Dress for success. It was something that was always stressed to me growing up. My parents. My teachers. My bosses.
I was a rule breaker at a young age. In Catholic school, my feet were so big that we had trouble finding affordable dress shoes that fit. So my parents bought me black sneakers.
With them came a detention for breaching the dress code. My first detention…and it wasn’t even my fault. Go figure. To my mother’s credit, she went all momma bear on the school and I don’t believe I ever actually served that detention. Unlike the detention I got for bringing my mother’s bra into school for show and tell in second grade. Sister Gertrude did NOT like that.
I digress.
At my first job, I was written up for growing facial hair. For the love of God, going through puberty I was sprouting facial hair faster than I was serving up Big Macs.
Working in television, I was given hell if I wasn’t perfectly ironed and tucked in.
Then something magical happened. I became a business owner. And I decided that if I never wanted to wear a suit again…I didn’t have to.
If I didn’t want to shave, I didn’t have to.
If I wanted to wear jeans and a hoodie and a backwards baseball cap, I could.
And so could my staff.
Here’s the thing. If you are hiring members of your team who can’t differentiate between what is and isn’t appropriate and WHEN it is and isn’t appropriate, than you’ve got bigger problems than a damn dress code.
A study back in 2012 by Adecco, a human resources consulting company, asked about 500 hiring managers about millennials. 75% of those hiring managers said that said that millennials fail to wear appropriate interview attire.
Interesting stats. But I’d argue that the number means 75% of those hiring managers need to loosen up their neckties and chill out. Welcome to the real world, baby. Just because you aren’t wearing a tie doesn’t mean you’re not qualified for the job.
You know when I get my best work done? When I’m in jeans and a hoodie. And I have music playing. And a beer next to me – but that’s an entirely different story. Or is it?
Here’s a look at some of the top perks (as unusual as they may be) that some top creative companies (such as The Silent Partner Marketing) offer to their team to keep them around.
- Weekly chair massages
- A stash of snacks
- A keg or a bar in the office (or a super stocked bar like ours)
- Ice cream parties
- A pile of fresh fruits and veggies
- Child care on location
- Napping rooms
- X-Box
- Free breakfast or lunch every day
- Show or sports tickets
- Paid gym memberships
- Organized volunteer efforts for the whole office
- Paid time off for volunteering or board service
- Monthly parties
- Business retreats to places like breweries or vineyards
- Flexible scheduling
- Telecommuting
- Reduced summer hours
- Paid birthdays off
- Errand services (dry cleaning pickup, taking your vehicle for oil changes, etc.)
- On-site fitness gym
- Use of company equipment for freelancing
- No “no swearing” policy
- Lunchtime workouts
What are your thoughts on the casual workplace? Does it help or hinder the creative process…and are we facing the death of the suit?
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