Have you noticed if people treat you differently depending on what you are wearing or driving?

[db]

....that's the question.

 

[Random Variable]

that's why I always go naked

 

[Kev]

nope. i always dress in what i'm comfortable in, which usually means under-dressing (jeans, sneakers, and a t-shirt at my corporate-casual job). nobody seems to care.

 

[TheBlondOne]

I don't know if it's that they treat me differently or I just have more or less self-confidence depending on what I'm wearing. If I'm dressed up or in an outfit I like, I'm naturally more outgoing and people respond to that. If I look like crap on any particular day, I'll pretty much want to be left alone and not have anyone come close enough to me to talk.

So...I'm not sure if it's that they treat me differently because of how I DRESS or because of the way I'm ACTING.

--Sarah

 

[StageLeft]

I dunno - I haven't driven a car worth less than $60k in years and I rarely wear the same item of clothing more than 3-4 times so I always look pretty sheik. Plus I generally have about $10-15k worth of jewellry on at any given time.

 

[Vegito]

Oh yeah, i dress like a bum cuz i dont wanna get jump but when i take my gf out to eat and dress like a bum and hand over the key to my porsche, they really treat you differently.. even though you have holes in ur jeans and wearing sandals..

 

[sciencetoy]

Yes. It's useful to know. I dress up for my kids' school meetings, job interviews, and not a heck of a lot else. Oh yeah, doctors' visits too. If you think doctors don't care how much you make, ha. Even if they're not in it for the money, they're in it for the prestige. I find it's a good idea to play the game.

 

[Kev]

<< I dunno - I haven't driven a car worth less than $60k in years and I rarely wear the same item of clothing more than 3-4 times so I always look pretty sheik. Plus I generally have about $10-15k worth of jewellry on at any given time. >>



LOL I hope you're joking. I have 5 shirts, 2 pairs of jeans and 1 pair of khakis that I wear during the 5-day work week.

 

[rootaxs]

Yep i noticed. I'm the one to usually dress down (e.g. jeans, shirt) and every single time i approach a CSR or some sort of Customer Service desk / Store clerk i always get asked for an ID. During the occassions that i do dress up i get the "Sir" treatment quite a lot even with the same people i met several days before.

The worst thing that happened to me would probably when i went to a Honda dealership along the Katy freeway in Houston to check out the S2000 early last year while i had my own car serviced. I was wearing my usual jeans and plain white t-shirt... made me look like i was 16 as a lot people would say. This salesman practically shouted at me to get out of the car since it's only shown to people who wants to buy it. (Coupled with that nasty look that makes you feel like a low-rate civilian)

Needless to say i felt disgusted. I immediately left and stayed outside of the service department until i got my car back. Called up the manager and complained about it.

Just to spite that guy i came back exactly 2 weeks later dressed up (leather shoes, tie and all) and did the same thing (e.g. sat on the S2000). He then came rushing out and said "Good Day Sir, Would you like to test drive the S2000?" with a smile.

I told him my story and he excused himself. Next thing i knew another salesman came out to accomodate me.

 

[ravanux]

when i go to work i wear a shirt and tie and part my hair and shave....people treat me pretty well, all professional and stuff.
but in my normal clothes i get treated like a punk

 

[telstar1]

<< I dunno - I haven't driven a car worth less than $60k in years and I rarely wear the same item of clothing more than 3-4 times so I always look pretty sheik. Plus I generally have about $10-15k worth of jewellry on at any given time.

-------------------------
I AM CANADIAN: DRINK UP >>




Yeah ... But you're still Canadian.

 

[Moonbeam]

The biggest differences I notice are when I wear a suit or a dress. In the latter I get a lot of OMGWTFITs.

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

i don't know, b/c i never leave my house. you are my only social interaction and you cant see me... can you?

 

[evolotion]

Um yeh just after i crashed my car ( the first time) i had to drive it home with no headlamps/bumper/grill etc, everyone gave me tons of room and stayed well out my road, home in 10mins @ rush our, usually takes half an hour

so if you want to get home quickly and have protected no-claims on your insurance you know what to do

 

[boolerboy]

happens to me all the time. if i have my hair very short and am in shorts and an old shirt, i'm "dude". if i'm in my khakis and sports jacket, i'm "sir".

the cops do it all the time. again, if i'm in shorts etc, they are not very polite; some are just rude. the day before yesterday, i get pulled over for doing 85 in a 65 zone while swerving across 3 lanes (don't ask!). i'm in my ml 430, heading to work with my wife. we are both sharply dressed etc. the cop walks over, asks me very politely what i was doing, nicely asks me to not do it again and lets me go with just a warning! the time i got pulled over before this one was a few years ago. i was in a beat up car that had greatful dead bumper stickers. i was pulled over for not signalling while changing lanes on a wide open, side road. the cop lectured me for a half hour. he let me go with a warning. his parting words were "you know, with all those bumper stickers, someone might think you are doing drugs".

 

[MomAndSkoorbaby]

Ah...rules of society....gotta love it!

 

[BooneRebel]

<<

<< I dunno - I haven't driven a car worth less than $60k in years and I rarely wear the same item of clothing more than 3-4 times so I always look pretty sheik. Plus I generally have about $10-15k worth of jewellry on at any given time.

