Women In The Workplace: Is Your Attire Communicating The Right Impression?

What you wear at work makes an individual statement about you that communicates to others. It could be a way of saying to your boss that you're ready for promotion or, to your colleagues, that you're a friendly person; it could be an assertion to a client that you know what you're talking about.

So it's wise to think about your agenda and choose your clothes accordingly - and, for a woman, that includes your accessories, makeup and hairstyle as well.

Is it important, for example, for you to be seen to have power and authority, perhaps because you want to influence a client or be taken seriously as a freelancer?

The days of power shoulders are over, but the fact still remains that if they want to appear powerful, both genders have to adopt some of the non-verbal icons of masculinity. For women, the key lies in shape and color, picking up on the slightly tailored look that is reminiscent of a man's suit, in coordinated outfits, using dark or toned-down shades, with light makeup and a simple hairstyle without too many feminine curls.

Say, on the other hand, that you want to create a cooperative, rapport-filled relationship at work - perhaps because your job involves a good deal of one-to-one interaction or support.

Then you need to choose clothes that reflect more feminine emblems - such as lighter, brighter colors, patterned rather than plain materials, and unstructured shapes that signal relaxation and an accepting nature.

Women can also use makeup to accentuate those parts of the face that are most expressive - eyes and lips; but keep the colors toned down so as not to slide over the boundary between femininity and sexuality.

You may need to look knowledgeable in your job because the product or service you're dealing with has an 'expert' or scientific image. Pick up here on the icons of the professions who dress entirely in black or white.

Black says 'expertise and intellectualism' because it's associated with the church and the law, while white says 'wisdom and compassion' because it's associated with medicine - which is why some cosmetics counters dress their assistants in white uniforms.

To support the nonverbal message being given out, women might need to play down their gender signs so as to appear professionally asexual. Tie hair back off the face and choose small, simple accessories and a natural or unnoticeable makeup.

All these agendas - power, rapport, sexuality and expertise - will almost certainly mix and match in whatever work you do. You will want to appear powerful but approachable, knowledgeable yet friendly. Hence, you'll blend styles in order to create the very best effect possible to fit your agenda.