Everyone who takes a new job finds there are unwritten rules in the office or workplace — let’s discuss them today!

I recently heard the phrase “invisible furniture” used to describe the unwritten rules in your office or workplace, in that you may be “bumping into a lot of it in your first few months on your job.”

It’s a great phrase, and it’s so true — every workplace definitely has its own unwritten rules! What are the unwritten rules in YOUR office — and in what ways do you see people bump into those rules when they’re new?

To back up a bit: There was a great Twitter thread recently with advice for new appointees in the Biden administration from Dr. Tamara Cofman Wittes, current senior fellow for the Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings and the founder of The Leadership Council for Women in National Security. Her thread included some great advice, such as:

• Take your ethics undertakings seriously.
• “Your job is to help your team succeed. That means help your boss, help your peers, and help your employees. If they rise, you rise. If they fail, you have failed. So start by figuring out who they are, what they need, and what you can offer.”
• If you’re dealing with someone who is a bit “world-weary in the face of your enthusiasm… connect them to your mission & help them see how their work matters to policy & real-world outcomes.”

Such great advice! I was particularly interested in this tweet, where she noted:

Every workplace has unwritten rules, too: what I call “invisible furniture.” You will be bumping into a lot of it in your first months on the job. Make a point of learning it, & remember that it’s never dumb to admit what you don’t know—it’s the quickest way to learn.

So let’s discuss — what are some of the unwritten rules in the office that you’ve learned in your workplace?

For my $.02, some of these unwritten rules in my previous offices come to mind:

• access to colleagues and bosses — Several of my previous workplaces (especially in the magazine world, but the legal world also) have had a lot of unwritten rules around access to bosses. It was often considered an honor even to be CC:ed on an email involving the Big Boss, and certainly to be invited to a meeting, and there were a lot of unwritten rules about how to conduct yourself when you were invited.

• support staff priorities — In my law firm (where generally four lawyers shared one administrative assistant), there were absolutely unwritten rules about what order the assistant was expected to do things in. There were also unwritten etiquette rules around what work should be given to your administrative assistant versus work that should/could be given to another department (such as Steno).

• face time — This is a huge one that varies widely from office to office. At my law firm, they didn’t care if you showed up at noon and worked until midnight; as long as you had checked your email and voice mail in the morning, there was generally no requirement that you be in the office. Another boss took it as a grave sign of disrespect if I came in at 9:10.

• Similarly, lunch — one of my old offices had a culture of everyone eating lunch at around the same time, at the same conference table.
  
• the closed office door — Every office I’ve been in had unwritten rules about when your office door was allowed to be closed, or when you were allowed to or expected to or pushing it to take a conference room to work in by yourself.

Readers, how about you — what are the unwritten rules in your office? What did you learn the hard way, and in what way do you think new hires “bump into” that invisible furniture?

Stock photo (empty conference room) via Stencil.

The post “Invisible Furniture”: What Are the Unwritten Rules In Your Office? appeared first on Corporette.com.

Here’s a fun question for today: What are your best tips for someone on what to wear on your first day at work? Do you play it very safe with your interview outfit? If it’s a business casual environment and a suit isn’t appropriate, what do you wear for your first-day outfit?

We’ve talked about how to make your first day on the job a GREAT one, as well as what to wear on your first day at a very casual law office, but it’s been a while — I can’t wait to hear what the readers say!

Here are some factors that I would consider when picking out what to wear on your first day at work:

Professionalism: I always tell people that it’s OK to wear your interview clothes to your first day — so if you interviewed in a suit, you should probably wear a suit on your first day. (It’s OK if it’s the same suit you interviewed in; odds are low your interviewer(s) will remember exactly what your suit looked like.)

This may be a pantsuit instead of a skirt suit, of course (and for my own $.02 would probably be my choice, for comfort reasons as laid out below), but may also be a sleeved sheath dress or something along those lines. (And to echo what commenters are saying: yes, absolutely expect to take your blazer off if you’re wearing a suit on your first day!)

Comfort: Of course, you always want to be comfortable, but I’m thinking of some particular situations where I might choose a more comfortable option over something else. For example, you may find yourself having to run around from one department to another, either for introductions or training — so wear comfortable shoes.

These are some of our favorite comfortable low heels for work as of 2024… also check out CK Calvin Klein, Trotters, Sam Edelman, and Sarah Flynt!

