a phrase used to express how clothing and the way it is tailored and worn translates into a personal statement

The way you dress speaks volumes about who you are as a person and as a business communicator. Let's face it, clothes talk. Whenever you enter a room for the first time, it takes only a few seconds for people you've never met to form perceptions about you and your abilities. You don't have to utter a word; people peg you one way if you're dressed in black leather, another if you're squeezed into gold lamé, and yet another if you're sporting a bow tie and seersucker suit. Regardless of who you really are, your clothes and body language always speak first.

FIRST THINGS FIRST
Some of the perceptions people can form solely from your appearance are:

• Your professionalism.
• Your level of sophistication.
• Your intelligence.
• Your credibility.

THE BASICS
So what's right and what's wrong?

First, there is no single set of rules that will work for everyone; sometimes the only written rules are expressed in your organization's dress code, if it has one. But there are a handful of characteristics that most successful business communicators share when it comes to dress and grooming. This article will focus on general principles of business attire along with some specifics of more formal attire. It's a common sense guide for almost any businessperson.

FASHIONABLE OR FOOLISH
Your corporate culture and the role you play in it should guide your choice of business attire. Some organizations still expect top male executives to wear a dark gray suit on Monday and a navy suit on Tuesday with an understated tie and starched white shirt. These companies expect female executives to wear a dark, skirted suit with a solid, light blouse. However, more and more businesses are moving to full-time business casual at every level in the organization. Some just have one or two days each week that are casual. And the definition of business casual varies, ranging from jeans to blazers.

Just as in business communication, business dress requires you to know your audience. You need to gauge what attire will be right for the audience and the circumstance. This all hinges on the norms of the culture of the industry, region, company, division, department, and function. While your attire can be a vehicle for personal expression, you can pay a price for violating the written and unwritten codes of your culture. Always know the price before you pay.

DRESS FOR BUSINESS, NOT PLEASURE
Business attire is different from social attire and tends to be more formal. Determining just how formal can be as slippery as satin or silk. What's one person's floor is another's ceiling. But one thing is certain: the parameters that cover business attire are narrower than they are for social attire. For example, social attire can be more suggestive or flashier or make more of a statement, while business attire should be tuned to the needs of the business circumstance.

In business, your clothing and grooming should not distract. Rather, they should direct attention to your face and particularly your eyes. When you connect with someone else's eyes, they tend to listen. But who can stay focused on eyes when your manager has her fingers manicured with lavender polish and 10 bolts of silver lightning striking her cuticles, or your purchasing agent has a copper ring pierced through his nose.

Typical formal business attire has an advantage because it can easily direct listeners to your eyes. A light shirt or blouse under a closed dark business jacket forms a "V" that opens toward the face. A contrasting tie or scarf can heighten this effect. Wearing some red near the face can help draw the eyes of your audience to your own.

In contrast, a flashy belt or belt buckle can draw the eye to the waist. Light hose and shoes draw attention to a woman's legs. Bright buttons, shiny tie tacks, bulky broaches, or other conspicuous jewelry can also draw the eye. The same goes for clothing that is sheer, shiny, or clinging.

DRESS TO FIT YOUR AUDIENCE
When you're in front of a group giving a presentation, making a speech or just plain talking, you need to choose your attire to match the event. For example, you will typically want to dress one notch of formality above your audience. That means if they're wearing slacks and shirts or blouses, you may want to add a sports jacket to your ensemble. On the other hand, wearing a suit and tie in front of an audience in jeans and T-shirts is rarely a good idea.

Regardless of what you're wearing, make sure it works. Make a thorough assessment of how you look in front of a full-length mirror. And don't hesitate to get a second opinion. Check not just for fashion sense but also for fit. Nothing sends a worse message than a poorly tailored jacket. One common offense is sleeves that hide your hands. Hands speak worlds about capability. They also reinforce your words. Hiding them can send a subtle message of incompetence. The jacket sleeve should end at the middle of your wrist bone, with the shirt sleeve extending three eighths of an inch beyond. Since almost everyone has one arm longer than the other, make sure the tailor checks the length of both sleeves.

If you are not wearing a long-sleeved blouse or shirt under a sports coat, the jacket length should extend to the end of the wrist bone. This will preserve the visibility of your hands without calling attention to the bareness of your forearms. Conversely, your jacket sleeve should be shorter if you wear French or double cuffs, to better display the cuff and links. Pant legs should reach the tops of your shoes, forming a single break a little above the point of contact. For men, a reminder about socks: they should cover your calves. And as long as we're down to your feet, let's add a word about shoes.

LOOK DOWN
The great American dancer, Fred Astaire, who wrote the book on popular dance, said this about footwear: "If you want to know if a fellow is well dressed, look down." Couturier Diana Vreeland, renowned in women's fashion for wardrobe development, said: "First, I'd put money into shoes. No variety, just something I could wear with everything. . . Whatever it is you wear, I think shoes are terribly important." Men, business suits take simple lace-ups, not slip-ons. Save the tasseled loafers for casual attire. Reserve patent leather for formal black- or white-tie affairs. A good smooth leather allows a superior shine. A proper shine will not only polish the upper, but also eliminate any bare or dull areas along the edge of the sole or the heel. A professional shoeshine may include edge dressing and "heel black" to address these areas. For women, good, unscuffed leather gives the same look of professionalism as it does for men. Stick to simple colors. The best shoes for business are closed-toe with a high enough vamp to allow you to walk securely. (The vamp is the section of the shoe that covers the top of the foot; a low vamp makes for instability and may show some toe cleavage.) Formal attire requires heels; these should be typically 1 1/2 to 2 inches (we're talking Ferragamo's not 6-inch Manolo spikes). Avoid little bows or buckles; these tend to distract and do not connote serious business.

