Break the Fashion Rules!

I was consulting a comedic actress last week and suggested she wear her hair longer because it makes her look younger.  She said she thought she had to have short hair in order to be funny.  I pointed out that actresses like Kathryn Hahn, Jennifer Coolidge, Melissa McCarthy and Kate McKinnon are all hilarious with long flowing hair.

I want to take this opportunity to dispel some other misconceptions about women & image.  There are so many “rules” and I am here to say poppycock to all of them.  I hate sweeping generalizations that don’t actually do anyone any good. 

The one & only Goldie Hawn

Some examples:

• No short skirts/bare arms after age 40
• Women over 50 must have short hair
• You should always match your shoes, belt and bag
• Red lipstick is only for evening
• Tall women shouldn’t wear heels

My clients are all unique and I consult each based upon her individual goals, occupations, personalities and bodies.  My motto is "whatever works."  If you are empowered by something, go for it and don’t worry about what the world says you “should” do.   Goldie Hawn, a major inspiration of mine, recently turned 70 and still wears dresses with spaghetti straps and plunging necklines and she still has long hair.  She feels good about herself and her body, so more power to her. 

        

Here are some new guidelines:

• Dress how you feel, not your age
• If you are comfortable in it, work it!
• Accentuate the positive (décolletage, great arms/legs…). If you’ve got it, flaunt it.
• All fashion trends are not for everyone {This is a whole other blogpost!}
• There is only one you - so just Do You!

Dress for the Weather (NOT the Season)!

It’s Fall and I say - so what?  I’ve never been a big fan.  People tend to romanticize the Fall and I don’t really get all the fuss about it.  Shorter days, more darkness and the onset of colder weather…  Yippee!!  Sounds like a party!   I’m an extremist in every sense of the word and always have been.  Give me hot or cold – I don’t like the in between.   

But let’s get real – there really is no Fall or Spring anymore.  There is just a modified, short-lived Winter and Summer.  In New York, the weather has been unseasonably warmer than usual so far.  It was 75 degrees on November 9^th!  And people were ice skating on ice that was rapidly melting!  Why?  And I have also seen people in down coats and fur boots.  Relax – It’s not that cold yet.  So here’s my rule of thumb for unpredictable weather: Dress for the weather, NOT the season.

It’s simple. When you get up in the morning, check the weather report online and dress for whatever that is, not for what November 17^th should be.  Times have changed and many of the rules of fashion no longer apply. The season doesn’t dictate what we can and cannot wear.  It is totally okay to wear white pants after Labor Day and it is also okay to dress lightly if it’s 75 degrees in November.

 

Here are 3 tips for dressing for the changeable weather:

1. Moto jackets are super on trend and great for moderate temps and windy Fall days.
2. Booties are literally mini boots and go with everything and there are tons of styles available right now – for both men and women.
3. Dressing in layers gives you the opportunity to unwrap if the temps fluctuate throughout the day.  Scarves, tanks & cardigans are great for this.  I realize this may sound obvious but it is easier said than done

                   

                   

Image is Everything for Growing Your Business!

Writing a book is in my game plan so I recently went to a seminar called “Marketing with a Book & Speech” and heard a compelling speaker who is a past president of National Speakers’ Association.  His name is Mark LeBlanc and as a speaker, he had the perfect balance of intelligence and heart.  Another striking thing about Mark was his appearance.  Unique eyeglass frames, great shirt & sport jacket and fantastic shoes.  After the talk I said to him, “You have great style for a straight man.”  He laughed and thanked me and I told him how I think business casual is the worst thing to ever happen to fashion.  He emphatically agreed. 

I just started reading Mark’s book Growing Your Business! and the old adage about not judging a book by its cover totally applies to this tiny little book.  It is 1/4” thick and retails for $7.95.  How great could it be?  And what could it possibly say that I haven’t read before in other business coaching books?  Well, actually – A LOT.  It has blown my mind completely and I am still only halfway through.  (It’s only 77 pages but I am savoring it – and implementing the principles slowly.) I am not going to outline the first 3 chapters for you, but I am going to tell you about one intriguing principle in it. 

In Chapter 2, LeBlanc outlines 10 ways to “Position Yourself for More Prospects” and 2 out of the 10 are about image!  They are…

Your appearance

The clothes you wear

Even I was floored that LeBlanc included not 1, but 2 principles here.  2 out of 10!  That’s 20% of the key to success!  I was amazed by this and it was major validation for what I do as an image consultant.  So - for anyone who thinks that fashion is superfluous and paying attention to grooming is a waste of time & money, you can argue with the highly successful speaker & business coach who literally wrote the book on success.

Mark LeBlanc

For anyone who is an entrepreneur, I highly recommend getting your hands on Growing Your Business! and reading it.  I promise that it will rock your world!  I’ve already decided that it is my holiday gift to all my self-employed colleagues and clients.

For more about Mark LeBlanc and to get a copy of Growing Your Business! visit his website here.

     

Is September the New January?

Everyone knows that New Year’s resolutions don’t work, right?  But still, every year right after January 1^st there is a ton of social pressure to better ourselves.  TV commercials are a barrage of women's weight watching clubs and sales on gym memberships and home storage systems, etc. etc…  But who is really motivated to change their life after the gluttony of the Holidaze?  And - It’s 70 degrees in LA every day but if you live on the east coast, January is so damn cold that all I want to do is drink red wine and hibernate. 

I love New York in Fall. How about you?

I just took a break for most of August (which is what most civilized people do in the rest of the world but that’s another story…) and now, 2 days after Labor Day, I am implementing a new social media strategy, organizing a new mailing list, reading a mind blowing business coaching book (blogpost to come on that!) and scheduling new clients through November.

Fall is just a much better time to change our lives.  There is something to school starting in the fall and we should all revert back to our childhoods and revise, renew and recreate in September instead of January.  The way I see it, we have 3 solid months before life gets usurped by the holidays, family obligations and a really good excuse to eat, drink and be irresponsible.  So I for one am using the time productively, which includes consulting as many clients as I can. 

Fall organizing is the new Spring cleaning....

What do you think?  Are you in?  If yes, awesome.  Please share this post and let’s start a productivity revolution. 

And - call me for a FREE 10 minute Skype session and let’s talk about transforming your image this fall.