Grow Your Career With These Business Casual Fashion Tips

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Staying atop office jargon and politics can be hard enough without the added stress of making sure that your appearance isn't keeping you "out of the loop" while "facilitating a conversation" about you that you don't intend. Approaching your closet each morning with the mantra "dress for the job you want, not the job you have," is a solid starting point, but when your office dress code is business casual the dress code dos and don'ts can be a little vague. Here are some business casual tips and tricks to keep your look fresh and pulled together and some business casual pitfalls to avoid.

Whether you are heading out for a night on the town or going into the office, looking polished and pulled together has a way of making you feel confident and ready to tackle anything that comes your way. So looking your best can help you feel and perform at your best. You can pull together great business casual looks by:

1. Investing in a few neutral colored, tailored pairs of pants or skirts. Pick quality items in black, charcoal, khaki, and navy and take them immediately to a seamstress. It is the rare bird who can just grab something off the rack and have the perfect fit - and fit is everything. Plus, neutral colors can be paired with any number of blouses and jackets to freshen up your look.


2. Adding color to your look with shirts and blouses. Wearing a black top with black pants might work for a poetry reading when you want to hang out in the shadows and seem mysterious, but if you want to get noticed in a business environment it is better to stay away from the monochromatic look. Find tops in colors, prints, and fabrics that work for the season and that look great on you to mix with your tailored neutrals.


3. Investing in good quality accessories. They may be the last thing you put on before you head out the door, but accessories make or break an outfit. Polished cuff links or a quality metal watch will always pull together a look.


4. Going for polished quality over trendy quantity. Having thirty different outfits that hang funny or constantly have dangling threads stand out in business casual dress, and not in that good, promoted me because I stand out way. Having a pressed, neat, and pulled together look never goes out of style and you will always look and together and ready for anything that comes your way.

Here are some things to avoid when dressing business casual:

1. Flip-flops and sneakers rock, but not at work. You might have a rainbow of these babies at home and your dogs could be dying from high-heel abuses, but unless your boss is coming in wearing a pair of Chucks everyday it is probably best to save them for the weekend.


2. Blue jeans are casual, slacks are business casual. Even the most expensive and perfectly tailored pairs are better off staying in your drawer until casual Friday.


3. Printed tees are better for starlets than sales meetings. Even if you are covering screen-printed duds with a jacket your "That's Hot!" t-shirt is not.


4. Stadium garb won't get you that promotion. Unless you work for a sports team you won't score any points around the office by donning your Blues jersey and hat to that important client meeting. It is best to put a professional game face on when heading to the office.

Every office is different and besides the standard dress code there are unwritten rules for dress at all of them. Pay attention to what the boss is wearing and follow their lead to make sure your appearance is "growing" your career in the right way.