SPEAK TIGHT; DRESS RIGHT
Business presenters need more than a professional look. They need to be able to move in their clothes. Narrow skirts, tight pants, or form-fitting jackets restrict movement. To capitalize on large body gestures, be sure your clothes are tailored so you can move. And make sure they really fit. If you gain or lose weight, admit it and proceed immediately to your tailor or dressmaker. There is no excuse for ill-fitting business attire. If it doesn't fit, you must tailor it.

IF IT WRINKLES OR CLINGS, WRAP YOUR FOOD IN IT
Even on laid-back dress down days, dress communicates an important message. Think of it this way: if it clings or wrinkles, it's not really your wardrobe, it's Saran Wrap and you'd better think twice before wearing it to work. Even when casual wear is part of the corporate culture, think twice before choosing to wear linen or tropical wools at work. They wrinkle like a Sharpei dog. New technology allows manufacturers to create special weaves and treatments to tame some fabrics that traditionally wrinkle. The best ones seem to be the heavier weaves, but shop around, there's a lot out there.

"TESTING, TESTING, ONE, TWO, THREE"
Here's a simple test you can take before choosing attire for an event that puts you in the spotlight. Ask yourself:

• What's appropriate for this audience? This event?
• What image do I want to project?
  • For my company?
  • For my department?
  • For myself?

DRESSING RIGHT
Do's and Don'ts to survive the formal dress code.

DOs

Women and Men

• Always look professional
• Dress for the audience, the circumstance, the corporate culture, and yourself
• Wear clothes that fit
• Make sure your clothes are pressed
• Keep jackets buttoned (formal)
• Err on the side of conservative
• Keep your hair neat and trimmed
• No hair in eyes
• Mild (or no) fragrances

Women

• Wear heels (up to 1 1/2" to 2"), with a high vamp
• Hose skin color or darker (carry an extra pair when presenting)
• Conservative business make-up, stressing the mouth and eyes more if presenting
• Check for lipstick on your teeth
• Simple manicure
• Mild or no fragrance
• Hair under control and off the face

Men

• Ties should be conservative and reach the middle of your belt buckle
• Lace-up shoes (usually black)
• A traditional starched business shirt, preferably white cotton
• Shirts with a simple collar and cuffs
• A formal but simple watch
• Hair, usually parted to one side, not reaching the top of your shirt collar
• Over-the-calf socks

DON'Ts

• Wear clothes that talk louder than you do
• Undo multiple buttons on your shirt or blouse
• Clothing that no longer fits
• Wear wrinkled clothing
• Fabrics that have a noticeable sheen
• Hair that falls in your face or obscures your eyebrows
• Hair that requires continual adjustment
• Fragrance that smells from a distance
• ID badges when you're presenting
• Busy patterns

Women

• Anything too bright, tight, sheer or short.
• Toe cleavage (open-toed shoes)
• Heels so high you're unsteady
• Light hose or light shoes
• Too much makeup
• Wear big, shiny buckles or jewelry
• Earrings that are large or dangle
• Bangle bracelets (or anything noisy)

Men

• Garish ties
• Sloppy facial hair (in some organizations, any facial hair can be career-inhibiting)
• Shiny tie pins or clips or big belt buckles
• Visible jewelry (other than a watch and/or a single simple ring)
• Distracting lapel pins
• Open top shirt button with a tie.
• Short-sleeved dress shirts
• Short socks
• Loafers with a suit

A SPECIAL NOTE ON EYEGLASSES
Your audience should be able to see your eyes clearly and easily. If you wear glasses, consider an anti-glare coating for the lenses (available from your optician). This can make it much easier to see your eyes and can improve your vision (slightly) at night. To maximize the visibility of your eyes, avoid any tint (unless medially necessary) and avoid heavy frames that can obscure your eyes.

A SPECIAL NOTE ON SCENT
Any perfume, cologne, or perfumed grooming product should not be noticeable at normal business proximity. This means that you can exit the elevator and no one entering should be able to guess that you were there. Also, if you will be in a healthcare setting, you should not wear anything scented because perfumes can aggravate certain medical conditions and allergies. As with the other aspects of your grooming, scent should not call attention on its own. Scent should never be a distraction, but, if anything, a subtle adjunct that the vast majority of people you encounter will never notice or be close enough to perceive.

A SPECIAL NOTE ON MAKE-UP
Conservative make-up that highlights the features, particularly the eyes and the mouth, can contribute to your impact. Make-up has particular value over a distance and for use on video. Make up for video should be somewhat more extreme to be most effective. That means heavier make-up with stronger colors. That said, in general, business presentation make-up should add life to your face without calling attention to the fact that you are wearing make-up. For example, skin-tone foundation, a natural shade of lipstick, mild blush, minimal eyeliner, and moderate mascara would be appropriate for many business settings. Blue eye shadow, hot pink lip-gloss, raccoon eyeliner, thick mascara that mats forty lashes into four mega-lashes, and gold glitter eyebrow pencil would be less appropriate.