Furthermore, on the shoe point: During a normal workday there are often options to quickly kick off your heels under a desk or change to commuting shoes to run and grab lunch, whereas on your first day those options may not present themselves and you may be in your shoes for nine or ten hours straight.

If you’re wearing a skirt, I’d urge you to do the Mirror Test because on your first day you may often be sitting in someone’s visitor chair, across the desk from them, or (if you’re starting with several new workers at once, as in many BigLaw firms) in a group situation like an HR presentation or a packed conference room.

Office temperature: This can be something of an unknown, particularly if you’re starting work in a month like May or September, where the office A/C or heat may or may not be switched to the appropriate setting — so dress in intelligent layers! Don’t wear a sleeveless dress or shell as your base layer in case you end up sweltering in whatever you intended to wear on top (because if going sleeveless isn’t considered appropriate at your new office, you’re stuck). By the same token, if you wear something too lightweight you may be freezing all day, so it’s a good idea to add a cardigan or blazer to your ensemble so that you have something intentional to put on top.

For a more conservative office, a blazer can be a great topper:

Some of our favorite blazers to wear as separates include:

For a more casual office, a sweater jacket can be a great way to add polish:

Pockets: This can be a little like hunting for a unicorn, but if you’re between two options and one has pockets and the other does not, then go for pockets.

Stay tuned for a roundup of our all-time favorite business clothes with pockets! Note that a ton of Theory pants have pockets, though, as well as these popular “dress yoga pants” from Betabrand.

As of 2023, many of the best work dresses have pockets, including M.M.LaFleur, J.Crew, and Boden — Nordstrom also has a bunch!

Readers, what are your best tips for what to wear on your first day at work? Have you ever started a job and really regretted your outfit choices? Do you have any memories (good or bad) of what a work colleague wore for his or her first day at work?

Stock photo via Shutterstock / Dean Drobot.

The post What to Wear on Your First Day at Work appeared first on Corporette.com.

With interns everywhere starting soon (to say nothing of college graduates), I thought we should have an open thread about what your best advice is for the first day on the job (and, hey, your first week!).

We’ve talked about how to build a wardrobe for your summer internship (as well as no-duh tips in general for your summer internship); we’ve also talked about how to avoid acting young, and how to look professional without looking like you think you’re in charge — but I don’t think we’ve talked, specifically, about first day-on-the-job tips.

For my $.02, these are some of my top tips:

{related: do check out our regularly updated list of wardrobe essentials for work!}

Before the First Day

Read the company’s website, particularly if they have a “Press” section. Consider Googling further to learn more than just what’s in the press release on their website.

Google your company to see if it’s been in the news or mentioned otherwise. If you haven’t already set up a Google Alert, do it now.

Research your liaison.  If you have the name of your contact or liaison, search for their name on the company website. You may find mentions in press releases or a bio, but for smaller companies you may just find a listing of responsibilities. You may also consider checking out their LinkedIn or even their Facebook page.

There is, of course, a fine line between being creepy and being well prepared, so be smart about what you ask him or her about at your first meeting. Fair game:  responsibilities at the job, career path, school background. Getting creepy: your making any comments about kids, significant others, or recent vacations the person may have posted about on Facebook.

First Day Tips

Look as professional as you did on the job interview. Don’t worry about wowing them with a new dress, or about “boring” them by repeating a suit — your clothes should be a non-issue the first day.

{related: If you’re on the hunt for all the interview suits, check out our roundup of the best women’s suits of 2023!}

Depending on where you work you may also want to be prepared to take a corporate headshot, either for the company website or for an informal “meet the interns!” memo that is often passed around.

You may want to check out some of our previous what not to wear to work lists, if only to avoid wearing something eyebrow-raising on the first day.

Briefly, you may want to avoid: cleavage of ANY kind, bare legs, open-toed shoes (this includes peep toes), or wearing a sleeveless dress with nothing covering your arms (such as sleeves, a blazer, or a cardigan).

Show up early. This is one of those situations where if you’re on time, you’re late. If you get there super early, sit in a nearby coffee shop until about 10 minutes prior to start time, and then go in.

What to bring: A notebook and a pen. Your ID(s) — bring your passport if you have it handy — as well as a blank check (often asked for for direct deposit). I’d also bring a few paper copies of your resume, particularly if anything “new” has happened since you interviewed (you published a paper, you got on a great journal, you won an election in one of your activities) — you may meet a liaison or other superior who will guide you through the internship, and it never hurts to hand them an updated copy of your resume and point out the new things. You may also want to consider bringing lunch for yourself, or at least a snack.

