1st impressions are so important. Since this is my first article on my website it is most appropriate to point out the key elements to making great 1st impressions. As you go through life and have innumerable encounters you will be observing and reacting to the colors, fonts, topics and layout. This is completely organic and involuntary as humans are visual creatures, pure and simple.
90% of all the information transmitted to our brain is visual. Stick with that for a moment 90% of what we experience is visual leaving a mere 10% for the other senses. Here is the exciting part – that 90% is processed 60,000 times faster than words!! Making 1st impressions is lightning fast and very high profile due to a litany of impacts and outcomes.
Everyday our own personal image influences people around us, we are constantly in the spotlight and like it or not we are being unconsciously judged by others. Here’s the total kicker – all that processing happens in just 7 – Seven – 7 seconds!! And those 7 second 1st impressions take 7 months to dismantle. We are defined, pigeonholed and welcomed or not.
So, how do we create the perfect first impression every time, we walk out the front door, into a room, restaurant, work environment, social engagement……? We start by identifying what our personal style is.
Fashion is Clothes – Style is Character
In the simplest terms there are 4 categories of style, just like the seasons of the year.
Natural, Classic, Dramatic, and Romantic.
Examples of each of these might be Natural – Kate Hudson, Classic- George Clooney, Dramatic – Rihanna and Romantic – Nicole Kidman.
Fashioning your style is a fusion of your personal style type and the fashion choices you make: coupled with the colors you wear, hairstyle, fragrance, body language and the energy with which you move. All are part of your 1st impression. Finding your style and putting it together and into action is not a talent unfortunately all of us have.
It is no shame to get some help addressing your 1st impression elements. We have all seen the before and after pictures of people who were professionally “assembled and detailed” it makes a big difference. Also, even if you don’t have the “style gene” you can learn with the right guidance. 1st impressions are so very important, even more so these days with wide swath social media presents – no hiding out, even at home (Zoom, Facebook & YouTube) without putting your look together.
It doesn’t take tons of time to put your 1st impression look together and is actually easier once you know your style and address your wardrobe with that style knowledge, than it was before. The less you have the more you wear. Just like when you go on vacation and put together outfits you might not have thought of while at home due to the noise of other things in your closet. Hopefully you are motivated to take a second look when getting dressed and be mindful of how you will be seen!
