My first suit ever was bought for me by my older and wiser brother the summer after I graduated college. I opened the box excited for what is usually my best gift and there it was. A horrible looking pinstriped suit. My reaction could not be concealed. I think I laughed, said thanks and tossed the box aside. That suit sat in my closet, tags on, pants too long, for nearly two years before it saw the light of day. It became my "interview suit" and landed me my first "real job" in PR. I'd like to think my sparkling personality and my resume landed me the job, but I guess the professional looking suit helped...
Since then, my suit collection has grown significantly and includes some slightly trendier suits, some suit separates (what me and my favorite coworker like to call "fake suits") and some classic pin stripe numbers for when I meet with those "important people."
Lately though, I've been noticing less and less women wearing suits, especially in my line of work and on the streets of Manhattan. Even at meetings or events, I tend to see the PR gals of the city sporting trendy ensembles that look professional and put together but not in that "I'm a banker" sort of way. All the women in my office wear suits or at least blazers whenever they meet with clients or go to any kind of event and for the most part so do I, although I usually find myself trying to spice it up with funky jewelry, bright colored shoes, etc.
I've posed this question to friends before and have gotten mixed responses. I think men in the city tend to wear suits to work everyday because they are easy and professional looking. Especially those Wall Street types, they are never spotted without the classic suit and tie. In my opinion though, women in certain fields may need to wear a suit to be taken seriously and fit in with the men, like for instance, bankers, lawyers or accountants. I think that for the most part though, people that work in creative professions can get away with dressing nice, but don't necessarily have to go pinstripes? My boss once told me that wearing a suit makes me look older and will make people take me more seriously, especially men. I do totally agree with this point so I guess there are pros and cons. I'd love to know what others out there working in a creative field in a city or suburban area have to say on this matter!
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Twitter this!
I originally wrote this article for my company blog...
Since I started using Twitter almost a year ago, I have seen lots of new and creative ways to use it. I have seen companies branding themselves, media seeking sources, strangers with similar interests planning “tweet-ups” and even seen breaking news like earthquakes and terrorist attacks being reported live via this ingenious networking tool. But one thing that was a first to me, was reading “tweets” (what Twitter calls the short messages people post) about a couple getting engaged on Twitter!
After further investigation and immediately adding both parties to my followers, I found out that @Grobertson (Grant Roberston of Download Squad) did indeed ask @film_girl (Christina Warren) to marry him via a twitter post. She was attending the MacWorld convention and he just couldn’t wait to ask her. The tweet read this: “@film_girl i just can't wait one minute longer to ask you this. Will you marry me? i want to share the rest of our lives together.”
She said yes (obviously) and the rest is history. Although this allegedly wasn’t the first proposal on Twitter, it was the most publicized one by far. The story was “retweeted” (or reposted by different users) and was also written up by dozens of bloggers, tagged on the social bookmarking site Digg and even written up here by the Examiners marriage columnist.
The reactions by the blogging community was mixed. Some thought it was romantic, some cheesy, some just plain geeky. Have we become so dependent on internet communication that the notion of getting down on one knee will soon be a thing of the past, or was this just a creative way for two techies to get engaged in a non-traditional way? Personally, I think it’s kind of cute and after reading up on them both it seems like it suits who they are. What do YOU think?
Since I started using Twitter almost a year ago, I have seen lots of new and creative ways to use it. I have seen companies branding themselves, media seeking sources, strangers with similar interests planning “tweet-ups” and even seen breaking news like earthquakes and terrorist attacks being reported live via this ingenious networking tool. But one thing that was a first to me, was reading “tweets” (what Twitter calls the short messages people post) about a couple getting engaged on Twitter!
After further investigation and immediately adding both parties to my followers, I found out that @Grobertson (Grant Roberston of Download Squad) did indeed ask @film_girl (Christina Warren) to marry him via a twitter post. She was attending the MacWorld convention and he just couldn’t wait to ask her. The tweet read this: “@film_girl i just can't wait one minute longer to ask you this. Will you marry me? i want to share the rest of our lives together.”