What not to bring:  Anything that might slow you down if there is unexpected security in the building (e.g., a Swiss Army knife on your keychain); a box of stuff to decorate your work area (save it for later in the week if you do want to decorate your space).

Prepare to spend a lot of time doing administrative stuff.  Paperwork! Computer setup! Email setup! Voicemail setup! This may be the bulk of your first day. Don’t presume you’re going to immediately have access to a computer and printer as soon as you get to work.

Repeat people’s names.  Whether you’re meeting two people or twenty people, this tip always helps — remember people’s names by repeating their names back to them as soon as they say it. “I’m Bob, I’ll be your mentor this summer.” “Hi Bob, I’m Kat.”

Take notes.  Take notes in meetings, whether it’s a presentation by the HR department or a new work assignment. Take notes after meetings (who you met, impressions, future items to look into). You may even want to take notes beFORE meetings if you’re given advance notice of anything.

For example, let’s say at 11:40 you’re told to come to a meeting at noon about [a case, a project, a company, a client, etc.] You have twenty minutes to research whatever the meeting is about — get a feel for what it is already, as well as any questions you may have about it.

Call me an old-timer, but for my money the only way to take notes in any meeting (or refer to notes) is on paper — most superiors will think you’re checking your texts or emails if you’re glancing at your phone or typing on your phone during a meeting.

Tips for Your First Week on the Job

Keep your personal social calendar as clear as you can during the first week.  This can help in two ways… A) You may need more time to decompress than usual this week — personally, meeting new people always tuckers me out. B) It leaves you free to partake in social opportunities that may arise at work — you don’t want to miss an impromptu cocktail hour (and the networking opportunities therein) because you have to be somewhere else.

Email people in the company you want to work with, very briefly.  “Hi, my name is Kat; I’m a new intern this summer. I’m fascinated by [Your Specialty Here]; I’ve attached a recent resume. Do you have any projects right now that you need a hand with? I’d love to help any way I can.” If they say no (or something vague like “Ill keep you in mind!”), ask them to lunch and tell them you’d love to hear about their career/job in general.

Introduce yourself to your neighbors, if they haven’t introduced themselves to you.  If you can, do a bit of research on who they are and what they do; that will help you say something like,  “Hi, I’m the new intern; I’ll be sitting in Room __. I understand you’re in charge of ____? I’d love to hear more about that or help you if I can.” If you don’t really know what you want to do at the company/firm, this is a great place to start.

Bring some stuff into your office/desk.  Again, this is not first day stuff, but things that I think are acceptable for the first week: a tissue box, a colorful calendar or something else, a blazer to keep at the office, and a basic pair of pumps to keep at the office; perhaps even a few shelf-stable snacks like granola bars or an oatmeal packet.

Depending on where you work and what your job entails, I would also consider bringing a pair of glasses if you wear contacts, as well as a pair of sneakers and socks. (The sneaker/sock suggestion is, perhaps, a weird one, but I’ve heard so many stories of women being forced to walk home in uncomfortable heels (particularly on Wall Street — after 9/11, after blackouts, etc.) that this piece of advice is firmly burned in my memory. Plus, hey: maybe you can make it to a workout class near the office, or walk home some night just for fun.)

Stay tuned for a roundup of little things to make your office more comfortable!

Readers, what are your tips for a great first day/first week? What mistakes have you seen interns make that could be avoided? What are YOUR best first day on the job tips?

Updated images via Stencil. Also pictured at top: Be Prepared, originally uploaded to Flickr by Calsidyrose.

The post First Day on the Job Tips: How to Make Your First Day a GREAT One appeared first on Corporette.com.

2018 Update: We still stand by this advice on what to wear on the first day at a very casual law office — but you may also want to check out our newer discussion on what to wear on your first day at work. (You may also want to check out our Ultimate Guide to Business Casual for Women!)

What should you wear on your first day at a very casual law office? Reader F wonders…

Thanks for the great blog – it’s been holding my hand, fashion-wise, since I started law school. I have a question: what should an articling student wear to work (especially on my first day) at an extremely casual law firm populated with some very prestigious lawyers? By “extremely casual” I mean that the last time I saw my principal at the office she was wearing ripped jeans and a vintage poncho/jacket sort of thing. She is a very senior & highly respected lawyer, and I am a lowly student, so my quandary is this: on the one hand, I don’t want to look like an overdressed nerd in a suit, but on the other hand, I clearly do not have the seniority to dress as she does. How to split the difference? What should I wear on my first day? Thanks!

