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If you’re working your way up the corporate ladder or you own your own business, dressing according to your brand will increase your workplace success.
A personal brand sets you apart from others and instantly builds trust with clients and colleagues alike. Since your wardrobe is part of the packaging for your personal brand, learning how to dress according to your brand should be more than just an afterthought – it should be an intentional strategy to help you leave a memorable impression.
Through my work with my professional image consulting clients, I’ve simplified the process for developing and dressing according to your personal brand to ensure you’re saying exactly what you want to with your wardrobe.
Develop the Personal Brand You Want to Dress For With These 3 Questions
If you’re not sure where to start when it comes to what your personal brand actually is (or should be), ask yourself these three questions:
1: What do you want others to think about you, based on how you present yourself?
Although we like to pretend as a society that we never make quick judgments about others, it’s just not true.
Research shows that it takes between a tenth of a second and 7 seconds for others to make an impression of you, according to Forbes. You can bet that 7 seconds isn’t long enough for someone to truly get to know you, so that’s why it’s important to control what they are experiencing and seeing when they interact with you.
By determining exactly what you do want them to think of you, you can go about creating your personal brand and then make fashion decisions from there.
Choose specific words you want people to use to describe you:
– Powerful?
– Approachable?
– Trustworthy?
– Confident?
You can convey any of these qualities through your wardrobe if you intentionally dress according to your brand.
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Photo Credit: @emmagrede
For example, a suit in a core color or classic pattern like the one above on Emma Grede, CEO of Good American, can give a young ceo more authority, presence, and a boost of confidence.
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Photo Credit: @womanbusinessoutfits
Dressing according to your brand applies to both your in-person and online presence.
Whether it’s an hour-long virtual presentation with colleagues or just a quick Zoom check in with an established client, when your audience’s view of you is limited you can expect them to pay much closer attention to what they see on the screen – and use it to craft an immediate opinion of the brand you’re presenting.
2: Does your current presentation of yourself align with how you want others to perceive you?
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Photo Credit: @amalclooneystyle
Once you’ve chosen the specific words you want people to associate with your personal brand, you can move on to a wardrobe assessment.
If you’re honest with yourself, how much effort are you putting into intentionally aligning your appearance with how you want others to perceive your personal brand?
When reaching for professional goals, people can forget that crafting an intentional image and dressing in kind is key to portraying their brand in a purposeful way – and it shows in their closets.
As an image consultant, I’ve helped fix the style of hundreds of male and female executives who are ready to take their careers to the next level but aren’t sure how to dress according to their brand.
Since personal branding starts with your closet and sets the tone for your day, the first styling session for all of my services begins with a closet edit.
Getting rid of that clothing you wore in your early 20’s, impulse purchases, pieces that never see the light of day, or anything else that doesn’t align with your personal brand will free up both physical and mental space to allow you to be intentional with what you are trying to convey with your wardrobe.
3: Do you have a dream team?
Check out this IG Live that I did with Flynn – a very talented makeup artist.
Even when you have an idea of what you want your personal brand to convey, who has the time to execute it themselves on a day to day basis?
Most busy professionals don’t, and want to spend their free time reconnecting with families or hobbies, not figuring out what white t-shirt would fit them best.
That’s why it’s essential to delegate.
By delegating your style goals to a professional, you will get the results you want the first time around, without the time consuming process of guessing and changing what outfits really achieve your personal brand mission.
More importantly, you will be proving to yourself that you are worth the investment in your business and career.
It’s time to assemble your dream team for your personal brand, including an image consultant, a makeup artist, and a hair stylist. This is something that I support my clients on through my executive image consulting services.
Ready to get started? Visit my men’s image consulting and women’s image consulting pages to see how we can work with you virtually to create a custom style and image strategy that aligns with your personal brand.
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Cassandra Sethi is a NYC Personal Stylist and Image Consultant. After working over 15 years in the Fashion Industry, most recently as a Senior Buyer for Equinox, she created her business, Next Level Wardrobe – a luxury personal shopping service for successful professionals.
Next Level Wardrobe has been featured in Wall Street Journal, Today and CNN. See here.