She said yes (obviously) and the rest is history. Although this allegedly wasn’t the first proposal on Twitter, it was the most publicized one by far. The story was “retweeted” (or reposted by different users) and was also written up by dozens of bloggers, tagged on the social bookmarking site Digg and even written up here by the Examiners marriage columnist.
The reactions by the blogging community was mixed. Some thought it was romantic, some cheesy, some just plain geeky. Have we become so dependent on internet communication that the notion of getting down on one knee will soon be a thing of the past, or was this just a creative way for two techies to get engaged in a non-traditional way? Personally, I think it’s kind of cute and after reading up on them both it seems like it suits who they are. What do YOU think?
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
The big 5-0!
No I'm not 50, but this is my 50th post according to my blog dashboard. It was almost exactly a year ago that I wrote my first blog post ever. So if you break it down, I have averaged about a post per week. Not bad, but this year I hope to write a lot more than that, and I also hope to contribute a lot more insightful, useful tidbits and share a lot more of the life and times of Allie Zog :)
In the past year I think I have learned a lot about the world of blogging and social networking. By know means would I dare to call myself an "expert," "guru," "maven" or any other cliche, I have read the many Twitter posts poking fun at self-proclaimed experts and I know better, but I definitely would say that my knowledge has advanced from beginner to at least intermediate, if not advanced...
Shortly after getting into the blogging craze, my boss and I attended The Ragan Communications Social Media Conference in Vegas and I was officially transformed from semi-geek to full on internet addict. The conference is coming up again this year and I would LOVE to go and further sharpen my skills but as you all know "in these economic times" budgets are a little tighter and educational trips to Vegas are a little harder to swing. I am accepting donations if anyone wants to sponsor me!
Are there other comparable conferences out there? Any offering discounts this year? Let me know!
In the past year I think I have learned a lot about the world of blogging and social networking. By know means would I dare to call myself an "expert," "guru," "maven" or any other cliche, I have read the many Twitter posts poking fun at self-proclaimed experts and I know better, but I definitely would say that my knowledge has advanced from beginner to at least intermediate, if not advanced...
Shortly after getting into the blogging craze, my boss and I attended The Ragan Communications Social Media Conference in Vegas and I was officially transformed from semi-geek to full on internet addict. The conference is coming up again this year and I would LOVE to go and further sharpen my skills but as you all know "in these economic times" budgets are a little tighter and educational trips to Vegas are a little harder to swing. I am accepting donations if anyone wants to sponsor me!
Are there other comparable conferences out there? Any offering discounts this year? Let me know!
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Welcome back cheesy teen dramas, I missed you!
Is it weird that I still watch/slightly obsess over unrealistic teenage soap operas? This week has started off especially fantastical for me due to Monday night's doubleheader of dramatic overload (Gossip Girl and One Tree Hill). I would literally love to BE Blair Waldorf...I am not alone here am I? Her clothes, her hair, her attitude...team Blair all the way for me! And don't even get me started on Chuck...
Tonight I cozied up to the new season of 90210 and although it's obviously not as good as the Brenda/Kelly/Dylan love triangle of my youth, I find myself tuning in and being moderately entertained episode after episode.
Maybe I just need a little mindless escape and these shows offer it. Maybe I am subconsciously reliving my teen years through these silly little shows, or maybe I just really enjoy a good tale about a nanny-stalker, daddy-killer, illegitimate child, millionaire half-sibling romance every now and again. And for those of you not familiar, yes these are all real plot lines! Intrigued? Tune in to the good ole' CW-11 Monday's and Tuesday's and check it out...and no I don't work for them!
In other news, I have been keeping up with two of my "goals" so far. Writing more (on this thing and at work) and I have been less stressed the last 2 days (baby steps). As for the running and money saving, I have planned to do them, but haven't actually implemented the plan yet. I will though, just wait. I think I am going to continually add to my goals list throughout the year to keep on track. Tonight I would like to add a broad yet happy, dreamy goal for the year. I would like to get a passport and get it stamped at least once this year. And preferably not in Canada (no offense Canada, just thinking a little more exotic). OK I'll sign off with that one. More to come-stay tuned!
Tonight I cozied up to the new season of 90210 and although it's obviously not as good as the Brenda/Kelly/Dylan love triangle of my youth, I find myself tuning in and being moderately entertained episode after episode.
