Wearing a tie in a company that does NOT embrace ties?

[Mav]

I disagree. If you dress more formally than your boss, it could be perceived as you being uppity.

Yep.

Also, if the fact you dress that way draws favourable attention from other people (customers, executives outside your organization, etc), it could be taken badly by your boss too, because he could interpret that your attitude puts him in a bad light by comparison.

Yep.

It could also happen that you are mistakenly assumed to be the boss because of your appearance, and be accosted as such, instead of the real one. Again, he could be uncomfortable with that.

Yep. Been there, on all three counts, at my last "real job."
Dressing for the business/ job environment is really tricky these days. The big decision used to be whether it was OK to wear Weejuns with the required charcoal or navy suit. Now it's a matter of studiously dressing as badly as your management. That's just how it is.
Thank G-d for 1099 gigs. Clients, at least, appreciate a well- polished look.

 

[JLStorm]

JLStorm, I'm glad to hear you work in such a positive environment. I'm sure we all brought a lot of our own experiences to our responses. I've been in so many flaky, shaky job situations that I think a person ought to play every card to stay employed. I've been at my current job at a very stable company for seven years. The quality of my work is such that I get assignments from out-of-state offices; I don't think any other admin at my company can say that.

While I could probably wear a tutu to work at this point, I don't. Every day, I put on business-like clothes, fix my hair, put on a moderate amount of makeup and head for work. The hair flowers, eye shadow, and sparkly jewelry only come out at night. Mostly, that's out of respect for myself, my employer and my coworkers. But also, employees come and go there, and I don't want a new one to think I'm dying to go somewhere else.

Your die-hard, tie-wearing coworker sounds like a real character. There's one in every office.

He takes himself VERY seriously. He also came over from another division that is much more traditional. He does dress excellently though, just in the wrong environment.

 

[Decodence]

This type of lack of formality is what is wrong with the world today.

 

[Mav]

This type of lack of formality is what is wrong with the world today.

Agreed.

 

[Tiller]

It depends what business your in, and how important you are to the company. If your more important then the run of the mill grunt, you'll be able to get away with more. If your in sales like I am the boss only cares about the bottom line.

If your style causes problems with your co-worker, well it's simply going to depend where you are. Here people have been fired for gossiping, and they don't put up with office politics. Sounds like you work in a place that enjoys having the "office politics" atmosphere. You have my condolences.

 

[Rider]

I believe your amount of latitude is directly proportional to how secure you are in the job and to what extent your appearance impacts promotion opportunity.

At times in my life I have been quite independent, and at other times I have been something of a sheep. On a college campus in the late 60's, I was expected to be seen with long hair, a beard, a denim work shirt, and embroidered jeans. About once a week, I wore a dress shirt and tie to class just because I wanted to. It was an attention-getter.

While career climbing, I probably attempted to please the boss in appearance more than I would have preferred. Now I am in the delightful position of being toward the top of the pile, relatively secure in position, and could care less if I stand out for my attire.

For any given situation, I would rather be over-dressed than under-dressed. I do not, however, recommend wearing a suit in Walmart. I tried that after work last week, and felt extremely weird.

 

[Pompidou]

For any given situation, I would rather be over-dressed than under-dressed. I do not, however, recommend wearing a suit in Walmart. I tried that after work last week, and felt extremely weird.

I did that on Thursday, minus the coat because it was hot out. Dressing up for Walmart is kind of weird, but, I'm kind of weird, and besides, Walmart's not a place I want to fit in.

 

[Rider]

I did that on Thursday, minus the coat because it was hot out. Dressing up for Walmart is kind of weird, but, I'm kind of weird, and besides, Walmart's not a place I want to fit in.

Excellent point. I found myself wondering if Hart Shaffner Marx made anything in camo!

 

[ssfilez]

Wear what you want to wear and never be influenced by the preference of those around you. Remember, neckties are decent accessories. It's not like you're wearing something funny, right?