This is something that’s been on my radar for a while: just because you’re an engineer or a programmer, you don’t have to buy into the stereotype by dressing the part. And you all know what I mean.
A recent post on one of the blogs I monitor suggested, “You have to admit, one of the best parts of working at home is never having to put on a suit ever again.” I agree with the wording; you don’t have to wear a suit. But the hidden implication is that never wearing a suit is something to strive for, and I disagree with that. For me, I like wearing nice clothes. I like looking good. It’s a motivator for me. A nice suit for me now feels like shining plate armor must have felt to a knight back in the day. I feel confident. I think about myself differently. People look at me differently. People treat me differently. And by “differently,” of course I mean “better.”
Too many people wear ill-fitting shirts and faded, worn-out ties with such disdain. Often this comes with complaints of being uncomfortable, but this is easily fixed by buying quality, well-fitting clothing from a knowledgeable tailor. More often though, the complaints arise because people are wearing this stuff because someone—probably someone they refer to as “the boss”—said that they have to. And that’s no way to live. You have to do it for yourself, so when the inevitable questions arise, you can just accept the tacit compliment.
We had a company party a couple weeks ago. I received some light-hearted ribbing about how with a suit like I was wearing I should give up engineering for marketing. Another person suggested that, I couldn’t be in marketing with my suit because only lawyers and bankers wear vests. On another occasion, one of the same people suggested (still somewhat jokingly) that engineers and scientists shouldn’t wear suits to client meetings because the clients will assume you’re in sales and not ask the tough technical questions that they need answered to decide if you’re right for the work.
These stereotypes are interesting to me. Not because they’re inaccurate; it’s probably true that that’s how most people think. This isn’t how it should be though.
You’ve of course seen pictures of the NASA engineers in the 60s with their short-sleeved white shirts and black ties. Likewise, last summer in a museum, I saw a wall-sized photograph of people designing the Titanic; they were all wearing three-piece suits. This isn’t what I’m suggesting. Those are examples of uniforms if anything. It wasn’t a choice or an avenue for some self-expression. I’m not suggesting a return to what Freakazoid! would call the time when, “all men wore hats!” Wear whatever you want, but now you can actually stand out by wearing a suit (or just a shirt and tie, or a sports jacket) in the same way as any subculture stands out by wearing something different from everyone else.
And if nothing else, engineers, scientists, programmers, etc. should all be intrigued by the variables. Between the trousers, jacket, vest, shirt, tie, watch, shoes, etc. you have a lot of variables to work with. And if you’re worried about getting chemicals, solder burns, blood, or whatever else on your nice suit, you get another variable: the lab coat.
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