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What you're overlooking is that attention is a limited resource. Someone who pays attention to how they dress has thereby paid less attention than they might h
by pg 17y ago
What you're overlooking is that attention is a limited resource. Someone who pays attention to how they dress has thereby paid less attention than they might have to something substantive.
So not only don't we care how people dress at YC interviews, dressing up is actually a (minor) red flag. We'd rather you spent that effort on something else.
- prospero 17y agoI'm not much for dressing up, but I feel like this is asking why someone was meditating when they could have spent that time thinking about stuff. Some people use clothing as a means of mental preparation for entering a non-casual situation. I agree there's some empty ceremony to wearing a business suit, but I don't think that's all there is to it.
- radu_floricica 17y agoIn certain domains this applies (and indeed, given the blog's background it's on the mark). But in large segments of the job market I still think it's important to dress reasonably well. Even if attention is a limited resource, the interview usually is a place where first impressions matter, so I'd say budgeting some attention towards looks is not misguided at all.
- pg 17y agoYou're right that dressing well matters in large segments of the job market. But I'd argue that this is a pretty good heuristic for deciding which segments of the job market to avoid.
- radu_floricica 17y agoThat is true. However there still remain the entry-level interviews. When most of what you sell is potential every detail under your control matters.
- byrneseyeview 17y agoAttention is a limited resource, but some people have more of it than others. Paying attention to how you dress is a signal that you're generally attentive, just as driving a nice car is a way to show that you have lots of money--even though you spent a bunch of it on a car.