Need Some Help

[sapphire]

I'm facing a challenege and I would like the input of the guys.

On Monday, I have to testify at a hearing at the State House in Boston. The hearing concerns certain bills that are proposed regarding animal welfare in the state. This is something near and dear to my heart; something about which I am very passionate.

Since I have the freedom to wear pants or skirts, which should I wear to make the most effective testimony?

[BrotherTailor]

Is your examiner/questioner/person(s) whom you are addressing male or female? If it's male then I'd wear a skirt suit, something that says "I've got three thousand bucks tied up in this outfit, and either you listen to me and treat me with respect or you'll regret it.." If it's a woman, then do whatever instinct tells you to. Whatever you do, I'd be reserved and conservative in such a situation...you'll get more respect than the polka dotted birthday dress look...

[Emerald Witch]

I'm not a guy, but I do know that the general advice is that anytime a woman wants to look more formal and more impressive she goes towards a skirted suit. It's even one of those "unwritten requirements" when interviewing for a job.

Other than that, low heels, closed toe shoe, yes wear hose, skirt at or just below knee, darker colors preferable, solids or pinstripes, minimal jewelery (nothing clattery), and a matching jacket. Short nails with either no polish or neutral colors is preferred too. Hair either pulled back and put up, or cut short (chin length or shorter). Minimal hair accessories. Minimal makeup too. Yes wear makeup if you're comfortable doing so, but keep it neutral colors that don't scream across the room. Definately have immaculate hygene, and check teeth for green spinach just before going in. (Bring along floss.)


I sure hope you don't mind me butting in, and a lot of that is probably stuff you've already known forever. No harm meant. But it occurred to me that maybe some men here might like to hear "the formula". They drum it into our heads in interviewing classes, and I figure it probably works pretty well for court, and maybe a modification of it would also work for some of the gentlemen here at their places of business.

[r1g0r]

i will agree with emerald witch, however with 2 exceptions which in my mind are actually 1.

make-up & nails.

wear make-up to accentuate your eyes (mildly). you want them looking YOU in the eyes, make-up is your best ally/weapon.

your nails should be painted in a color suitable to the intensity of the material you are producing.

dark, vibrant colors have a psychological effect on the mind.

if you have a lot of physical gesturing needed for your presentation, tone down the darkness or vibrance of the color 1 level.

a recent study shows a marked POSITIVE reaction to a look that says: "i could look sexy without changing a thing about my appearance".

for whatever that is worth to you.

good luck in your cause. it is one i try to support whenever possible.

[Bob]

I think what looks good on your body is an important consideration as well.

[sapphire]

These are all good suggestions and one I would naturally gravitate towards

I'm considerin a suit with a very dark purple skirt and straight line paired with a jacket of the same fabric but in a coording plaid that inclues red and green and white dress shirt.

What I really want to wear is a black mini with a handkerchief skirt, Dropkick Murphy's t-shirt with the skeleton bagpipe player. green and purple plaid tights, Harry Potter knee socks and my "Riverdance" shoes. Can't forget my tiara (great for curing TMJ)

[sapphire]

The Hearing went well. This was a preliminary hearing on a number of pieces of proposed legislation. All of us who testified did so before a committee.

Were you aware that those of you who made suggestions, chose the traditional women's power look?

I chose a brown skirt with teal, greed and gold print, a brown t-shirt with teal and raspberry embroidery, brown hose and brown low heeled wing tips. My colleagues wore a warm up suit (woman) and a t-shirt and jeans (man). In general people were in business casual, cops and animal cops were in uniform. Several people were wearing flip flops.

No men in skirts

[BrotherTailor]

flip flops when testifying before a committee of the State Legislature???

BTW, I like brown....

A "greed" print?

[sapphire]

Greed is good???

Guess I fumble fingered that.

I was surprised by the flip flops and the plain t-shirts.

Both Carl and I like the outfit I wore. I even have a teal velvet jacket to wear with it.

[crfriend]

Both Carl and I like the outfit I wore. I even have a teal velvet jacket to wear with it.

Yes, but she looks better in it than I would.

I cannot even begin to comprehend the flip-flops and other grunge wear. In that sort of setting it's a guaranteed way to get your argument ignored; I might as well note that if I was going in to present testimony on something I had a strong interest in, I would not wear a skirt (unless it was a crucial component of said testimony).

[Peter v]

Both Carl and I like the outfit I wore. I even have a teal velvet jacket to wear with it.

Yes, but she looks better in it than I would.

I cannot even begin to comprehend the flip-flops and other grunge wear. In that sort of setting it's a guaranteed way to get your argument ignored; I might as well note that if I was going in to present testimony on something I had a strong interest in, I would not wear a skirt (unless it was a crucial component of said testimony).

Hmn, flip flops, that's pretty extreme.

