While the common focus is, of course, what to wear for an interview, there’s also a case to be made for how you wear it being just as important. You can’t control what people choose to fixate on, but you can make sure your outfit isn’t the thing pulling focus from your ideas.
That tension has resurfaced lately thanks to the rise of “method dressing” on the red carpet. Celebrities like Jacob Elordi now dress for the role, the storyline, the character arc of an entire press tour. It’s an exaggerated example, but a useful one. Clothes are often read as context before they’re read as style.
And that applies just as much in places without photographers. The interview room. The lobby waiting area. The Zoom screen, where your face is framed like a headshot and your outfit does more talking than you might realise.
Michelle Obama recently spoke on a podcast about how her outfits often received more attention than her ideas, especially in interviews. It’s a sharp reminder of something many people already know instinctively: what you wear and how you turn up can shape how your ideas are received, sometimes before you’ve even spoken.
So consider this your permission slip to method dress for an interview. Better still, most of the smartest interview styling choices aren’t about buying something new but editing what you already own, and wearing it like you mean it.
Below, five of the most wearable method dressing “roles” for what to wear for an interview.
A blazer combo
If you’re confused, start here. This combination works across almost every industry because it looks polished without trying too hard.
Wear it with a fitted tee or shirt, tailored bottoms and closed-toe mules. It works because it looks serious without feeling stiff. Add a pair of dainty silver earrings, just enough to complete the look without taking focus away from it.
