How to dress like a consultant

In the past I've mused about the dangers of overdressing for meetings.  The reverse is also true; the Epicurean Dealmaker usually blogs on the inner workings of Wall Street but this week he's taken aim at a risible WSJ article on women's 'business fashion'.  In the consultancy game, whether you're a man or a woman, this is advice is worth heeding: -

Clients of professional service organizations generally do not want the people who work for them to be flashy, extravagant, or prone to calling attention to themselves.  They want service.  They want reliability.  They want sobriety.  Calling excess attention to yourself in any way that is not directly related to identifying, analyzing, and solving the client's needs is both offputting and counterproductive.

An old truism of the theatre is that you shouldn't ever perform in front of anything more interesting than your act.  In front of the client it's just as important to be more interesting than your clothes.

In life, actually.