I don't quite agree about not wearing a skirt as a man in such a situation.
As a skirt wearer, it is part of you, and if right, it is something in which you feel comfortable in, yourself. That is the situation which you need in a hearing and the like. It shows you have a strong personality, go for what you think, dare to be different, yet very neat and correctly dressed ( "dress-ed" is a beautiful word. skirted would suffice ).

The fact that you deliberately chose to wear a skirt is a daunting thing for the other party. If he dares to wear a skirt, what more does he dare? And so on. Of course the others might just take you as a fool. That's a chance worth taking, because who knows, if you wore a suit as expected, they might think poor fool any way

Wear what YOU feel your best in and it will help your confidence.

Everything we do can be for the better or worse. Can be rightly interpretated or misjudged. Doing nothing is not "being" at all.

Reading the above has made me think about getting a pinstripe mini skirt suit as a formal suit instead of a normal man's three piece suit. A great way to have a job intervieuw in such a suit.

Although it is sometimes safer to go as a man, you are lying to yourself and the other party. Go as a man wearing a skirt in one form or the other, and you are true to both. That's when the truth comes out, do you believe in yourself, do you want to hide behind the masculine man image in pants, or dare to say HERE I am, still a man as ever before, and even more so now.

Peter v

[crfriend]

I don't quite agree about not wearing a skirt as a man in such a situation.
As a skirt wearer, it is part of you, and if right, it is something in which you feel comfortable in, yourself. That is the situation which you need in a hearing and the like. It shows you have a strong personality, go for what you think, dare to be different, yet very neat and correctly dressed ( "dress-ed" is a beautiful word. skirted would suffice ).

The reason I would not wear a skirt to such a formal (as in rigidly structured and controlled; it's driven sometimes more by tradition than rationality -- heck, British judges still wear horse-hair wigs) is that my (perceived) strange attire would detract from my message, which is what I'm there to deliver. I'm there to make a point, and I there to get that point taken -- anything else is a distraction. That's one of the reasons I found some of the costumes bizarre in such a setting. But, that's just me; your experience may well contradict mine.

It would depend, too, on what the hearing was about. If there was a reason for me to wear a skirt in such a setting that would enhance and reinforce my message, I'd wear one in a heartbeat. But, for anything else, no.

I probably would wear a skirt if called for jury duty -- for the precise reason that the various lawyers would want nothing to do with a person that might actually be able to think for himself. Folks who think for themselves scare trial lawyers into the next time-zone because they generally refuse to be led around by the nose.

Reading the above has made me think about getting a pinstripe mini skirt suit as a formal suit instead of a normal man's three piece suit. A great way to have a job intervieuw in such a suit.

I've toyed with that idea as well, and when it comes time for me to buy a new suit (which generally coincides with finding new employment) I'll be looking for one for which extra fabric can be had so I can build a matching skirt. However, I'd likely not wear the skirt for an interview. Why? It's back to the message theme -- I want to get my message across, that I'll be a stable and competent employee, and not some "free spirit" that'll require constant managerial tending or who might "scare the natives" in a customer-facing position (I've had both customer-facing and back-room jobs and they have quite different demands). Another tooth in that gear is that I like the duality of "on the clock" and "off the clock" worlds, and actively use my attire to reflect that -- wearing skirts at work would dilute the fun after work.

Although it is sometimes safer to go as a man, you are lying to yourself and the other party.

I don't see it that way. If I'm trying to get a point across, I'm trying to sell something -- and I want my potential purchaser to feel comfortable and non-threatened in the process. There's a sublime joy in the knowledge that you can wear a skirt if you want, and that you don't have to when you don't. Note that the ladies didn't always have that option.

[Peter v]

Hallo crfriend, great to hear from someone who thinks straight, has his OWN meaning, thinks for himself.

We make all soorts of comprimises every day, wearing skirts or not is one of them. We must weigh the importance of every time. and we often have to play the Naieveness of others to get what we want. By doing so we do not sacrifice anything. If we have to do a dirty job we most likely will put on a overall. so not wearing a skirt at some situations is just wearing appropriate clothing. Changing the insights of the other person on the spot is not possible, so it's always right to way the situation first. We're not compulsary skirt wearers. But we must watch out to fall back into complacency, and must not choose the easy way ( not wearing a skirt) all the time, as we will always have contact with others who don't understand it.

It's all about the freedom of choice, to wear or not, and then when to wear or not. We MUST be free to choose what WE want. That is what we are fighting for.

Peter v.

[Since1982]

This is a serious question, I, will not address it as others have already done a marvelous job of that. All I have to say is....

EVERYONE LOOKS BETTER IN A SKIRT!!!!

[Sasquatch]

Skip...great to read you again. I was afraid you'd left us.
Sasq