"Freelancer Formal" (Patreon)

A set of quick, related stories.

When I heard that one major concern professionals in the game industry had at conventions was that attendees sometimes STANK, I made sure to always shower well, use plenty of deodorant, AND to time my approach to industry pros at the convention to occur shortly after I had recently showered. Sometimes that meant showing more than once or twice a day. But I wanted to leave good impressions, and while that did NOT mean wearing a suit at a game con, it DID mean not being an olfactory offender... not always easy for a 440 lb. man in summer events.

But, when I went to interview for a staff job at Wizards of the Coast in 1999 (they flew me from OK to Seattle), I did wear a suit. Dress shirt, tie, suit pants and jacket, black shoes, the whole 9 yards. One of the things everyone made VERY clear to me during those interviews was that Wizards had a casual atmosphere, and there wasn’t really a dress code at work. I felt overdressed.

(Yep, this suit.)

OTOH, I a: got the job and b: later heard that another candidate showed up in a fast food uniform. No one ever told me that made a difference… but no one said it didn’t. And one Wizards person told me that the fact I showed up in a suit proved I was taking the job seriously. I have never regretted wearing a suit to that.

When I went to a dinner at GenCon that Sword & Sorcery was having to see who they wanted to work on the EverQuest Tabletop RPG, I wore a polo and jeans. I didn’t feel either overdressed or underdressed, and I got a lot of work from that meeting. I have never regretted wearing a polo to that.

My first day at Paizo, I made sure my clothes were clean, unwrinkled, and free of holes or patches. Yes, I already had that job... but it was my first time to actually MEET a lot of those people. I was setting the first plank in the platform of a lot of working relationships. I have never regretted looking my casual best that day.

(I also made sure I was never an olfactory offender when representing a company at a convention, and always wore whatever the dress code asked for without complaint. Here I am the last hour of the last day of a PaizoCon, with Adam Daigle.)

My first time attending a Green Ronin Employee Summit in person... I made sure my clothes were comfortable. That was my only concern. We were going to spend a LOT of hours sitting and talking... and I'd met all those folks and my feeling from their vibe was that they pretty clearly did not care how formal I looked, or not. Again, no regrets.

(Green Ronin, 2014. I DID consider buying a punk band shirt for this, but decided that would make me a poser.)

I always recommend looking professional and tidy, and work to give the impression you are taking every opportunity professionally and seriously. If you later get told (or figure out) you can dress down, feel free.

But first impressions really can count.