I confess: I watch Mad Men. But I swear, I don’t watch
because it’s about advertising. It’s actually very good drama. Also, like
everyone else these days, I got a thing for retro stuff. We all do. Why do you
think Instagram is so popular? All that wonderful 21st century technology
just to take cheap Polaroids!
Anyway, regarding the retro thing, I am especially drawn to
the wardrobe on the show. It is shocking yet appealing to see creative
professionals rocking the suit and tie, and I ask myself, What the fuck is
wrong with today’s creatives?
I am a creative and I enjoy the message t-shirts and
Converse kicks as much as the next guy, but man, there’s a limit to how quirky
one should be at the office. At the agency where I work, it’s gotten to the
point where creatives are expected to be sloppy and weird. That’s ok, but at
what point does it become a game of simply “dressing the part?”
Lawerys, bankers, and doctors are expected to dress a
certain way. Of course, there are a few who break the curve and wear a Mickey
Mouse tie or Levis 501s on a day other than Casual Friday, but all within
reason. However, it seems as if creatives today compete with one another to see
who wears the Creative Uniform best… and the battle has gotten nasty and
unhygienic, even. Dudes and dudettes are coming in to the office with t-shirts
that haven’t been washed in days, barefoot, unshaven, hair unkempt and with
loads of pillow fluff, and – in some cases – with the particular stench
week-old body odor. Yeah, it disgusting.
What makes matters worse is that with their dress comes a
message: “Yeah, I make $85K/year and drive a new Lexus Hybrid, live in a
hipster neighborhood and eat organic, but I’m still irreverent.” They reinforce
their message by wearing $1,000 designer eyewear with a two-dollar Salvation
Army t-shirt and $200 Birkenstock sandals and not taking a shower in days. Oh,
and don’t get me started with the tattoos. It’s as if they need to personify
irony.
My fellow creatives: By trying to pull off that
“individual look”, you end up looking like everyone else. You’re trying too
hard to de different. Will ironing your shirt make you less creative? Will your
brain stop producing award-wining ideas if you comb your hair? And, don’t you
think that a 37 year-old dude trying to look like a rebellious 14 year-old is just plain wrong?
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