There's more to style than AP

By Megan Pouliot, Editorial Assistant

Flash forward 52 days.

 Most of us, at least here at TGC, will find ourselves in the middle of University Stadium in a monotonous sea of black gowns with cardinal red stoles anxiously awaiting to hear our name announced over the PA system.

Flash forward three more weeks. Now you’re sitting in a sea of equally eligible job applicants who coincidentally are all applying for the same PR position as you. What’s going to make you stand out?

You have your resume, which of course is scot-free of any AP, spelling or grammar errors. Your portfolio is totally killer with published writing pieces and design work. Your blog is bank, you’ve tweeted a storm and you’ve networked your knickers off. But what about your fashion presence?

In my opinion, one of the most overlooked forms of self-marketing is one’s personal style. 

Think about it: In some cases, an employer’s first impression will be made in the first few seconds of meeting you, before they’ve glanced at your resume or browsed through your portfolio. So do you want your outfit to say, “I’m safe, boring and standard,” or “I’m creative, outgoing and original”? My guess is the latter.

Now before you run out to the nearest Nordstrom and blow all your graduation money on shift dresses and tailored trousers, take the time to figure out your personal style because it’s an expression of who you are.  

As Amanda Brooks puts it in her book “I Love Your Style”—a style bible as far as I’m concerned—“[Style] is an effortless confidence in being yourself, it is a way of putting yourself together according to your mood and what you want to project.”

So if you’re more of a chic, classic kind of gal, go ahead and channel that inner Audrey or Jackie O. with a silk-satin blouse or a little black dress, but remember: classic does not mean boring! So don’t be afraid to accessorize—just don’t over do it.

Whether your style is eclectic, bohemian, romantic or avant-garde, there is a way to professionally present it—it’s just about finding that medium and taking a chance.

For more inspiration, take a look at some of my favorite fashion sites listed below, because May 21 should be the last time you want to look like the person sitting next you.

               

•                      Marie Claire “Fashion for Work: Chic Office Styles”  
•                      Glamour Magazine “Does This Outfit Work?”
•                      Shopping Lifestyle “Makeup for A Job Interview”
•                      I Love Your Style
•             StyleCaster “Fashion Interview Dressing: Do’s and Don’ts”