So tomorrow I'm attending my second ever professional conference and I was planning on wearing a variation on that first outfit I posted... But I'm having some like... Imposter syndrome related nerves. I want to be taken seriously, but I don't want to be not-myself. Anyone used to the STEM workplace lifestyle have any input here? I guess I feel like if I dress like I normally do I'm not flashing enough nerd cred. I don't give two shits about "proving myself" at PAX, but this is for work...
You're a woman in STEM: asshole nerds are going to look for any little reason to brush you off/not take you seriously, so I say dress how you wanna and own your professional accomplishments like the kickass business lady that you are.
Hacksaw on
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Zonugal(He/Him) The Holiday ArmadilloI'm Santa's representative for all the southern states. And Mexico!Registered Userregular
So tomorrow I'm attending my second ever professional conference and I was planning on wearing a variation on that first outfit I posted... But I'm having some like... Imposter syndrome related nerves. I want to be taken seriously, but I don't want to be not-myself. Anyone used to the STEM workplace lifestyle have any input here? I guess I feel like if I dress like I normally do I'm not flashing enough nerd cred. I don't give two shits about "proving myself" at PAX, but this is for work...
Ah...ok, so, hacksaw is not wrong, but actual advice
- suits or the female equivalent scare the crap out of engineers and academics, but will enable you to blend in with corporate types HOWEVER
- if you look too glam and too corporate people will think you're a booth babe and not take you seriously
- If you want to look like a student or a professional nerd go with jeans and wev
- If you want to look like a student or a junior PR type go with a floral skirt and flats
- If you want to scare absolutely everyone, wear heels.
Basically it depends on the conference, and why you're at it. And why you want people to think that you're at it! Suit up and you'll be assumed to be on the business/PR end. Dress down and you'll be assumed to be on the technical side/back end (or a student or intern). Me, I like to mix it up, keep people guessing. But don't stress about them not taking you seriously. 50% will be scared of you just cause you have boobs. Of those that remain, the ones that underestimate you are the ones you can destroy most easily.
Oh, forgot the killer look. Jeans, heels and a good button up with a leather jacket will cover all bases AND make you look like a senior female coder too badass to give the time of day to little men.
Edit: sub in leather skirt and no jacket for warmer weather.
Basically I have a Trojan horse approach to conferences and generally enjoy undercover work. If your mission is not to infiltrate, interrogate, and destroy, then you may want a different approach.
Lost Salientblink twiceif you'd like me to mercy kill youRegistered Userregular
I uhh
I don't really DO pants
I mean I own one pair of barely worn jeans but it's a running joke when I show up wearing pants of any kind? And my leather skirt is Not Work Or Daytime Appropriate.
Also more importantly I'm biking to this conference and although the high tomorrow is only 71, it's... You know. Not turtleneck and leather jacket weather.
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
I mean I own one pair of barely worn jeans but it's a running joke when I show up wearing pants of any kind? And my leather skirt is Not Work Or Daytime Appropriate.
Also more importantly I'm biking to this conference and although the high tomorrow is only 71, it's... You know. Not turtleneck and leather jacket weather.
Out of the two you posted? I'd go option 1. It's unclassifiable and badass. But both would work honestly. The main thing you want to avoid is being pigeonholed as corporate eye candy, so just stay out of grey pinstripe and you'll be good.
To be honest I dress the same if it's for work work, or if it's for a conference/trade show; I might wear a blazer if I want to go over-the-top dressed up, but like...
My recommendation is to wear whatever makes you confident in yourself. I mean, I'm not necessarily advocating like, a neckline that goes down to your navel, but if you've got an outfit that probably suits the style of conference you're going to that also lets you feel like a certifiable badass, go with that. I stopped caring what my STEM coworkers thought about my outfits a long time ago, and it's generally better for the attitude I take when I'm networking to feel like I'm on my A-game in terms of makeup and clothes.
yeah that second dress especially and the whole look there is all killer
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Lost Salientblink twiceif you'd like me to mercy kill youRegistered Userregular
Holy hell
I felt alright about my outfit this morning. Unfortunately I'm apparently terminally allergic to something that is BLOWING UP today and my eyes and nose won't stop running, and I'm sneezing constantly.
This conference is going to be a misery.
