✨✅ A FASHION TIP FOR LEADERS ✨

✅ A FASHION TIP FOR LEADERS

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"You look great!"
vs.

"What a pretty dress/great looking suit you're wearing!"

��Which do you think will remain top-of-mind in the long run?��

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They say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. Yet, would you agree that almost everyone does it anyhow? For better or for worse, the same applies to leaders on the way up: how you dress can help or hinder advance, not only you, but perhaps more importantly, your cause. We may not like it, but unless you bat .500 or are a similar wunderkind in your field, more often than not, that is just the way it is. Otherwise, how would you explain all the "Dress for Success" books?

Indeed, it's axiomatic that before people buy you as a leader, they need to buy into you as a person - and the image you project has a big bearing on their doing that. It's tough enough to advance your cause and/or move up in the world - why make it even more difficult by not taking a 360 approach, attire included?

For example - has this ever happened to you? At an important policy event where I was being introduced as the new Director of Foreign Trade, at its conclusion, many people in the audience came up to me, either to congratulate me or to comment on some aspect of the program. A Director from another institution came up to me and said: "you wear expensive make-up, don't you? Is it Dior or Channel?" Initial reaction: ...???? Sooo much for all the policy discussions! But, must say, she had a good eye: I wore both brands - thus, clearly very observant. Plus, she then launched into all the projects we could do together. Ended up being a good lesson in not taking your looks for granted.

While it's not necessarily about wearing expensive clothes (though investing in good, well-tailored clothes which can last a lifetime, can pay off handsomely), it is about those subconscious/subliminal cues you give off. Whatever you are wearing, needs to make *YOU* look good, comfortable in your skin, projecting self-confidence and assurance. How you dress can also be interpreted as a mark of respect - or lack thereof - towards the people with whom you are interacting. It is also part of your personal brand.

Sounds obvious, but let us take any red carpet to the various awards events. Would you agree that there are those who looked spectacular because the dress/suit made THEM look good? (And, actually, the very best designers, do design their dresses to make the wearer look gorgeous in them.) The focus was on the person and how marvelous he or she looked - how they radiated glamour, beauty, elegance, etc. At the Oscars, the perfect example was Lupita Nyong'o: she looked simply fabulous - like a very classy, elegant princess. The dress, though beautiful, was not the star, but it made her look incredibly alluring.

(from RTVE.es)

On the other hand, you have to agree that for many others, the ooohhs and aaahhhs were for the DRESS/SUIT, not the person wearing it. And, regrettably, sometimes the dress was so spectacular that the person wearing it, didn't carry it the way it was designed to be carried, and ended up counterproductively falling flat. 

Don't misunderstand me: many a dress/suit can indeed be a work of art deserving of all the ooohhhs and aaahhhs - and as such can be appreciated and go down in the history books of fashion. Indeed, I love their creativity and sheer beauty. Plus, there may be occasions when you may actually want the dress/suit to stand out as a reflection of your taste and/or personality.

Nevertheless, on most occasions in the business arena, you'll generally feel more confident and you'll be able to advance your cause better when your clothes per se are not an issue, while at the same time, project a visually-appealing professional image. That's because whether informal or formal, your attire does not distract you, nor others from focusing on your work or presentation. 

And that's the key: we live in a free country and how you want to dress is very much your own choice. However, if it is all about advancing your cause, your clothes need to be sufficiently neutral to allow the focus to remain on your personality and your ideas - unless your clothes are part of the statement you are trying to make...

I once attended a hearing in the U.S. Congress where one team arrived all looking super spiffy in their tailored suits, and the other team arrived in jeans, with pony-tails (back when they were rad). Now, the team with the pony-tails/jeans actually had the better argument, but you could instantly tell by the body language of the Congressional committee members that those arguments were being rather summarily dismissed while rapt attention was being paid to the men in the suits... 

Ten-to-one, had the pony-tails/jeans team arrived in more appropriate attire for Congressional Committee Hearings, they might just have won the day. Again, for better or for worse, that's human nature. It was indeed a lesson learned: down the road, those same pony-tails in jeans, started wearing attires more appropriate to the fora at hand, and - surprise  surprise - their ideas started gaining increased traction...

You can try an experiment yourself - dress in different ways and see how people react to you... I know that I've experienced people reacting differently to me depending on what I'm wearing. Certain colors and outfits and all of a sudden people are opening the door for me, smiling, helping me to my chair at restaurants, wishing me well, etc.! Other outfits and I might as well be painted on the wall!

Having said all of that, let me be clear: nothing says you can't dress with originality - I've been told I certainly do - so long as you are comfortable with and in it, i.e., you own it psychologically, and it makes you look good. If you feel uncomfortable or self-conscious in your clothes, it will show. If you feel confident, it too will show. 

Confidence does come from within - a topic for another post - but what you wear can help you project it even better. There's a reason Lawrence Olivier always started with the clothes to build his characters...

I should also note that it helps when what you wear is context-specific. Wearing a suit in Silicon Valley could make you stand out like a sore thumb (happened to me - a team of us were giving conferences in San Francisco and Silicon Valley, and had no time to change: most of our audience looked at us like we had just landed from Mars - and appeared quite skeptical as to what were saying!), while wearing original, attention-getting outfits at a fashion show would not only be entirely appropriate, but expected. 

Hair is also important. Especially for women, and especially if you are a speaker at an event being televised. For women, a curly mane which may look fashionable off-camera - depending on how it's styled - unfortunately can look unruly and project a lack of professionalism on camera. Hate to repeat it yet again, but, for better or for worse, image does affect how seriously your words are taken, and regrettably on several televised occasions, "wild" hair has definitely tended not to help in that regard. Remember, the two things that capture your audience'simmediate attention are hair and shoes...

The best look, (again, unless you're a wunderkind; well, actually, even if you are: even Jobs and Zuckerberg evolved in their choice of attire!), is a visually-appealing, well-groomed one from hair to shoes and everything in between, that is - and feels comfortable - such that you don't give it another thought while you're busy advancing your cause, and you leave others thinking what a confident, fabulous leader you are.

~Cheers! ✨

P.S. "You're looking great" is the winner!

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