by DAVID BRUMFIELD
So you are a college graduate and moving onto the real world? Congratulations! But, there are going to be some challenges you are going to face and hopefully, as a young professional and professional recruiter, I can help. Along with putting college behind you, it is time to start putting the hoodies, ripped jeans, pizza stained t-shirts and worn out Sperrys behind you too. Hopefully, you elected to do an internship while you were in college so you can get a taste of the real working world, but if you didn’t, it is time to make finding a job a full time job for yourself.
Your first step is to compose a resume. I bet you can’t wait to list that you were “Social Chair” of your respected fraternity or sorority. Don’t. Instead of that, put the volunteer work or charities that you and your organization supported. A trend that I am seeing these days is that unless you are a doctor, lawyer or going into a specialized field, you will most likely find a job that you did not major in. Are you thinking, “I spent all of this money and spent the last four years of my life learning about American History and I won’t be working in that field?" Probably not. Your first job out of college is usually an entry level job and that first step into adulthood. Oh, by the way, please do not put your high school GPA on your resume. Please.
The next step is to start dressing like a big boy and big girl. This is something I had to learn myself. Right after high school, I joined the Marine Corps so I had a uniform to wear every day. I never had to worry about what I was going to wear or if it looked cool. What I did learn, and what a valuable lesson it was, is how to wear your clothes. A military uniform--you know, the camouflage uniform you see--that is our suit. When you wear a suit to work, you feel and look accomplished, but you also don’t want to look dumpy. What I am getting at is...take $25-$50 and tailor your clothes. Nobody cares where you buy it from, but if you are going to be a professional, dress like one. There is a huge difference in tailored shirts, pants and suits.
As a recruiter, I hire people every day. Whether it is for my internal team or for a client that retains our services, we want to provide them with the best candidate and appearance is certainly high on our evaluation. When someone comes and interviews for a position at my company, what is the first thing we look at? How well dressed you are. That means a lot. Perception is reality. People can tell how organized you are, and how much you care about yourself tells me how well you will care about your job. Nine out of 10 people get hired because they get along with someone in the interview. Knowing you are coming right out of college, I know that you do not have any job history to show me what your return on investment will be. But what I do want to see is how you interact with whom will be your supervisor and also the team you will work with. It is difficult to build a dynamic office culture, so companies do their best to protect it. If you get to the point where you are introduced to potential co-workers, keep an eye on what they are wearing and mirror them if you get the job until you find out if there is a “casual environment or casual Friday.” It is best to overdress the first week.
While you are interviewing, make sure you are up to speed on current events, sports, and realize that interviewing is a two way street. Ask them questions. If you are into sports and you notice that they are drinking out of a Virginia Tech glass or mug, strike up that conversation! If he or she is a Jeep lover and you happen to be one, let them know. People are hired because they like you. Anyone can be trained to do a job. I can’t and won't train myself to like you. After you are done interviewing, send a thank you letter. It is always nice to send an email, but if you really want to make an impact and separate yourself from the others we are interviewing, send a handwritten thank you letter. That shows you are serious, mature and have a ton of class.
OK, you got the offer! What do you do next? Accept it. Now go run and celebrate, but please do not post anything on Facebook. Which brings me to social media—when you are interviewing, DO NOT post anything to Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat or Instagram. We look. I look all the time. Here is an example for you: I had a friend that was doing a phone interview with a local company and the interviewer was late to call. So she posted something smart about being respectful of peoples time, etc. Turns out the HR Manager for that job was a friend of mine on Facebook, saw me comment on it and didn’t hire the person. Watch your ass…don’t show it on social media.
OK, back to the offer. Sign it and turn it back in as soon as you can. Just as you are excited to join a company, they are excited to have you on board. When someone is hired internally, there are always high hopes and we want to make a good impression on you too. Like I said, two-way street.
All right, here is what you have been waiting for. Your first day. You wake up and think, “Shit, what am I going to wear?” and this is where I’d like to help. I’m a guy so I am going to speak on what you should have in your wardrobe and you don’t really need a lot. When I left the Marines, I had to learn the hard way. I didn’t know what I know now on fashion--the “essentials” and must haves to survive corporate America. Here is what you need:
Dress shirts
Make sure you get the traditional white button down, light blue oxford button down, etc, but don’t be afraid to get those pastels. What is really cool about the workplace now is that some want business casual and some want casual. You should have a few shirts that you can tuck into a nice pair of jeans with some drivers, but also have some dress shirts that you can put a blazer over in case you have a networking event that week or a client coming to visit. I always keep a blue blazer and a black blazer at my desk at work that can go with anything I wear. Also buy some collar stays--avoid "bacon collar."
Blazers
Blue, black, and tan. Keep at least one at your desk. Please do not buy one that has gold buttons--make sure the buttons are the same color as your blazer. Except the tan one--that should have dark brown buttons. Go down to your local tailor and have it tailored. That will be one of your best investments as you grow—a good tailor.
Pants
NO PLEATS. Period. Or cuffs at the bottom of your pants. Please. I know a lot of looks are coming back, but this one shouldn’t. Get yourself some black, blue, gray (both light and dark) and khaki dress pants that require dry-cleaning. Make sure you get these tailored, too. Slight break at the shoe with the back of the pant leg landing right at the top of your sole. Make sure you have khakis just to wear if you don’t have to dress up. Usually, I will wear some nice ironed khakis on Thursday or Friday since the week is winding down.
Shoes
Oxfords are a hit with me. I like simplistic shoes, but that’s me. Shine them. It costs you $6 at Target to get a shine buffer that already has the solution in it. Buy one for your closet and one for your desk drawer at work. Again, you never know who will come by for a visit or if you have to represent your company at an event. People look at shoes. How you care for your shoes is the biggest “tell-tell” on how you dress all the time. Dirty shoes—you must be wearing a dirty shirt. Wear brown or black oxfords and get some drivers. I love those. They go well with dress pants, casual pants and jeans. They look great with a blazer and jeans.
Belts
To be simple about this, get a nice belt that you can reverse the colors. Save money and make sure your belt color matches your shoes. Hell, people even forget to wear a belt and that drives me insane.
Accessories
Get rid of the college watches and find a nice timepiece that has a neutral band so it goes with everything.
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