Maybe I just need a little mindless escape and these shows offer it. Maybe I am subconsciously reliving my teen years through these silly little shows, or maybe I just really enjoy a good tale about a nanny-stalker, daddy-killer, illegitimate child, millionaire half-sibling romance every now and again. And for those of you not familiar, yes these are all real plot lines! Intrigued? Tune in to the good ole' CW-11 Monday's and Tuesday's and check it out...and no I don't work for them!
In other news, I have been keeping up with two of my "goals" so far. Writing more (on this thing and at work) and I have been less stressed the last 2 days (baby steps). As for the running and money saving, I have planned to do them, but haven't actually implemented the plan yet. I will though, just wait. I think I am going to continually add to my goals list throughout the year to keep on track. Tonight I would like to add a broad yet happy, dreamy goal for the year. I would like to get a passport and get it stamped at least once this year. And preferably not in Canada (no offense Canada, just thinking a little more exotic). OK I'll sign off with that one. More to come-stay tuned!
Sunday, January 4, 2009
2009!
Along with the rest of the bloggers of the world, I would like to publicly list some of my goals for the upcoming year. I would call them New Year's resolutions but those tend to get forgotten by about January 12th or so (at least for me) so I will call them goals to make them seem more concrete. In no particular order here's my fired up goals for 2009:
- Write more. Simple, but this is a one I really hope I keep. This weekend I was reading through some old articles I had written while freelancing for a newspaper in Newport, RI and I became really nostalgic. I especially remembered the joy that writing a really awesome article brought me, and the pride and rush of exhilaration I got when people told me they had read/loved my work. Whether it's professionally, personally, on my blog or just in my journal, I vow to write more this year and keep the "writer's high" going.
- Run more. "Runner's high" is another favorite high of mine. I used to run track in high school and even considered running in college. I think the last time I ran was to catch a train, hail a cab or catch up with a fast-walking companion on the city streets. That's embarrassing to admit, so yeah, I'd like to run more, you know, for exercise. I'm thinking that downloading some new "workout tunes" on my i-pod, purchasing one of those armband thingys and maybe a new pair of spandex will spark my motivation. Any other tips?
- Worry less. This one will be tricky for me. I mostly have always thought of myself as carefree but in recent years I have actually discovered that I am an overly emotional person that was actually pretending to be carefree while really stressing about everything and constantly making mental lists, plans and entire life paths in my mind (and sometimes in a little yellow notebook). This year I would like to focus more on fixing the things I can fix, changing the things I am unhappy with and working confidently towards all my personal and professional goals. While doing that, I would like to stress less, let the little things slide, maintain a positive outlook and know that everything will fall into place one way or another. I would like to really live by the "everything happens for a reason" mantra that I once really believed in, and know that my future will indeed lead me to the crazy/strange/beautiful/peaceful life I have already dreamed up for myself. Make sense?
- Find inner harmony. Oh my god did I just say that? But really, going along with the worrying less thing, I need to find a way to maintain a healthy and stress free existence, seeing as I sometimes literally worry myself sick. I would like to get more into yoga, meditation, whatever. Perhaps take a weekly class, read some books, and take some time each morning to stretch, reflect and relax. I would like to take less medicine, and instead, try herbs, vitamins, diet change etc. to feel good (both mentally and physically). I would like to continue reading everything I can, newspapers, magazines, books, websites, blogs, EVERYTHING. I love reading, it makes me feel smart and happy. Any other ways to find balance? Let me know!
- OK last one, and I debated even writing this one down, but it has to be said. I would like to at least be on the track to financial freedom and comfort in 2009. Even though I was a late bloomer so to speak in the "real job" department, I think at my age, I should have a little nest egg, rainy day fund, etc. I would like to pay off my debts, have a respectable savings account, and maybe even a little left for luxuries like travel, wining and dining and Christian Laboutin shoes (OK maybe these red healed wonders will have to wait until 2010...) Also, going along with this, I would like to maybe live on my own for a while, which would require a certain amount of income. I have never lived completely alone before and I think it's something I should maybe experience?
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