Deciding whether high heels are appropriate for a job interview is actually quite a straightforward question (in contrast, working out whether your heels are office-appropriate can actually be more complicated).
Although much could be said about interview shoes, the rules for high heels and interviews can really be summed up as follows:
- There is nothing wrong with wearing heels to interviews.
- Be sensible.
- Be conservative.
There is nothing wrong with wearing heels to interviews
High heels are a great choice for a job interview for an office position. They will make you look smart and add confidence to your manner.
Confidence can be the difference between getting a job and missing out, so wearing shoes that give you a boost can be a good thing.
A job interview is also an opportunity to show that you can put your clothes and shoes on and turn up to work like an adult. That means doing things like dressing appropriately, wearing appropriate makeup (if you choose to wear makeup), turning up on time, exchanging pleasantries and so on.
These are all good reasons why wearing heels to a job interview is a great idea.
Be sensible
Nevertheless, you need to be sensible if you choose to wear heels to an interview. This really boils down to a few simple things:
- don’t wear new heels that you are unfamilar with: the interview is an unfamilar surrounding, so you need to help yourself by sticking with a tried and true wardrobe of familar favorites. Wearing new heels is asked to trip or stumble, metaphorically or actually.
- don’t wear heels that are too high: this is the same principle in operation. Don’t turn up in 5 inch pumps and then find you have to wobble around the floor when given an inpromptu tour of your potential new-office-to-be. 4 inches should be the maximum.
- if you don’t usually wear heels, don’t start at the interview: if you’re not used to heels you will be subconscious about this throughout the interview. Far better to turn up relaxed and in a stunning pair of corporate-appropriate flats.
Be conservative
A few days ago, I was watching an episode of Judge Judy. The plaintiff was wearing enormous earings which glinted under the television lights and kept getting caught in her hair.
A job interview is a little like being in court in that you are going to be judged! And, while you want your interviewer to judge you as professionally attired, that’s probably where your shoes should end their work.
The interview is the time to let your skills and personality shine. These are the things that will get you a job, not your dress sense. It is important not to distract from these by wearing heels that take all the attention.
Once you get the job, your co-workers will love you for your zany shoe collection. But save it for once the deal is sealed.
Generally this means that you would think carefully before wearing high heel sandals, peeptoes, strappy sandals, knee high boots and so on to interviews. This doesn’t mean that they’re wrong – just that the more exciting that your shoes are, the more distracting too!
In short, the rule is to go conservative here. I don’t want to be too judgmental about what should be in or out. However, the answer is clear: go for conservative, even boring shoes for a job interview.
Feedback
I hope this page was helpful and you get the job that you are looking for and can spend your first pay check on some fabulous heels. If you’d like to give me some feedback I’d love to hear from you.
Image credit
Image credit for the top image: ““Never trust anyone who has not brought a book with them” (CC BY-SA 2.0) by cajsa.lilliehook