-------------------------
I AM CANADIAN: DRINK UP >>




Yeah ... But you're still Canadian. >>



And if it's $60K Canadian, with the exchange rate he could be driving a '87 Hyundai.

 

[Dually]

<< Um yeh just after i crashed my car ( the first time) i had to drive it home with no headlamps/bumper/grill etc, everyone gave me tons of room and stayed well out my road, home in 10mins @ rush our, usually takes half an hour

so if you want to get home quickly and have protected no-claims on your insurance you know what to do >>



Since you numbered it you must be planning on more crashes.

 

[Blieb]

Hell yeah they do ... I'm in a college town ...

When I wear jeans and a t-shirt, people are nice ... but I didn't notice till I started gettin' decked out for work how much people call me sir n' sh!t ...

 

[Sir Fredrick]

Yup, society treats you differently based on how you're dressed, and I don't really agree with that...so that's why I dress the way I do.
Nothing too freakish (besides the occasional dress), but I wear snazzy and unusual shirts, at least in the summer time. In the winter, I have to give up the cause and just wear whatever is warm.
I can't say I was treated differently when I was driving my BMW vs. driving my current car (Chevy Prizm) though, but then I've never been pulled over in either of those cars, so I wouldn't know if the cops treat you differently.

 

[Ornery]

I leave my blue collar work uniform on when going to and from work. Some guys dress in the locker room there, but I can't be bothered. During Christmas season, I would just go shopping in those clothes. I know exactly what you mean about being treated differently. You have to chase down a salesman to get any help. People suck that way. I try never to be like that. Matter of fact, I'm more comfortable with people that dress down.

My dad sells organs and pianos as a lark. He says he seems to attract what the owner terms "losers". She tells him not to waste time with them. I guess when you run a business, money is king. Being nice to everybody doesn't pay the bills.

 

[Captain4]

I tried to return a pair of shoes to Foot Locker one time when I was in workout clothes and they acted like I had stolen the shoes. Went in the same store a few weeks later in my work clotes (business casual) and the salesmen were on me like stink on a monkey offering help and whatnot. Much more polite when I wasn't skanky.

 

[Sir Fredrick]

<< I leave my blue collar work uniform on when going to and from work. Some guys dress in the locker room there, but I can't be bothered. During Christmas season, I would just go shopping in those clothes. I know exactly what you mean about being treated differently. You have to chase down a salesman to get any help. People suck that way. I try never to be like that. Matter of fact, I'm more comfortable with people that dress down. >>



My dad gets that too. He owns a small electric motor repair shop and wears a blue collar uniform...being a small business owner he never has time for anything, so he doesn't change out of his uniform. It's rediculous to see him go into a computer store to pick something up, he'll have a wad of $1000 in cash in his pocket, and the sales people will completely ignore him.

Same thing happened to me when I was younger, seems like the only way to get sales people to help you out if you don't look like you have money is to whip it out and start counting it.

 

[Russ]

Absolutely true.

When I owned my Vette, I used to go to the same car wash every Saturday just like clockwork. I'd fill her up, take it through and then spend about 30 minutes detailing. At the same time, I also owned a junky old Escort as my daily driver.

One Saturday, they were slow, so while I was doing the Vette, I spent nearly the entire time chatting with the attendant. Finished the Vette, went home came back ten minutes later to wash the Escort. Same guy, same me, same clothes. He didn't recognize me at all.

Also used to deliberately drive on to car lots in the Escort, park get out, and look around. Usually ignored. Pull in to the same lot in the Vette, the salesman were on me like stink.

Yep, people certainly do treat you differently.

Russ, NCNE

 

[Cessna172]

I think clothes are more of a factor of how people treat you than what you drive. I remember walking into a car dealership one day to test drive a car--I was wearing a crappy T-shirt and jeans. The guy was rude and didn't give me any service at all. Then, I came back the next day wearing a shirt and tie from work and the same guy, not recognizing me obviously, was extremely attentive and polite. Old people, in general, tend to be more critical of what you wear, too. Maybe it's because when they grew up, everybody dressed nice (ever see a random street picture from the 40's?--everyone is in suits and fedoras, etc). A kid with cargo shorts and a t-shirt is a "hooligan" in many old folks' eyes. I'm generalizing, of course, but it's something I've noticed with many old people.

With cars, it's not as big an issue, because your car isn't around you most of the time---only when you're in it or standing near it. I think certain types of cars can correlate with certain types of people. For instance, I've noticed that guys who drive Camaros or Mustangs tend to be type-A egotistical jerks (especially when driving). Again, that's a generalization and not true for all Mustang drivers, but if you did a scientific study of personality types and matched them up with cars, I'm sure you would find some convincing data. You can, to some degree, tell something about a person's personality by what car they drive. However, you can't count on it. I may wish I was driving a Lexus, but if I can only afford a beat-up Geo, then your impression of me would be wrong.

So, in general, I think that people do form some preconceived notions about others based on superficial things like clothes and cars. It's probably wrong, and often leads to incorrect conclusions, but it's just human nature, I guess. Our brains function based on association, and this is just an extension of that principle.