What People Notice About What You Wear

Want to land that dream job after graduation? Break the ice at social gatherings? Be more memorable and popular? You certainly can—through a variety of means. How you behave, the way you interact, and sure enough, through what you wear.

Noticeable Is Memorable

In court, which has been my “office” for 25 years, I am consistently reminded by jurors of what they notice and remember about the colorful characters paraded through a courtroom during trial, including lawyers and witnesses. Yes, thankfully they also remember what people said—but they definitely remember what they wore.

The topic of wardrobe is even discussed during jury deliberations. I have heard: “We were debating over whether you wore the same suit twice.” “We were trying to guess where your expert witness bought his old-fashioned ties.” “We found the eyewitness credible because of her perfectly polished shoes.” So apparently, clothes are not only noticeable but potentially tied to more than physical attributes. The mere fact that viewers attribute personality characteristics to our wardrobe selection should cause us to consider choosing carefully.

Source: Image by haidi2002 from Pixabay

Consider wearing something distinctive in style, color, and possibly even add a bit of flash, depending on the type of meeting involved and the impression you want to make. You want a job interview, for example, to be focused more on your skills than your clothes. A first date, on the other hand, might require more of a focus on an attractive appearance than an impressive resume. Yet many appearance-related tips remain the same. Here are some of them.

Dress for Job Success: Less Is More

When you are on a job interview, you want to showcase your abilities, not your closet, your talent, not your tailor. Unless you are applying for a job in the fashion industry, tone down your wardrobe. Research reveals there is much more to a job interview than fashion, and interestingly, it includes the way candidates feel about themselves.

When it comes to colors, apparently black is the new black. According to data released by SmartRecruiters,[i] 70 percent of candidates who were hired reported wearing an interview outfit that was mostly black, as opposed to 33 percent of candidates who were rejected. In addition, regarding physical appearance, 78 percent of candidates who were hired rated themselves as “average” or even “slightly unattractive,” compared to 66 percent of rejected candidates who rated themselves physically as “attractive” or even “very attractive.”

Yet content matters also. The study revealed that candidates who were hired spent more time talking about job responsibilities and company culture than candidates who were rejected.

Noticeable Networking and Social Style

On the social scene, style steals the show. So does color. Everyone remembers the lady in red or the man in the black leather jacket. Paired with an engaging personality, fashion can be a memorable way to stand out from the crowd.

But there is also the element of niche chic. You no doubt know someone whom you would describe not as flamboyant, but as “fashionable.” This is probably due to the fact that they stand out from the crowd by clothing that is both stylish and classy.

And then there are the people who wear conversation starters. Such memorable memorabilia can include jewelry, hats, logos, monograms, and other tasteful traditions designed to convey preferences and personality. These wearable ice-breakers are excellent ways to warm up interaction with people who are socially shy and have a difficult time strategizing how to spark conversation.

Wardrobe Wellness

Showcasing a distinctive wardrobe may even impact well-being, particularly if it leads to (or stems from) a personal sense of uniqueness. In a study entitled “Feeling special, feeling happy,” Selda Koydemir et al. (2018) found a personal sense of uniqueness to be positively associated with authentic living, which was positively related to happiness.[ii]

They note that a personal sense of uniqueness affords freedom of choice regarding ways of living, rather than relying on others to provide points of reference, which would seem to indicate a preference for personal flair over fashion trends.

Tasteful, distinctive personal style is apparently both memorable, and enjoyable.