Great question, F — you’re right to assume that you need to bank some credibility before you can start wearing very casual things. We’ve talked about how to have a great first day on the job, as well as what to wear for a business casual office, but we haven’t talked about what to wear at a very casual office. For my $.02, this is very field specific — and for most lawyers I’m going to fall on the “be safe and wear a suit” side of the continuum. Your job involves representing other people, not yourself; your job requires you to get immediate respect on first impressions (e.g., from judges and juries) — and your boss wants to know that you understand that. Since you describe this as a “very casual office,” I’m guessing the odds are approximately 90% that you’re going to immediately take off the blazer and leave it in your office — so make sure you like your outfit sans blazer — but you still want to show up and have that “I’m here and ready to work!” conversation in your suit. (You can then let your blazer live at the office to become your wear-with-everything black blazer.)  

The real question, in my mind, is what to wear the second and third day on the job, when people will expect you to be a bit less formal (unless you know you have something big coming up). For planning purposes, I’d stick with very conservative, classic pieces (knee-length dresses with sleeves and high necklines, full length trousers, button-front blouses, blazers), but start to have some fun/show some personality with your shoes, jewelry, and how you wear the pieces (e.g., fun with layering, scrunched up sleeves on blazers and blouses, etc).

Readers, how would you advise a lawyer on what to wear on the first day at a very casual office? For those of you in professions where “suit=nerd,” what would you tell Reader F to wear? 

Pictured: Clean slate, originally uploaded to Flickr by mikecogh. Social media images (2018 Update): Deposit Photos / AllaSerebrina. 

The post What to Wear on the First Day at a Very Casual Office appeared first on Corporette.com.

2018 Update: Check out our new and revised guides to Where to Shop for Workwear in NYC!

Today’s reader mail is a question for where to shop in New York City…

I am about to spend a week in New York City (June 19-26th, in fact) and I’d like to do a little shopping for work clothes while I’m there. Normally I stock up on casual clothes at H&M, but their work attire is too cheaply made for my office. Do you have a recommendation or two for stores in the Gap/Banana Republic/Limited/Express price range, that I couldn’t shop at in any city in the US?

Ah, a leisurely day of shopping in NYC — what fun! Given your price range and your goals, we’d recommend a few different stretches, depending on your time and energy. First up, we’ll talk about the area we’ll call Lower Fifth Avenue. Photo:  Flatiron Building, originally uploaded to Flickr by sunsurfr. (The Flatiron Building is at 23d and 5th. It’s beautiful, but not really noteworthy as a shopping destination in and of itself.)  (Read parts II (where to shop in SoHo) and III (other shopping in NYC), also!)

Depending on where you’re coming from, you’ll want to start either at 22d and 5th Avenue and work your way south (along Fifth) or at 15th and 5th, and work your way north. Destination points for a good selection of work clothes, in your price range,  include: Club Monaco, BCBG/Max Azria, United Colors of Bennetton, White House | Black Market,  and Zara. (Last we checked those stores weren’t available in every Midwestern mall.)  You’ll also pass Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, J.Crew, Express, Gap, and Anthropologie (and sometimes the stores in New York do carry more pieces than stores elsewhere, so it’s worth a stop in if you’ve got a favorite). For lower-priced shoes check out Aldo and Kenneth Cole; for our money we’d detour slightly off Fifth Avenue onto 17th street, though, and head to Sacco Shoes — slightly more expensive but much better made and more comfortable.

Other shopping, for casual or going-out wear includes:  Eileen Fisher, A/X Exchange, H&M, Juicy Couture, and bebe.

If they’re having a sale, or if you’re in the market to ogle some great bags, stop in Searle and Intermix — you can get lucky here, but in general their audience is the very small woman who goes out a lot and has no budgetary restraints. There’s also a Kate Spade store and a stand-alone Coach store along these stretches — pricy, but fun to check out.

After doing this stretch of Fifth Avenue, evaluate your energy. Still good? Head west to Loehman’s (16th and 7th). Not so much? There are a ton of restaurants nearby on Park Avenue South between 18th and 26th, or between 5th and 6th avenues (try 18th or 19th street). If you’re in the mood for comfort food to eat in the park, the venerable Shake Shack is nearby.

The post Reader Mail: Where to Shop in NYC – Part 1 appeared first on Corporette.com.