Wearing a tie at work when no one else does

Originally Posted by myztikal47

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Huh? It has nothing to do with impressing anyone, whenever I've had to dress up, I've always had to wear a tie and I feel awkward without out so I continue to wear one. My co-worker came here from another company where he worked in the same department and they were required to wear ties every day of the week.

I also wear a tie to work mon-thurs (and sometimes on friday), because i enjoy wearing it and it looks good imo (suit without a tie doesn't do it for me). So i'm not sure why so many people (esp. here in Australia) seem to think anyone who wears a tie is automatically trying to impress someone or act superior to those around him.

Pocket square, however, makes one stand out a little too much for comfort (in an office environment)

Originally Posted by yoshii

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I also wear a tie to work mon-thurs (and sometimes on friday), because i enjoy wearing it and it looks good imo (suit without a tie doesn't do it for me). So i'm not sure why so many people (esp. here in Australia) seem to think anyone who wears a tie is automatically trying to impress someone or act superior to those around him.

Pocket square, however, makes one stand out a little too much for comfort (in an office environment)

Because, apparently, no one likes a yuppy.

Originally Posted by yoshii

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I also wear a tie to work mon-thurs (and sometimes on friday), because i enjoy wearing it and it looks good imo (suit without a tie doesn't do it for me). So i'm not sure why so many people (esp. here in Australia) seem to think anyone who wears a tie is automatically trying to impress someone or act superior to those around him.

Pocket square, however, makes one stand out a little too much for comfort (in an office environment)

I think it's because there are not many work places in Australia where a tie is mandatory or semi-mandatory. I happen in work in one of those, which is a happy coincidence.

A funny thing happened a few weeks ago - professional staff received an email from the managing partner, reminding them that they were expected to wear appropriate corporate attire to work, including (for men) a tie. Some of my male colleagues (including a couple of partners) begrudgingly donned a tie for the first time in ages (client meetings etc excluded), although the MP has apparently since backed down, under pressure from some of the other partners!

I agree with your comment re pocket squares. I could get away wearing one in London, but not here without looking like a dandy.

Originally Posted by bhall41

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I usually wear my suit jacket throughout the day at work, because I otherwise feel the cold sitting at my desk with the air-con on. Some of my colleagues thought this was a little odd to begin with, but now accept this quirk!

Same here. I know many people wear jackets that look like what they wore when mountain climbing. I find that very incongruous when matched with their office attire to say the least.

Originally Posted by viator

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Not a fan of the tie without a jacket look, myself.
The tie sans coat equals grocery store manager (whether or not you are one). "Would you like paper or plastic sir?" With that said, dude shouldn't dawn full dress either. Dude should dress according to the work environment.

Originally Posted by SpooPoker

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...And, I often dress better than my superiors.

You often dress better than God...
...and he's got cherubs to help him with his cuff links and stuff.

theres something to be said for social/situational awareness....

Don't wear a tie, wear a cravate, FTW.

I wish I had your problem... I feel like over-dressing when I have nice shoes, cotton pants and a shirt on.

The other day we had a meeting with a lead engineer from one of the biggest companies in the world. As he walked in I almost felt delighted, because he was wearing a nice fitting shirt (seemed to be a BB OCBD), but then my eyes traveled down and I saw his dirty tennis shoes and the reality of my field slapped me back into disappointment.

Don't wear a tie. Standing out way too much is never good.

Originally Posted by SpooPoker

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And, I often dress better than my superiors.

Hmm, harms my south american dictator theory. Then again, he could still be a dictator, but owe allegiant to something like SPECTRE.

Originally Posted by acecow

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I wish I had your problem... I feel like over-dressing when I have nice shoes, cotton pants and a shirt on.

The other day we had a meeting with a lead engineer from one of the biggest companies in the world. As he walked in I almost felt delighted, because he was wearing a nice fitting shirt (seemed to be a BB OCBD), but then my eyes traveled down and I saw his dirty tennis shoes and the reality of my field slapped me back into disappointment.

Don't wear a tie. Standing out way too much is never good.

It is true that many men still don't know (or don't want) to dress accordingly to the occasion (office, job interview, etc), but this is changing. Nowadays men are much more aware on style and etiquette than a few years ago, we can notice it everyday dealing with our customers. There are many resources available for men to know more on the art of dressing (like SF).

Besides being an oxymoron, business casual is the worst thing to happen to the work place.

^^^^How do you feel about casual Fridays?

I work for a media agency - which tends to be very (ahem) forgiving with our dress codes, especially in my field of digital. For years, I took full advantage of it and mixed in jeans, t-shirts, blazers, track jackets, etc. with my staple of dress shirts and v-necks. In fact, I owned several suits, but wore them only for meetings.

My career advanced, and I was angling for a promotion to Vice President. I asked my boss (who was a very cool guy and dressed virtually every day in dress slacks and a dress shirt) what it would take for me to get that promotion. He mentioned a couple things related to my performance, and then bit his lip and admitted that it would be difficult to promote me if I continued to wear t-shirts and track jackets to the office. His reasoning was that even if I didn't have any meetings, you never know when the CEO wanted to drag you into a new business meeting or if there was an unexpected negotiation with an EVP at NBC or Turner. He was almost apologetic, because the lax dress code as agencies are a way of life. But I appreciated his directness and understood his position.

From that point on, I never came to the office in less than a coat and tie - and most days I wore suits and ties. Virtually nobody else at the agency dressed that formally. There were some comments at first, but I never called attention to it and certainly never apologized for it. After a while, people just came to see it as part of my character and if I ever wore jeans, people would ask why I was so dressed down. Eventually, more and more guys at our shop wore suits and ties, where some of our meetings looked like a board meeting at Pierce & Pierce.

If you were coming to the office in a top hat and tails, I'd say that was overdoing it. If you're looking down on people, it'll bite you ********** whether you're wearing a tie or not. But a tie because you feel like it? Go for it.

In a business casual office I think you get a lot more mileage from good pants, nice shoes, well fitting shirt, occasional sports coat. Slapping on a tie when no one else does screams try hard.