Dressed for Success

Those who know me know that there are probably very few people around who care less about clothes than I.

When work went casual about 10 years ago, I was thrilled. Since then, I've been wearing more or less the same outfit virtually every single day. I mean, Every. Single. Day. My outfit consists of a blue oxford button down shirt from Macys, and black or navy khakis from the Gap. If I wear a sweater it is a hand-me-up from one of the boys. My annual budget for clothes is certainly less than what I spend on my biking accessories. (I do wear a suit when I have a presentation or a particularly important meeting).

This was fine in my previous job where I rarely needed to see people outside the office. I spent most of my time either on the phone, in front of the computer or on the trading floor. No one really cared how I looked.

In my current job, however, I see people all the time. I have business lunches and/or breakfasts at least once a week, sometimes as many as three or more. I have meetings outside the office all the time. The one thing that I've noticed is that the people with whom I meet, even those dressed in business casual, are not dressed like shloomps. I, on the other hand, am dressed like a shloomp.

So, last Friday, I finally bit the bullet and decided that I needed to step up a bit. It was painful but I purchased some nice dress slacks and a couple of nice sweaters (the first sweaters I have bought myself in at least ten years). While I am far from the GQ man, I think I have attained at least the minimum level of adult clothing.

Why do I feel like I sold out to "The Man"?