The days of wearing suits or skirts with heels to the office every day are long over in most professions, but how we dress in the workplace still matters. According to Corporette, you'll make a better impression — and show your respect for others — if you leave these items at home. * Flip-flops. There is no such thing as a business casual flip-flop — and your coworkers don't want to hear you slip-slapping up and down the hall all day.
* Ripped jeans. If jeans are acceptable in your office or allowed on Fridays, make sure they're clean and wrinkle-free, without any frayed hems or ripped knees.
* Shorts. Unless it's the company picnic, wear long pants or an appropriate skirt or dress. * Tank tops without layers. Tank tops are great for layering, but aren't appropriate on their own in most offices.
If the rules just leave you confused about what to wear, don't worry — building a business casual wardrobe is a relatively straightforward project. Start with about five pairs of pants and seven to 10 shirts or tops — try to choose items that you can easily mix and match. If you can, invest in a few quality extras, like a well-made sweater or a blazer or sport coat for days when it's appropriate to dress up a little more.
And most importantly, buy clothes that you like and make you feel good. It might give each workday a little boost that you didn't know you were missing.
What happened to suits, anyway?
Suits used to be the standard attire in almost every professional environment, and have been associated with power and status for most of the last 200 years. But these days, even Wall Street has mostly ditched the formal dress code, and quarter-zip sweaters are more common than neckties among high-earning executives.
The shift toward casual Mondays is likely due to a variety of factors. According to Vox, consumers don't see the same value in suits as they once did, and men and women are both buying fewer of them each year. Today's young professionals — who never lived in the suits-only era and often work from home in their sweats — are unlikely to reverse the trend anytime soon.
But don't count suits out entirely — some consumers are falling in love with them all over again, thanks at least partly to vintage-obsessed social media influencers. High fashion houses have also thrown themselves into reinventing the tradition and sent suits down their runways throughout 2024.
