What to wear for an interview?

A number of questions will arise in your mind when your job interview is scheduled.  Of all the pressing questions like “What questions will I encounter?”, “Will all my qualifications match the company’s requirement?”,“ What if I don’t hear the questions properly?” , it seems silly that, “What should I wear for an interview?” be one of them.  The question of what to wear might look silly but it is a valid question.

How you present yourself is crucial at the day of the interview. Dressing in a proper way makes a good impression and leaves a positive impact on the hiring manager. While your educational backgrounds, experiences, and skills help you secure the job, your proper dressing will leave an impact on the best impression of you. Your presentation and appearance is a reflection of your professionalism; how serious you are for your job.

So, be mindful when dressing for the interview. Here are some tips that will help you with proper dressing.

• Do your homework: Research about the company you are applying to. Go to their Facebook pages, check out their company profiles, and view the pictures to know about the company’s culture and their dress codes. Wear your dress according to that and in case you can’t decide, you can email the HR department to know about the appropriate dress code.
• Go light on your perfume: While you may want to smell good in your interview, it might turn out to be a distracting factor for the interviewer. You never know if an interviewer is allergic to the scent. The smell can’t be the first to get inside the interview room so keep it light.
• A touch of color and personality: You don’t need to look corporately formal with your dressing for an interview. You can always choose your dress that reflects your personality keeping in your mind: the type of company you are applying to. Don’t wear loud colors for an interview which can be highly distracting to eyes.
• Makeup: Keep your makeup soft and natural. For ladies, choose the cosmetics according to your skin tone. For gents, have your hair trimmed and shave properly to make yourself look attractive. Don’t overdo the makeups that disturb the interview environment.
• Invest in your formal dress and shoes: You can never go wrong with the business formal dress for an interview. Choose your dress according to your comfort and your dress. You don’t want to look funny and uncomfortable in your attire while walking through the doors in the interview room so put the efforts in your dressing. The investments will worth it if you will be able to put an impactful first impression on the recruiters.
• Wear tailored and ironed outfit: It is better to wear the dress that is tailored to suit you. The dress you are wearing shouldn’t be too large or too short as this might be distracting and unpleasant to see. Make sure you iron your dress before wearing which will help to make you look neat and tidy.
• Avoid overly casual clothes: Do not wear a casual dress: jeans, t-shirts, caps, slippers for an interview. Avoid obnoxious colors, printed outfits, highly patterned ties. You can use them for other functions but not for an interview.
• Don’t over accessorize: You might want to make the statement with your jewelry but a job interview is not the place for all this. Keep your accessories simple which complements your outfit and does not overdo it.
• Test-drive your dress: Once, your interview appointment is scheduled to take some time and test-drive your dress. Try walking and practicing in your chosen interview attire to see if you are comfortable enough in that dress.

At the end, choose your interview outfit wisely, dress according to the company, and avoid unnecessariness and work hard to create the first impression. Dress smartly than you think you might need to.