"Some VCs won't believe that a 25-year old white woman (who -- gasp! -- wears skirts and makeup) is capable of being a technically solid engineer. We soon figured out that pitches to potential investors went better if I was dressed like a slob in sweatpants."
Sad but I can see this happening..
"No matter how dreamy the startup, it is not worth sacrificing your health."
I just wish more bosses of start ups felt this way about their employees! But I suppose that's because they have much more to gain and not much to lose from making their employees work more than they should.
"Some VCs won't believe that a 25-year old white woman (who -- gasp! -- wears skirts and makeup) is capable of being a technically solid engineer. We soon figured out that pitches to potential investors went better if I was dressed like a slob in sweatpants."
I've seen that one happen, and I had a lesser version of it happen to me because I dress east coast prep. I started wearing sloppier clothes for some outside meetings and got treated better. Even inside the company, it took new hires a while before they realized that I have skills.
SV culture on appearance is every bit as stupid as the culture of the dinosaurs, it's just flip-flopped. Instead of 'you must dress professionally', it's 'you must wear unflattering hoodies, t-shirts, and jeans.'
I am from a subset of the world that believes one is not to be taken seriously in the business world (including the engineering professions and software) unless one is dressed full business professional, so that was definitely culture shock.
It does feel strange to be talked down to when dressed professionally, yet talked to like you understand what's going on when you show up in Vans and a hoodie, indeed.
Logically speaking, if everyone dresses down, that includes women as well. Kickass male "code warriors" aren't stereotypically known for their sharp grooming habits either.
Sad but I can see this happening..
"No matter how dreamy the startup, it is not worth sacrificing your health."
I just wish more bosses of start ups felt this way about their employees! But I suppose that's because they have much more to gain and not much to lose from making their employees work more than they should.