The 5 Keys to Dressing Well
The importance of Personal Image cannot be underestimated. In the first 30 seconds upon meeting someone for the first time, they assess and form a mental “impression” about us.
These are subconscious decisions that people make about our personality, occupation, economic and educational levels.
Dr. Albert Mehrabian is known for his research on body language, and has established the classic statistic for effective communications:
7% of meaning is expressed through the spoken word
38% is expressed through the way we speak those words
55% is expressed non-verbally
Is that fair? May be not!
Is it true? You bet!
My own experience tells me that what is important is not only the way others view us, but how we view ourselves that determines how we are perceived.
The way we dress, is only one of the main constituents aspects of Image. But it is precisely one of the aspects over which we have 100% control over. Isn’t that amazingly good news?! There is so much we can do to improve our image! And let us not forget that improving our Image, is directly related our own self confidence and sense of self esteem.
We are not defined just by the way we look, but still our image is a big part of who we and how others define and relate to us every single day.
So we have to take this 100% controllable aspect, “The Way we Dress” and do the best we can! Instead of struggling with things we have no control over.
The 5 keys to dressing well are:
Define your own personal Style and match it with your clothing
Complement your own personal Coloring
Flatter your body lines, proportions and scale
Choose clothes that are appropriate for your Event/Lifestyle/Occasions.
Dress Current – Be up to date with Trends, and choose only those that complement all the other 4 points above.
Let’s start with the first one: Define your own personal Style and match it with your clothing
There are as many styles as there are people out there, everybody has their own unique style. You think you don’t have any? or maybe you don’t know what your style is yet? Well in any case, even if you don’t know what your style is, or you do, there are some tools, that I will teach you that can either help you find it, or refine it!
One easy way of trying to find or define your style is to look at your shopping preferences.
- Where do you usually shop? What is the store’s name?
- Any brand or brands you prefer? Search online for that brand’s characteristics, or personality? Does it match yours? It should, if it doesn’t then ask yourself what is the reason why you shop there?
- Is there any store that you particularly “ADORE”, I didn’t say “like” …You have to adore the brand, the clothes, the store’s image and personality…If you found at least one, take a note on what is it that you especially find so appealing about them.
- For now, just take either mental notes, or even better, in a small notebook for later reference.
- One more aspect you can think about, is how do you usually accessorize your looks? Do you even accessorize? What type of accessories do you prefer? How many do you use? Take notes.
I will give you a list of defined “styles” to start familiarizing yourself with, and see if you “fit” into any, or many:
- Classic
- Natural
- Modern
- Bohemian
- Masculine
- Sophisticated
- Dramatic
- Creative
- Feminine
- Romantic
- Alluring
- Urban Chic
- Sporty
- Elegant
- Punk
- Simple
These are just a few, start thinking about your own unique style, and see in how many of this categories you would somewhat “fit”. In my case, I am a little bit of a natural urban chic combined with a bohemian sporty elegance, and I cannot forget that I am also a Romantic!
Yes, you see, this is not about labeling or categorizing is about giving you tools, to define your style, so that you can Dress for who you really are, so when people form a quick opinion of you, they will form the most accurate one!
Invest in your appearance and let it show the real you, make investing in your Image a priority and you will see how you start to relate better to yourself and to others as a consequence!
Part two of Defining your style…tomorrow…
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