dammIT

A rantbox by Michiel Scholten

Get dressed to work


Draft has been collecting dust for a while, but I'd like to present you this from the COVID archives.

This is a bit of an odd one. I normally do not write or even talk much about clothing, but something jumped to me: the sheer amount of sweatpants I notice all around. Those are comfy, I know. Good stuff to wear in your free time, decompressing after a day of work or school.

That's not the time I notice them though. I quite often see (or used to see) them during the day. During work. During bringing the kids to school and fetching them. During walks in the park starting the day right before getting down to work from home.

If you are always wearing those clothes, how do you even differentiate between being in bed and being awake, let alone trying to be doing something productive?

Especially when you are working: dress like you are going outside and/or to the office. It will make you feel better, and it will help you switch between 'I need to get some stuff done' and 'I can relax now'. Especially in times when boundaries between private life and working life are blurring, this is a small way of keeping you sane.

By all means, wear something comfy, warm, wide, possibly stretchy, but stay away from the sweatpants. To quote Karl Lagerfeld:

"Sweatpants are a sign of defeat. You lost control of your life so you bought some sweatpants."

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