Fashion for the ladyfolks: a businesswoman's guide
Leslie Pasqualone
Issue date: 10/22/04 Section: Entertainment
When you are eighteen years old and come to college, it's hard to decide what you want to do with the rest of your life. The only thing on my mind in those days was which bar I was going to try to get into.
When I was eighteen, I chose business as my area of study. However, today, five years later, I am not sure business is the field I want to be in. I have always considered myself driven and motivated; maybe even a leader at times, but I have never been one for conformity.
Now, approaching my graduation date I am faced with the actualization that I cannot live off my parents anymore. I need a job. As a business student, for five years now, I have suffered through countless business presentations and or interviews in so-called "business attire".
I know at least for myself that the problem is not the public speaking part or the confidence of proving my point throughout these interviews, but trying to figure out some sort of combination in my closet that is acceptable "business attire".
In my opinion, men have it easy. Nothing pleases me more than a nicely tailored suit and a great pair of shoes. For decades now men have worn suits. Maybe, because of the tradition and styles in men's suits, I feel that they are acceptable in any form. Who knows? However, I do know that suits were conceived initially solely for men; you can tell just by looking at the shape. Women, on the other hand, have curves and contours that are negatively pronounced in all of that clothing.
So here I am, months before graduation, rebelling against conformity once again. I refuse to wear a traditional outfit to an interview or job fair. Why should I wear a suit to an interview if it is not at all how I choose to express myself? I am creative and I choose to convey that aspect of myself through the clothes that I wear. Not that that is the only way to do so, but I cannot hide my personal expression under a blue, gray or black suit that makes me look and feel awkward.
When I was eighteen, I chose business as my area of study. However, today, five years later, I am not sure business is the field I want to be in. I have always considered myself driven and motivated; maybe even a leader at times, but I have never been one for conformity.
Now, approaching my graduation date I am faced with the actualization that I cannot live off my parents anymore. I need a job. As a business student, for five years now, I have suffered through countless business presentations and or interviews in so-called "business attire".
I know at least for myself that the problem is not the public speaking part or the confidence of proving my point throughout these interviews, but trying to figure out some sort of combination in my closet that is acceptable "business attire".
In my opinion, men have it easy. Nothing pleases me more than a nicely tailored suit and a great pair of shoes. For decades now men have worn suits. Maybe, because of the tradition and styles in men's suits, I feel that they are acceptable in any form. Who knows? However, I do know that suits were conceived initially solely for men; you can tell just by looking at the shape. Women, on the other hand, have curves and contours that are negatively pronounced in all of that clothing.
So here I am, months before graduation, rebelling against conformity once again. I refuse to wear a traditional outfit to an interview or job fair. Why should I wear a suit to an interview if it is not at all how I choose to express myself? I am creative and I choose to convey that aspect of myself through the clothes that I wear. Not that that is the only way to do so, but I cannot hide my personal expression under a blue, gray or black suit that makes me look and feel awkward.
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