The concept of ‘power dressing’ feels obsolete in this day and age. Rigid dress codes have largely been relaxed since the stiffly shoulder-padded eighties. For every suited and booted corporate titan, there’s a Mark Zuckerberg in a hoodie, grey T-shirt and jeans – with the power to buy them outright.

Indeed, some argue that 21st-century power dressing is wearing what you want: you’re so rich and important that nobody’s going to call you on it. But nobody’s going to respect you for it either. If you actively want to wear bad clothes, what does that say about you?

True power dressing is about demonstrating mastery, not flaunting your wealth or peacocking. It’s showing that you know how to play by the rules, and bend them to your will. It’s knowledge of what’s appropriate: not dressing like a teenager when you’re the boss, or ‘for the job you want’ when you’re still on coffee duty. Because knowledge, after all, is power.

With that very much in mind, here FashionBeans codifies five precepts of contemporary power dressing – ones that are relevant for Wall Street and Silicon Valley alike. Time to update your status.

Double Impact

That classic power dressing staple: the pinstripe suit — for years as outdated as Gordon Gekko’s rig at the denouement of Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps — is once again on point.

However, even in conservative, tailoring-heavy environments, there’s something a tad abrasive about overly crisp lines. You’re telegraphing your ambition too loudly, like a candidate on an episode of The Apprentice shouting into the end of a phone. And in casual workplaces, it’s totally the wrong call.

You could trade for a chalkstripe – a wider, fuzzier line – which softens pinstripe’s sharp elbows. Or, for a power dressing commodity that’s rising in value, invest in a plain double-breasted jacket, whether a blazer or part of a suit.