Network Dressing
What to wear at work to communicate competence and soft power
When I was 19 I bought a beautiful, single breasted blazer from a Joseph sample sale for £50. Fifty pounds was a lot of money back then, especially for me who made my money by folding jumpers in French Connection on Hampstead High Street. But I wore that blazer to every party, every job interview, every social get-together and every date I had over the next decade. That blazer walked with me through moments in my life when I had no idea of who I was yet, but had a very clear idea of who I wanted to be. And so for many years that blazer acted as a sort of bridge whilst the interior me tried to catch up with the exterior me.
So who did I want to be at the tail end of the 1990s? Like most young women, I wanted to be seen as smart and interesting. I wanted future employers to feel I was an asset. I wanted strangers out a drink parties to look and me and think I was someone worth talking to, even if I didn’t have that much to say because you know, I was 19 years old and who has anything that interesting to say about the world at that point in your life? And so what I really wanted, more than anything else, was to be taken seriously by the world before I’d even opened my mouth.
Fashion allows you to do that, which is one of the many reasons why I love it so much. In the absence of language, fashion steps forward to tell your story exactly how you want it told.
That’s why teenagers, crippled with insecurity love designer logos and handbags. (Oh how I loved a knock-off Gucci bag when I was at school.) And why newly minted girl bosses reach for Issey Miyake. It’s why men careening through a midlife crisis buy the leather jackets of their boyhood, and why older women who still fizz with the punk and energy of their youth dye their hair red and wear purple glasses.
When there are no words, fashion speaks our truth for us.
All of which is to say I found myself at Copenhagen Fashion Week this past week for work, where I barely knew a soul. As the Head of International for Substack much of my job involves meeting strangers in cultures from around the world. They know little about me other than I work for this platform, and so often the clothes I choose to wear are the first impression they get of me. And so once again fashion offers me a bridge to communicate to a roomful of strangers who I am.
Trying to communicate who you are, as well as who the company you represent is tricky, especially when dealing with people from different cultures and countries. I always think you have to toe the line between professionality, cultural respectability plus choose clothes that are memorable without being distracting.
Because dressing for work can be fraught. You need clothes that convey style, whilst also communicating competence. You need outfits that are remarkable but not ones that draw attention away from the other people in the room. Conveying confidence is good, conveying arrogance, not so much. High fashion then- all shapes and angles and bold colours, doesn’t really have a seat the ‘work’ table. But elegance does.
I think in this way it helps to set a ‘vibe’ for how you want the world to see you. And vibes rarely come from high fashion. Instead they come from choosing a colour palette that people associate with you; softer shapes that reflect openness and quiet confidence, and maybe one or two interesting accents- bold earrings, say, that can spark conversation in the absence of introductions.
Over the years I’ve watched other women I admire own rooms with what they say as well as what they wear. And I think that’s the crux: the two should go hand in hand. Fashion can walk you into a roomful of strangers but after that it falls to you to back it up. That’s when things feel right: when you have clothes that fall in line with a person’s essence.
Over the years I’ve worked hard to perfect this. And this week, as we gave dinners and breakfasts and masterclasses to rooms full of strangers eager to learn more about Substack, my wardrobe helped me deliver.
For me- and it may be a little different for you, it boils down to a very simple formula. And it goes something like this…
Earrings
Never underestimate the power of statement earrings to convey soft power and style. Something long that grazes the shoulder is always very elegant, or even wearing just one (or even mismatched statement earrings) works beautifully too and acts as a great conversation point. (I bonded with one of Paris’ most esteemed fashion PRs over dinner because we both wore earrings by the same brand- Completed Works, in case you are interested.) Pearls are very good, but so too is gold or silver in a bold, structural shape, paired with a simple black dress or tuxedo.
Soft Power Shoes
Nothing disempowers a woman greater than shoes you cannot walk in. And yet a heel does wonders for projecting power and confidence. Thankfully, after literal years of trying every designer and high street stiletto you can think of, someone has mastered the ‘comfortable heel.” Step forward Nomasei’s Gattaca heels which have all the requisite details an elegant work shoe requires- closed toe, a small heel, a little bit of foot cleavage and they come in black patent leather which is my favourite finish for evening shoes. The best shoes I’ve worn in a very long time.