For many people, day to day confidence can be an aspirational, but elusive target. We’d all love to feel comfortable in our skin and carry ourselves with surety, but not everyone does.
Looking good, or at least feeling like we look good, is intrinsically linked to how confident many of us feel. This is why billions of pounds are spent every year on designer clothes, cosmetics, and grooming services.
Finding confidence in our clothing does not need to be about expensive purchases, not if we can find our own style. Whether we choose a sharp suit, or some graphic jeans to match our personality, looking like ourselves is key.
In this article, we’re going to look at six top tips for finding your style and boosting your confidence. Before we do, let’s look at some of the benefits we can gain through finding confidence.
Confidence and happiness are closely related, confident people are more likely to look at the world in a positive way. Confidence can also boost energy and enthusiasm and makes challenges feel not just surmountable, but exciting.
Confidence also works as a self-propagating circle. If you feel confident, you exude confidence, which attracts people to you and boosts your confidence further.
It’s easy to see how this can have huge benefits for both your physical and mental health. With that in mind, let’s look at six simple tips for boosting your confidence by finding your style.
1. Find your colors
Finding your best color palette is one of the simplest ways to narrow down the style that suits you. Which shades go best with your hair color, skin tone, and demeanor vary hugely from one person to the next.
Research suggests most people fall into either warmer toned “fall” or softer hued “spring” palettes, depending on their features. Experiment with what type of color best suits you, once you’ve settled in your palette, clothes choices become much clearer.
2. Learn your shape
Every person’s body shape is different, but most of us can be loosely fitted into a series of categories. For women, these are apple, pear, hourglass, and banana; for men, it’s rectangle, triangle, trapezoid, oval, and inverted triangle.
Certain styles and certain clothes fit best with certain body shapes, lengths, and sizes. Finding out which you are can be a quick cheat to knowing which clothes will compliment you most.
3. Flatter yourself
After establishing your body shape, it’s time to look at the other idiosyncrasies of your appearance and use them. For example, pant suits might be more suited to slender figures, while curvier women could make a dress look great.
Patterns matter too, our minds can be easily tricked by lines and shading into viewing things in subtly different ways. Vertical stripes can make a long body look taller, while horizontal ones trick the eye into perceiving it as shorter.
4. Know who you are
All the scientific appraisal of what colors, shapes, and garments best suit you is wasted if you don’t feel comfortable. “Be yourself” might feel like clichéd advice but, when it comes to fashion, it really is vital.
Think about who you are, and how you want people to see you, and lean into that when choosing your style. Plain, flashy, modern, vintage, daring, modest – there are a million style combinations, finding one to match your personality is key.
5. Dress for the occasion
Showing up in full Halloween costume at a formal dinner in July might make you feel out of place. Choosing an outfit that does not fit the occasion can undermine any confidence you’ve found by how great it looks.
6. Stay comfortable
The comfort of your outfit comes in two forms. First, physical comfort, ultra-skinny jeans or high heels might look great, but being in pain won’t give you confidence.
Secondly, the clothes you choose shouldn’t make you feel anxious or exposed. Low necklines, tight shirts, and short skirts can all look fantastic, but if you’re not comfortable, you won’t feel confident.
These are just a few easy tips on how to boost your confidence with how you dress. Find your own style, find your comfort level, and let your confidence grow as the compliments inevitably follow.
