Opinion Graphic
In the midst of a pandemic, the last thing most of us are thinking about is pulling on a pair of jeans in the morning rather than staying in the same comfy sweatpants we’ve been sitting in for three days. Comfort was prioritized since the beginning of stay-at-home orders and social distancing. For the occasional Zoom meeting, we’d throw on a nice blouse or a button-down, neglecting any semblance of “business casual” below the waist. After the stay-at-home order ended, there was little motivation to dress up. Closed-toe shoes became a thing of the past, and it didn’t matter if you were still in your pajamas at two in the afternoon.
To these people I say: Please put on a pair of pants. However comfortable it is to wear nothing but boxer shorts and a button-down to a virtual meeting, please spare us all the embarrassment of seeing you stand up to grab something off the printer, subjecting us to the horror of “Merry Christmas” underwear in August. Dress for success! Stick to a routine! These overused tidbits of advice do, in fact, make a point. Putting on an outfit you’d normally wear to work may be tedious in the moment, but you’ll thank yourself when it’s 5 p.m. and you can make the noticeable shift from work to downtime without feeling like you’re drifting in the mush of the space-time continuum.
With chic and stylish outfits come structure, and with structure comes a purpose to your day. Don’t switch from the pair of too-small pajama pants to your threadbare NC State sweatpants with the hole in the waist and call it self-care. Give yourself a work-at-home dress code, with a minimum threshold of, say, a pair of jeans and your favorite (clean!) T-shirt. If we stayed in our pajamas or something similarly comfortable, our brains would be in constant “relax” mode, while changing into informal everyday attire gives us a distinction between relaxation and motivation. It tells us that it’s time to get some work done.
You don’t have to dress like Ms. Frizzle every day. Just throw some color into your routine, or put together some pieces that you wouldn’t normally wear together. Experiment with hair scarves or a different pair of shoes. The minute you should start to get uncomfortable, you can change right back into some comfier clothes. After all, you’re 10 feet away from your closet. I won’t blame you; the attempt is what’s key.
If you really want to be bold, throw on those 4-inch platform boots. If you want to get crafty, cut up your old T-shirts, distress and bleach your jeans or embroider your shorts. Experiment with your fashion choices, especially if it puts you out of your comfort zone. Take inspiration from others — out-fashion Billie Eilish and throw on your most outrageously oversized clothes, or channel Ariana Grande by pairing an oversized sweater with high-heeled boots. Fashion and stylistic choices that you make on a day-to-day basis can be incredibly liberating, especially in a time where we’ve lost the ability to express ourselves at concerts, parties or other social gatherings. Despite the loss of such events, outfit experimentation at home can unshackle you from the mundanity of sitting at a desk for hours on end.
For those of you who simply can’t be convinced out of whatever you’ve been sitting in since early March, I understand. Dressing nicely is — and rightfully should be — at the bottom of many priority lists in the midst of a pandemic, a crooked administration and a new school year. However, for my fellow students and workers who have simply tried everything else to boost their at-home productivity and have reached their creative potential, to them I say: Say yes to the dress. Or jeans. Normality has been lost during the course of the pandemic, but you still have control over your style — and by having control over your style, you have the capability to feel more productive, confident and energetic.