Steve Jobs' Dress Code, decoded
In most of my corporate training sessions, I am asked,” Why does Steve jobs wear what he does and wears the same outfit everyday?”
Allow me to share the story here as well:
Steve Jobs and many other leaders in the world make multiple decisions each day and don;t wish to make another decision about what to wear and so wear the same outfit making it their personal style statement.
The interesting story behind Steve Jobs’ uniform comes from when he visited the Sony Headquarters in Japan, he saw the employees wearing a uniform. On inquiring with the CEO Akio Monita, he was informed that it was implemented to increase bonding among the employees.
Inspired by this thought, he shared the idea of having uniforms for the Apple employees with the management at Apple. Who further went on to shun the idea saying it wouldn't work in a country like America, with different cultural backgrounds than Japan.
Hence, suits and ties were out of the question.s inception had always been casuals, Jobs had to be dressed closer to casuals but slightly more authoritative, to maintain the rapport, approachability, and the status of being the leader, with his employees. 501 denim.
So what is the reason behind this specific uniform?
Considering the dress code at Apple from its inception had always been casuals, Jobs had to be dressed closer to casuals but slightly more authoritative, to maintain the rapport, approachability and the status of being the leader, with his employees.
Hence, suits and ties were out of question.
Furthermore,
The color black communicates power
The turtle neck and full sleeves communicate authority, compared to the crew neck t-shirts with short sleeves
The classic fit along with heavier weight denim communicates more strength compared to the light weight shorts and hosiery fabrics
Tucked in t-shirt with a classic leather belt adds to the crispness
The glasses add to the formality
Let me know in the comments if you’d like me to decode any other uniforms of famous leaders.