Csdrhrt

I think it also depends on the type of business your organisation does, and the culture among the employees.

For example, lets say you work with a lot of nerdy software developers who love wearing jeans, Star Wars hoodies, and geeky slogan t-shirts. If you show up looking all corporate in your smart trousers, shirt and tie, among these colleagues you might give off too much of a 'businessman' vibe. Where I work, this means people will assume you have a business mind and are not a 'techie', that you're not down to earth and won't understand technical terminology.

On the other hand you might appear more senior and they might respect you more... again, depending on your company culture.

If you're a woman, wearing a smart outfit when everyone else dresses casual can either give people the impression that you're a receptionist, executive assistant, or possibly a senior leader, also depending on your age.

It's unfortunate but true that the way you dress can have a big impact on the way people perceive you.

If there are no dress code policies in place, you can wear what's comfortable for you. But do ensure that you do not offend anyone with clothes that carry graffiti/phrases that are discriminatory in nature.

Just imagine, if some clients come on a surprise visit or potential customers drop by your cubicle on their way to the conference room! You don't want to be wearing t-shirts with offensive memes or derogatory racial slurs.

Your outfit tells a lot about you, so it is better to stick to clothing that is deemed appropriate by your organization and the people who you work with.

Edit: Since the definition of business formals or business casuals seems to vary from person-person, place-place, company-company, i have updated my answer

If you're confident that your company culture truly doesn't have a dress code, then I suggest the following:

Wear whatever you wear when you're not working.

I'm not really a T-shirt and old jeans guy. On the weekends I actually do wear a comfortable polo and no-wrinkle slacks, so I wear stuff like that to work. I think any awkwardness with your T-shirt/jeans colleagues comes if they detect you're deliberately "dressing up" for work; they otherwise won't mind if you have different tastes/styles.

Dress casual, comfortable, but smart and neutral.

So feel free to wear jeans, but no faded old jeans with holes in them.

Wear a t-shirt, but a black or blue one without big prints (and certainly no t-shirts with advertising for competing companies, yes, I've seen it).

Rather than those nice neon green sneakers you love, wear the dark blue loafers that are just as comfortable.


And depending on your job you may want to hang a semi-casual business jacket and tie on the wall just in case, and have a pair of more formal shoes in a bag under your desk.

If the place explicitly states "no dress code" then, in my opinion, you are working at a company that hasn't made clothing a priority and likely values things like employee productivity more than silly HR regulations and trusts that you, as a working adult, know how to dress yourself as you see fit.

Given how casual your place appears to be, I'd say: wear whatever you feel comfortable in without going to ridiculous levels (ie, PJ bottoms and a stained undershirt).

Aim to wear whatever makes you feel good, relaxed and confident. Dressing like a higher ranking worker can help you become one sooner.

There is a Czech saying which goes man is what he wears which I think sums it up nicely. You signal your attitude with what you wear, like it or not.

My so far very successful tactic (shared by some of my friends as well) for interviews as well as for the normal working day is to wear whatever makes me feel energized and confident. That, in turn, has had a very positive effect on my productivity and success. If you don't feel well in a tie dress, it's okay, wear a nice shirt and you can still look like Warren Buffett, Satya Nadella or whoever you happen to like.

Just like your coworkers, mine too wear very casually (jeans, hoodies and so on) whereas I wear more formally - crisply ironed and nicely fitting shirts, double cuffs, no jeans. Not only have I had no problems with that whatsoever, it actually has had many benefits - I've had very many opportunities to represent my company at many venues, have been given leadership roles very early and so on. None of this seem to come that quickly and easily to my coworkers, who do not want any of these and dress accordingly - which is totally okay. You just have to signal what you aim at, and you can do that subtly and easily with your dressing attitude.

Note: I don't have any scientifically proven data, it's jut what I've observed on me and a small number of my friends.

The whole point of dress code is to look like other workers.

It doesn't really change the situation on who and how set this code up. We are used to thinking about "dress code" as something declared by the boss and given in printed form to every new worker. But in situations where there is no code set by higher authority, the team itself works out something to fill the void (just as your coworkers described).

So your company indeed does have a dress code: jeans and t-shirts. And yes, you should follow it.

Don't dress too casually, dress smartly, make an effort with your appearance, and never mind what others are doing. Good grooming is never bad for you, it makes you look professional and keen. Shirt and trousers can never be wrong is my personal choice. This is just a basic piece of advice.