l, yes. Attractive, definitely not.
And men typically do not find any need to look "attractive" at work; men
who go out of their way to look attractive may be seen as interested in
something other than getting business accomplished.
There is "attractiveness" that is not a come-on. Many men and women
find it important, even required, to look attractive at work. A company
dress code, official or unofficial, boils down to presenting the image
the company wants to present, or which that department of the company
wants to present.
Obviously, people connected with the fashion industry in any way tend to
dress fashionably, at least if and when they "meet the public."
Professionals in the performing arts do their best to look attractive,
or at least off-beat, because appearance is an important part of those
jobs. From my observation, most people who do much face-to-face
marketing or sales dress noticeably well and are well groomed, and are
often naturally handsomer/prettier than average. Corporate CEOs, even of
companies like computer firms where people tend to dress down, tend to
look very sharp. Their job involves representing the company as well as
running it, and their personal image has to display success.
And, many other people. In my last not-working-for-myself full-time job
as a senior editor for a midsize book publisher, I (and other editors
above the copy editor level) were officially required to dress up
because we regularly "met with authors." I went to work every day in
high-fashion clothes (never suits, which were viewed as acceptable but
dowdy). Any female editor at any level who wore pants at that company
got reprimanded (except one who was officially excused because she had
nasty scars on her legs from an accident). As was any editor of any
gender who wore what they defined as a T-shirt. Not a T-shirt cut per
se; I wore silk T-shirts; the editor-in-chief thought a T-shirt was a
cotton knit. Male editors had to wear suits; "slacks" were not allowed;
the pants had to be suit pants. They went in for the tweedy English
professor look.
She notes that in business
settings, men have the option of dressing in an "unmarked" fashion -- that
is, neutrally, so that nothing about their clothing stands out or makes a
statement about them. In the average office setting this might mean a grey
suit and conservative tie, or a blue blazer and khakis, or whatever is
considered the norm.
I think women tend to assume that men's clothes and appearance don't
matter as much, because they're not men. Also, men are culturally
encouraged to say they don't care about appearance. But that doesn't
mean they don't, or that it does not affect their jobs.
Fran
Lavolta Press
http://www.lavoltapress.com
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