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
I felt alright about my outfit this morning. Unfortunately I'm apparently terminally allergic to something that is BLOWING UP today and my eyes and nose won't stop running, and I'm sneezing constantly.
oh yeah i got this last weekish, and i know part of my immediate response to it is a resemblance to tribal wear
it is still funny/annoying to me that i can consistently find flattering clothes in the maternity section several sizes down from the regular lines, 'cause according to retail availability, pregnancy grants instant ~~boobs! ... no bras to accommodate a small back, large cup, though (just referring to Target, here.) i still retain hippie sensibilities, so the whole earth mother look is in my wheelhouse, but it would be nice to encounter a buttondown that doesn't gap.
@Lost Salient aagh I love your style, everything you've posted is absolutely killer!
Meanwhile, someone should take away my credit card when I'm stressed out. I spent $50 on an icebreaker merino wool long sleeved shirt for my upcoming thailand trip, and then impulse bought $60 black yoga leggings. And now I might buy these for Thailand trip too.
Lost Salientblink twiceif you'd like me to mercy kill youRegistered Userregular
edited May 2016
...those look mad good for traveling, bits. I dunno.
And everybody needs yoga pants.
(I'm the worst influence.)
Also update: the conference is actually really great, and informative, and after an hour spent biking around trying to find a pharmacy at lunch I managed to buy some Claritin-D. Now I'm back home with my trusty best friend, Mr. Tissue Box, and his sidekick Neti Pot. Here's hoping whatever is causing my whooole Face Situation is gone by morning so I can actually enjoy myself and do happy hour with some DevOps folks tomorrow.
Lost Salient on
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
Yeah, I'm totally buying them. i justified the yoga pants by telling myself they'll be my long Thailand layer and I'll wear them on the plane. This trip is getting expensive!
i dunno, those look like pretty good shorts, especially for travel in a sweaty locale.
the yoga leggings might have been too much, but i'm gonna guess all these items will be useful to you.
go see if they've got it in-store, check for coupons, discounts...
i painted my nails last night, and a lady at the vet complimented the color. yessss validation China Glaze Bend Over Backwards, glowy red that leans a touch to way orange, maybe vice versa
pooka on
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Lost Salientblink twiceif you'd like me to mercy kill youRegistered Userregular
Seriously, I routinely bring a cardigan/hoodie and yoga pants for overseas flights! That is totally legit!
Because looking nice at check-in and security can get you upgrades, but fuck being uncomfortable and cold as hell on the flight itself.
When do you leave for Thailand?
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
Lost Salientblink twiceif you'd like me to mercy kill youRegistered Userregular
Without any actual concrete evidence to support this, I feel like it totally helps get you through the checkpoints quickly and efficiently and without getting tapped for those supposedly-random searches.
I am 100% fine with gaming the system, here.
Or maybe it's just a lil placebo I tell myself.
But it totally helps when you're asking if there's a possibility for an upgrade to a better seat. I stand by that statement.
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
I used a gift card for most of the yoga pants! I was going to use it for something with slightly more utility, but I do love yoga pants. I'll post everything when I get it!
I think looking nice will absolutely get you through security more reliably, I would be shocked if the TSA rent-a-cops were not even worse about profiling than real police are.
for the record, looking like you're half-dead, with a wrist-brace (and, as always, being polite) can also net you some helpful attention from gate crew.
i was asked if i wanted a wheelchair to meet me on landing for my connection, and she let me board before or with first class.
i had some kinda upper respiratory thing. i thought i was coping, but apparently, i looked like shit -- she was very sympathetic to my pitiful state, and must have put a note in there for people to keep an eye out for me. or i looked enough like hell to instill empathy in all who witnessed me that day, 'cause the next gate crew was also nice. that trip was real shit for travel; multiple delays, every leg, both ways. i did take the wheelchair at one point.
i also wore a facemask so i didn't get dried out, but with a scarf on top of that to avoid wigging people out. sick fashion.
though, other than feeling like trash, i was wearing nice jeans and my moccs. so my outfit was probably decent travel-chic.
Tito, i think you could rock those! the white black
So tomorrow I'm attending my second ever professional conference and I was planning on wearing a variation on that first outfit I posted... But I'm having some like... Imposter syndrome related nerves. I want to be taken seriously, but I don't want to be not-myself. Anyone used to the STEM workplace lifestyle have any input here? I guess I feel like if I dress like I normally do I'm not flashing enough nerd cred. I don't give two shits about "proving myself" at PAX, but this is for work...
