Editors weekly: What not to wear
The bad news is that the UK economy is officially in recession. The good news is that in times of economic hardship there are plenty of bargains to be had on the high street. So forget your troubles and go on a shopping spree. Not only will it cheer you up, it will give retailers a much-needed boost.
But before you head for Oxford Street check out this weeks feature by Anthea Yamey: Dress to impress. Anthea, a style guru who amongst others has advised trainees at Freshfields on how to dress appropriately in the workplace, has put together some top tips what to wear to an interview/assessment day.
Dressing appropriately for an interview is crucial, as it will serve to create an immediate good impression. Indeed, as Virginia Woolf wrote in Three Guineas, the way one dresses serves to advertise the social, professional or intellectual standing of the wearer.
So while some firms may boast their business casual or dress-down policies, its always best to wear a suit for an interview, especially in the current economic climate. It is also safer to steer clear of the latest fashions and to go for something more traditional and professional.
And as Anthea advises its not how much you spend on your suit rather how it fits you. Theres no point in splashing out on Gucci or Armani if the sleeves are too long.
Also, its worth laying off on the aftershave/perfume. As Anthea puts the interviewer may not share the same taste or even worse it may send them off on a sneezing fit.
My other top tip for female students is to always carry a spare pair of tights. But if you forget and do have an accident then whatever you do dont point it out to the interviewer. Thats what one candidate did when I was interviewing her for a job with me. Suffice to say she ended up in the reject pile it was a real pity because up until she mentioned the ladder in her tights I had no idea!
Readers' comments (6)
Lucy and Suzanne | 30-Jan-2009 1:37 pm
Ladder in tights?
I think it seems a bit ridiculous, not to mention judgemental that Anthea felt the need to reject a candidate partly on the fact that she had a ladder in her tights. Surely the interviewee was pointing out that she had not purposely dressed in this manner and was only showing she was human. I hope if Anthea ever finds herself in the same position she does not receive the same treatment! Who ever said that female lawyers are judged on their appearance and not their legal ability?
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John Townsend | 30-Jan-2009 5:23 pm
Ladder in tights
I agree with the above post. If someone is rejected for such a trival thing I can only despare. Lawyers female or male already have a reputation of being bell like, shiny and sound good but a bit empty inside rejecting good human characters is not going to help. I will be boycotting L2B and wish to be removed from the mailing list.
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Anonymous | 30-Jan-2009 6:16 pm
A bigger problem
Previous poster
You may feel dressing well is not important as a lawyer, but spelling certainly is - its 'despair' there is no such word as despare.
As in
'I despair when seeing application forms with misspelt words'
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Anonymous | 9-Feb-2009 11:45 am
people in glass houses.........
You are correct that it is despair.
You are incorrect however in saying that 'its' despair; you are not indicating ownership! "its" is a possessive pronoun.
It would be either "it is" or "it's"
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Future trainee | 12-Feb-2009 6:59 pm
Rejection and ladder in tights
I am, as always, learning something new today. Someone made it through part of the assessment process, to the interview, and got rejected, apparently, due to being honest (probably because she was stressed) about her tights... I am honestly lost for words! Maybe the lady could not afford an extra pair? Most of applicants are students, after all. I hope the interviewer reads these comments and regains some that ousted humaneness.
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Anonymous | 19-Feb-2009 10:04 pm
Really?
I was very surprised to read that the candidate's honesty appears to have gone against her in interview. Are we encouraging future lawyers to hide and conceal mistakes and weaknesses? Surely her honesty and integrity could have been easily translated into a light-hearted irrelevance.
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