It’s Just Draperies

“When you look good, you feel good Johnny! And you look marvelous!” — Billy Crystal as “Fernando”

“When you look good, you feel good. Confidence with what you’re wearing is very important. If you feel good, you will always perform your best without worrying about anything.” — Maria Sharapova

“We should distrust any enterprise that requires new clothes.” — Henry David Thoreau

“Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.” — Mark Twain

Well, that about covers the broad landscape as regards appearance and clothing in public speaking…

Here’s our take:

“Worry less about how you appear than about who you really are!” — Jennifer R. StJohn

It’s not just the package.  It’s the package and the message and your commitment to our mutual understanding.  It’s the Fusion, alright?!

People spend a lot of time concerned about how they might appear when giving that big presentation.  Sure, we’ll spend some time looking you over — sizing you up.  Checking out your tie, your shoes…  We do that.  Come on, we all do.  But only until you start talking.  What’s really important tends to win out in the end over the packaging.  But with all that said, they are going to look.  So give it your best shot.  Look good!  Look your Best!  Bring out the tried-and-true suit, the non-slippery shoes.  Those three steps onto the platform are daunting at the best of times.

But now that you’ve given due consideration to the costume… Go deeper.

If you were an actor (and you are) would you attend to the costume?  Sure.  But wouldn’t you naturally be more concerned about the part, the words, the lines, the show?  So spend the lion’s share of time on doing the run-thru(s) required to make your material, your notes, and your memory into a finely tuned machine.  Practice to the point that even if you make a mistake, or the computer goes down (Because it will!), you can still keep people focused, and accomplish your mission.  Great speakers recover better than mere mortals — because they have inhabited the material.

And here’s a tip: The Greats know in their bones what they’re doing up there.  They are locked on to their sense of purpose. So maybe they make a misstatement… So what?  That’s not important.  What’s important is to know why you’re in the room, where you’re taking us, and how you wish to make us understand.  The rest is just window dressing — helpful if aligned with the entire package, but still — just draperies.

So, don’t sweat the new clothes.  Work on your intentions, and your tools until they’re as familiar as the draperies.

Applications

1. Individually
Build yourself a “Uniform.”  John Molloy suggested this years ago in “Dress for Success!”  As were many others, I was horrified at the prospect that someone might force me into a uniform, soul-less sameness at work.  So I ignored the rationality of the advice, and spent years investing thought, time and treasure having a unique look for every day at work.  Traveling included several bags for the multiple shoes, boots and flats for each possible configuration.  It was fun for a while — unique even. But Oh, the weight, and the time, and the late nights — for a result that was limited to personal gratification.  In the light of later years, seems like a lot of time spent on appearances only, for very little return.  Style is fun, however…

Instead, and only when you’re ready — if you get ready, consider choosing your pants, shirts, jackets, shoes to fit a standard pattern, shape, style, and appearance.  Make it yours of course, but make it the same, just change the color and fabric… a Uniform.  No extra time spent choosing and packing, no wondering about underwear or socks — and all that extra time to lavish on the presentation, the people, the interaction — the work!  Meanwhile feeling secure about where to find your pockets… Works for women.  Works for men.

2. At Home
Fashion is fun!  But Style says who you are…  And you can keep yourself entertained for a long time playing with the packaging.  Just keep in mind that it’s what’s inside that counts.  We get addicted to the look early — and the fashionistas prey on the need to be “With it!”  Teach your children (and yourself…) to look beneath the surface.

3. At Work
The point of all that discussion about uniforms was to save you and the company the expense of changing everything up all the time.  Casual clothing has been a bonanza for the fashion industry because now the look is expected to be different — every day.  Fashion is fun — and expensive — and distracting.  What’s the business outcome again?

The costs and the challenge of the fashion battering ram in our culture isn’t that we consider how we appear or enjoy how we might appear.  That can be fun and entertaining and freeing.  But does it help us with the work? Have we slipped into putting more attention on the package than on what’s inside or what we go to work here to accomplish?  That shift in the business perspective is turning out to be a really expensive and sometimes distracting industry with benefits that are not that clear in the office…

Remember, it’s still just draperies…

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