Is this east coast or west coast?
If it's more west coast, really wear whatever you want. You will see a wide variety of attire in west coast STEM workplaces.
For more east coast, I guess you should err on the side of more professional and formal. (For the rest of the country I am not sure, sorry rest of the country!)
Honestly though for a conference, I would say it depends more on what your goals are for the conference. Is mostly just to learn? Or to check out potential vendors/technologies? In that case I really would not worry and just wear what you are comfortable in.
If it is to mainly to get a new job or to find potential clients, then treat it like going to an interview and research the companies you are interested in. Make an educated guess on the appropriate level of professional attire those companies would appreciate and wear on that level.
I am sure that whatever your goals and whatever you wear, you will impress people on the professional level and with your fashion sense.
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Lost Salientblink twiceif you'd like me to mercy kill youRegistered Userregular
edited May 2016
It's a small DevOps conference here in Austin, TX. I went for "Wanna fight?" as my driving outfit principle and I'd say uhhh, 99% of the other people there were wearing t-shirts or polos, often branded with their company logos, or nerd in-jokes, so my outfit was both wayyy fashionable and clearly Not Corporate.
Lost Salient on
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
Posts
You're a woman in STEM: asshole nerds are going to look for any little reason to brush you off/not take you seriously, so I say dress how you wanna and own your professional accomplishments like the kickass business lady that you are.
Black pants with an equally black turtle-neck.
Ah...ok, so, hacksaw is not wrong, but actual advice
- suits or the female equivalent scare the crap out of engineers and academics, but will enable you to blend in with corporate types HOWEVER
- if you look too glam and too corporate people will think you're a booth babe and not take you seriously
- If you want to look like a student or a professional nerd go with jeans and wev
- If you want to look like a student or a junior PR type go with a floral skirt and flats
- If you want to scare absolutely everyone, wear heels.
Basically it depends on the conference, and why you're at it. And why you want people to think that you're at it! Suit up and you'll be assumed to be on the business/PR end. Dress down and you'll be assumed to be on the technical side/back end (or a student or intern). Me, I like to mix it up, keep people guessing. But don't stress about them not taking you seriously. 50% will be scared of you just cause you have boobs. Of those that remain, the ones that underestimate you are the ones you can destroy most easily.
Edit: sub in leather skirt and no jacket for warmer weather.
Basically I have a Trojan horse approach to conferences and generally enjoy undercover work. If your mission is not to infiltrate, interrogate, and destroy, then you may want a different approach.
This would actually be a rocking look, especially with some killer boots. I say do it.
I don't really DO pants
I mean I own one pair of barely worn jeans but it's a running joke when I show up wearing pants of any kind? And my leather skirt is Not Work Or Daytime Appropriate.
Also more importantly I'm biking to this conference and although the high tomorrow is only 71, it's... You know. Not turtleneck and leather jacket weather.
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
Out of the two you posted? I'd go option 1. It's unclassifiable and badass. But both would work honestly. The main thing you want to avoid is being pigeonholed as corporate eye candy, so just stay out of grey pinstripe and you'll be good.
But pants are AWFUL
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
Literally me
Also, oh ho ho ho scarf weather.
I've already gotten a couple of mild sunburns this year.
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
don't
just don't
i'm gonna cry
My recommendation is to wear whatever makes you confident in yourself. I mean, I'm not necessarily advocating like, a neckline that goes down to your navel, but if you've got an outfit that probably suits the style of conference you're going to that also lets you feel like a certifiable badass, go with that. I stopped caring what my STEM coworkers thought about my outfits a long time ago, and it's generally better for the attitude I take when I'm networking to feel like I'm on my A-game in terms of makeup and clothes.
3DS Friend Code: 0216-0898-6512
Switch Friend Code: SW-7437-1538-7786
Love the dress and the sandals are super cute.
I felt alright about my outfit this morning. Unfortunately I'm apparently terminally allergic to something that is BLOWING UP today and my eyes and nose won't stop running, and I'm sneezing constantly.
This conference is going to be a misery.
