When I travel for work I take exactly one pair of shoes. I travel light with a laptop bag and a carry-on, and I just don’t want to make the sacrifice to squeeze in an additional pair of shoes.

When I leave the office at the end of the week, I sometimes catch a ride with a fellow consultant to the airport. One of the first things he does after we walk out to the rental car is change his shoes. 

I started thinking about this. Why does he do this? Well, by his own admission, he wants to change into more comfortable shoes. So, this means the “dress shoes” he wears in the office are not comfortable. But it also means the sneakers he changed into are somehow not acceptable in the office. Why not?

In a business casual environment, why aren’t acceptable shoes also comfortable shoes? What’s stopping guys from just wearing clean sneakers or Skechers or some style of shoe that goes with a business casual outfit? 

I will admit the one pair of dress shoes I wear when I travel is not the most comfortable. These shoes are better than the dress shoes I had previously, but I would not choose to wear them when I’m home. Why do we have more formal shoes that aren’t comfortable? Shouldn’t comfort be the top priority (in non-hazardous jobs anyway)?

I’m starting to think maybe I should wear a comfortable pair of shoes that go with slacks and a button-up shirt and say screw it to the fashionistas of the world. 

I’m not EVEN going to talk about women’s shoes, which is a whole other can of worms.