Can you give any direct examples of being treated differently based on how you’re dressed or wearing make up vs no make up? I personally don’t really let this bother me but I think as I get older I realise it does impact our lives quite a bit
Can you give any direct examples of being treated differently based on how you’re dressed or wearing make up vs no make up? I personally don’t really let this bother me but I think as I get older I realise it does impact our lives quite a bit
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Our appearance sends a message, and we have a lot of control over that message.
I think it matters a lot! I’m a lawyer and back when I worked in office, I always dressed very professionally. Anybody who didn’t was generally penalised; if not directly by management (although sometimes that too), then definitely by their colleagues. I’ve low-key seen people lose their jobs over not dressing professionally enough.
That said, I used to volunteer at a low-income legal clinic and for those sessions I always dressed down. That choice was deliberate, and even encouraged by the management there, to make me seem less intimidating / more approachable / less in cahoots with “the man”.
Personally, I think dressing well – by which I mean cleanly, fittingly, and appropriately for the occasion – is an important part of good manners. If somebody shows up looking like a slob, then I do regard them as showing less respect than someone who took the time to turn themselves out nicely.
Makes a big difference. I am treated very well generally. In winter I cover up, but in summer people are much nicer because they can see my body. I’m in very good shape. I don’t wear make up and tbh I don’t do much to alter my appearance, plus I am pretty. I get attention in baggy and revealing clothes, but I see the differences in how I’m treated depending on what I wear.
African culture sees dressing well as a form of respect given to others.
I was raised to see it as a form of egocentrism and vacuity, and it changed my perspective to see it that way.
Never underestimate the lack of critical thinking skills of the people around you in their inability to see beyond the superficial – tldr: impressions matter because people impact your life with their actions, and the way you dress is the fastest way for our little error prone brains to process a yay or nay to begin with. The lack of effort beyond that visual depends on the individual viewing it, so take your chances on being dressed well imo
Expressing any kind of judgment is often perceived as rude nowadays and led many (especially younger) people to believe that people actually ARE non-judgmental. While I think that the acceptable range of appearance and behavior is broader now, people saying nothing doesn’t mean they approve. That’s why it’s sometimes even hard to give example of exact situations when this is happening.
One of my friends was dressing up very informally for work and it was tolerated, because she was very good at her job. She was however stuck at her position and always passed over for promotion (which would require interacting with her company’s bigwigs). I suggested that she upgraded her wardrobe and her promotion followed fairly soon after. I’m glad she gave it a try!
I work on construction sites. I do feel I am taken more seriously when dressed appropriately. As a special inspector, I don’t have to wear steel toes boots and I could wear jeans but I noticed when I do wear a pair of work in, scuffed work boots, canvas pants, and a workman’s jacket (either canvas or a worn in raincoat or puffer) I get treated a bit differently. I feel they look at me and go “oh she’s a regular site person and not just some gal behind a computer who comes to site twice a year.” I feel I get more respect and honestly more help when I dress more like a construction worker and not like I just came from the office. Like I know what I’m doing and have experience.
How we look obviously affects how we’re seen. You can’t see what isn’t there (and conversely you can only see what is there).
I think context matters a lot. At the grocery store probably doesn’t affect much and if someone is judging someone for what they’re wearing at a grocery store, they’re an asshole anyway. But in professional or formal settings I think it affects us a lot, and unfortunately it’s generally affecting us negatively (like we don’t get the positive points generally for looking well kept, that is baseline, but we definitely get the negative points if how we look isn’t how others seem we should look).
As someone who wears many different “shoes” depending on the day—whether I’m in a casual uniform at work or at home with family, gym clothes post-workout, or fully dressed up embracing my more feminine side—I’ve definitely noticed how differently people respond to me based on what I’m wearing.
Living in a major city where style is constantly evolving, I’ve grown to appreciate the fluidity of personal expression through fashion. Trends shift, and clothing becomes more about mood, context, or function than identity. Personally, I try not to hold bias—I know how misleading appearances can be, because I live the contrast myself.
Obviously it affects others’ perception, there’s no way it wouldn’t to some degree. That said, besides wearing clean clothing and having good hygiene, I truly don’t care what that perception is. I have too many sensory issues (I’m autistic) and other body issues, plus some chronic physical health problems, to dress for absolutely anything besides comfort. I mostly live in sweatpants and hoodies or T-shirts, and most of the time can’t be arsed to bother with makeup. Once in a blue moon, perhaps. My fiancé loves me as I am and doesn’t expect me to wear things that will bother me, anyone else close to me doesn’t give a shit, and I’m not looking for attention (I actively prefer to avoid it) and no one else’s opinion is relevant to me anyway. Plus to the best of my knowledge, I’ve never been treated outright poorly for dressing casually or not wearing makeup. It’s not like I ever go anywhere where sweats and no makeup are inappropriate anyway.