What to Wear: To An Interview

Did you all miss me last week?!   I can’t believe I didn’t blog last Friday!  After our Boudoir Bonanza and living at the Valley Ho all that weekend and coming back to the studio to sort 15,000 pictures (not an exaggeration, there were 15,000 pictures), I drove straight to San Diego and slept until this Tuesday.  Again, not an exaggeration.  BUT I’m back and let’s get back to fashion, people!

Continuing in my “What to Wear” series, I thought we should discuss interview attire, as next week we will be interviewing our intern applicants (of which I love them all and I know I will be unable to choose.  Trying to convince Kim we need 15 interns) Interviewing can be seriously nerve-wracking, so the last thing you should worry about is your outfit!  Here are some easy rules to check off when dressing to impress:

Dress for the Industry

Interview at Chanel                                                 Interview at the rodeo

If you’re applying at the Chanel fashion house, you better make sure your labels, stitches, and lining are all in tip-top order.  If you’re interviewing at a nursery, you might want to look kid-friendly.  If you’re interviewing to be a Lady Gaga back up dancer, leave your pants at home.  You see where I’m headed with this?  Don’t show up at a small, grassroots social service agency helping homeless teens in a $5,000 Versace dress.   Similarly, don’t go try to clerk for a Supreme Court judge in distressed denim.  It’s all about knowing your audience.  So, let’s say you are off to interview with the coolest photography studio in town, that employs a fashion blog writer–what should you wear?  Something you look cute in, but more importantly feel cute in!  Also, remember it’s an interview.  I’m sure you have an amazing array of cutoffs and flip-flops, but this is not the time to show them off, sweetie. Show off your best working girl attire, and it won’t go unnoticed!

Wear a Watch

On time, never a bad look!

You know what looks great on a potential employee?  Punctuality.  I love watches, they are my only accessory most of the time, but I think there is something subliminal about wearing a watch to an interview.  It says, “Hey, I notice and adhere to the laws of time and space.”  I like that in an interviewee, as I’m sure most people do.  A watch looks professional and even if that person interviewing you doesn’t realize it, it’s sending a message that you can be aware of the time, and hopefully that translates to punctuality.

Dressy Shoes

So hired.

I don’t care where you’re applying, your feet need to say, “Business.”  I love Chuck Taylors, I love ballet flats, and I loooooooovvvveeee flip-flops, but you just can’t wear these to interviews.  Your feet need to be all business.  High heels are the fastest way to add some seriousness to an outfit, and if you’re a man, don’t come in sneakers!  Dressed-up shoes are almost mandatory in my opinion.  I doubt anyone’s ever been hired for a great job in hiking boots.  (Ok, please don’t place a comment on here about your cousin Steve who became a world-class hiking instructor after wearing his Timberlands to an interview, you all know what I’m saying here)

Appropriate Clothing

They all look great, they all look appropriate, they are all getting jobs.

Look in the mirror before leaving your house for the interview and make sure the answer is NO to the following questions:  Is my cleavage showing?  Is this too tight?  Is my stomach showing?  Is this see-through?  Are there any visible tears or holes in this?  Does this fit me?  Did I grab this from my daughter’s closet?  Would an adult wear this?  Would my mother slap me for wearing this?  Are these heels clear?  Are my facial piercings distracting?  Is my full-sleeve tattoo showing?  The very last thing you want, the dead last thing you want, in an interview, is for the people sitting across from you with the questions to be wondering if you came from a night club.  Or a street corner.  Or a dog fight.  Sexuality is powerful, but not in an interview.  Of course you should always look like your amazingly hot self, but you really don’t want to be hired by the person that appreciated the eyeful he/she got in your interview.  I promise, if you listen to nothing else in this post, listen to this paragraph.  You should look professional, and professional has never meant provocative.  Ever.

Good luck on the interviews my friends!  You all look SMASHING!