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
May I recommend a practical solution?
it is still funny/annoying to me that i can consistently find flattering clothes in the maternity section several sizes down from the regular lines, 'cause according to retail availability, pregnancy grants instant ~~boobs! ... no bras to accommodate a small back, large cup, though (just referring to Target, here.) i still retain hippie sensibilities, so the whole earth mother look is in my wheelhouse, but it would be nice to encounter a buttondown that doesn't gap.
Meanwhile, someone should take away my credit card when I'm stressed out. I spent $50 on an icebreaker merino wool long sleeved shirt for my upcoming thailand trip, and then impulse bought $60 black yoga leggings. And now I might buy these for Thailand trip too.
http://m.athleta.gap.com/product.html?dn=ap537357052&dv=0&shopid=4&pdn=ac1025878&outlet=false#
And everybody needs yoga pants.
(I'm the worst influence.)
Also update: the conference is actually really great, and informative, and after an hour spent biking around trying to find a pharmacy at lunch I managed to buy some Claritin-D. Now I'm back home with my trusty best friend, Mr. Tissue Box, and his sidekick Neti Pot. Here's hoping whatever is causing my whooole Face Situation is gone by morning so I can actually enjoy myself and do happy hour with some DevOps folks tomorrow.
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
Hope your allergy situation resolves itself soon!
the yoga leggings might have been too much, but i'm gonna guess all these items will be useful to you.
go see if they've got it in-store, check for coupons, discounts...
i painted my nails last night, and a lady at the vet complimented the color. yessss validation
China Glaze Bend Over Backwards, glowy red that leans a touch to way orange, maybe vice versa
Because looking nice at check-in and security can get you upgrades, but fuck being uncomfortable and cold as hell on the flight itself.
When do you leave for Thailand?
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
Can looking nice at security get me an upgrade?
Check a bag and maybe the person at the counter could help you out. Or the gate attendant if you have reason to interact with them.
One of the myriad of reasons it always pays to be nice to people and look like you're not homeless.
I am 100% fine with gaming the system, here.
Or maybe it's just a lil placebo I tell myself.
But it totally helps when you're asking if there's a possibility for an upgrade to a better seat. I stand by that statement.
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
July 2! I'll be there through July 19. Maybe I'll go earlier if I ragequit my job in June!
I mean, I was dressed as the Christian devil and I was rewarded with an old wooden rocking chair at my gate.
So, maybe?
Graham you probably haven't noticed because you always look nice, so that's just the baseline level of treatment you get from people.
http://bigbudpress.com/collections/all/products/red-rose-bomber
http://bigbudpress.com/collections/all/products/copy-of-rainbow-t-shirt-1
i had some kinda upper respiratory thing. i thought i was coping, but apparently, i looked like shit -- she was very sympathetic to my pitiful state, and must have put a note in there for people to keep an eye out for me. or i looked enough like hell to instill empathy in all who witnessed me that day, 'cause the next gate crew was also nice. that trip was real shit for travel; multiple delays, every leg, both ways. i did take the wheelchair at one point.
i also wore a facemask so i didn't get dried out, but with a scarf on top of that to avoid wigging people out. sick fashion.
though, other than feeling like trash, i was wearing nice jeans and my moccs. so my outfit was probably decent travel-chic.
Tito, i think you could rock those! the white black
Is this east coast or west coast?
If it's more west coast, really wear whatever you want. You will see a wide variety of attire in west coast STEM workplaces.
For more east coast, I guess you should err on the side of more professional and formal. (For the rest of the country I am not sure, sorry rest of the country!)
Honestly though for a conference, I would say it depends more on what your goals are for the conference. Is mostly just to learn? Or to check out potential vendors/technologies? In that case I really would not worry and just wear what you are comfortable in.
If it is to mainly to get a new job or to find potential clients, then treat it like going to an interview and research the companies you are interested in. Make an educated guess on the appropriate level of professional attire those companies would appreciate and wear on that level.
I am sure that whatever your goals and whatever you wear, you will impress people on the professional level and with your fashion sense.
"Sandra has a good solid anti-murderer vibe. My skin felt very secure and sufficiently attached to my body when I met her. Also my organs." HAIL SATAN
cos you'll need it so you can spend it all on thai food
also, bring some back for the rest of us