Day 21: The real world

Afternoon all,

Today I’m wearing: The Dress; black and white weave blazer from H&M; vintage Primarni black satin bubble skirt (so many fashion buzzwords there!); brogues and tights and a t-shirt under the dress because it is still February and I’m not daft.

Well hello there, reader.

Today I have been thinking about The Future, a scary concept indeed. I am half an arts student (not sure which half) but that will make me half an arts graduate in a few short months. Like many of my peers, I’ve been burying my head in the sand; a half smile and a casual shrug will usually take care of any queries as to my plans. (If in doubt, be mysterious.)

However, this is not a good plan of action, and won’t get me employed. When I saw my university’s careers service were putting on a ‘wee conference’ specifically for arts students, I thought it probably would be a good idea to go.

And you know what? The Future isn’t really that scary. The message that came through was to take time and understand what it was that makes me tick, and play to my strengths. The ladies speaking all came to their jobs circuitously and took opportunities when they arose. They also stressed the importance of networking and making things happen; knocking on doors and asking for advice is not a bad thing to do.

So with regards to today’s outfit, I wanted to look smart. It wasn’t a particularly smart event, but I like to make an effort now and then, and you never know who you’ll meet. Who was it that said ‘dress for success’? I really hope it wasn’t Margaret Thatcher; my mum’ll kill me. Oh, a cursory Google suggests it was a man so we’re fine.

The coat/blazer is quite thick wool, and I was glad of it; the venue was freezing. Nearly as cold as my flat, and that’s saying something. I was glad of the extra t-shirt I was wearing, and the thick tights. It’s all well and good to dress for success, but dress to avoid hypothermia, too.