Does your work wardrobe need an update? Well, if you want to make any big career moves, you might want to consider it.
Related: Office Fashion: What Do I Wear To Work In The Winter?
You might love that 10-year-old blouse or those pants you can barely squeeze into, but unfortunately, those pieces aren’t doing you any favors for your career.
According to Lois Joy Johnson in her book, The Wardrobe Wakeup, it’s extremely important to stay on top of style trends.
“Like it or not, it’s a younger working world,” writes Johnson. “Address your ‘packaging’ or look out of touch!”
It's true. According to a study, over half of the women surveyed admitted that they judge their female colleagues based on what they wear to work.
Yikes.
Johnson's advice?
“Rethink your clothes, get over your past, and dress for now,” Johnson writes.
Why You MUST Update Your Work Wardrobe
Here are three compelling reasons to keep your work wardrobe fresh and fab:
1. It Makes You Stand Out (In A Good Way)
Yes, wearing shoulder pads to an interview will definitely make you stand out, but not in a good way (so please, dear God, don’t do it).
Within three minutes of meeting your interviewer, you need to give off a positive impression. Having an updated look is a great way to boost your chances.
2. It Shows That You’re Up-To-Date
Remember, you’re competing with younger candidates for that job or promotion. You need to look relevant and ready, so you need to pay attention what’s trending.
“Updated clothes and polished style wrap your skills and abilities in a modern package,” Johnson writes. “Staying current keeps you in the game.”
3. It Says A Lot About You
The way you dress for work says a lot about your self-esteem, your attitude towards life and your body, and your respect for your job, according to Johnson.
That means, with the wrong clothes, you could give off the wrong vibe, which could hurt your chances at getting a job or promotion.
So, make sure your clothes…
Fit Correctly – A poor fit can make even models look frumpy or cheap. PLEASE make sure your clothes fit well. (Even if that means buying things in the next size up or spending the money to get things tailored.)
Are Age Appropriate – Yes, it’s important to keep your look updated, however, it’s also important to dress your age. Remember, trying to look too youthful can hurt your brand just as badly as an outdated look.
Are YOU! – It’s important to add a little personality to your look. Are you bold? Wear a bold print skirt with a dark top. Find out what colors, patterns, designs, and so on, speak to you and figure out how you can work them into your wardrobe appropriately.
Make You Feel Like A Million Bucks - When you dress in clothes that make you look good, you feel good! You’ll feel more confident, fresh, and trendy – and everyone will notice!
This post was originally published on an earlier date.
Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
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Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
How did I learn about this job?
How did I apply for the job?
Did I earn an interview?
What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
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Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
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Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.
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