I started working with the Internet back in 1998 as a programmer. At that time, still in college, I could come to work dressed in a t-shirt and shorts. As I progressed and became more client facing, my wardrobe didn’t. Being the gadget loving freak I am, I would plop down a couple hundred on the latest technical whim, but I couldn’t justify paying $50 – $100 for a nice shirt. It’s embarrassing to say that this mentality has stuck with me up until this year.
Why this year? As my need and responsibility of being a public figure for the company has grown, I’ve run into a confidence problem. This problem is directly related to my clothes. Easy enough to fix though, right? Simply go out and buy better clothes.
Here in lies the rub. Since I never put a value on fashion, I never took the time to learn what is fashionable. I could go out and spend thousands of dollars and still look like a total dork. And up until very recently, I was too embarrassed to ask anyone for advice.
So, assuming as I am, that others out there face the same challenge, I plan to open this dialogue up a little. I want to share what I learn as my fashion sense progresses, and hope to pull some of you in along the way. Hopefully, you will either give me and other fashion misfits tips and advice along the way, or if you fall into the uniformed category, you will learn along with me.