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Welcome to Jon Michail’s Personal Branding Masterclass. Jon is the founder and CEO of Image Group International, an award-winning image consulting and personal branding pioneer established in 1989. This podcast will bring you old-school wisdom, inspiring ideas, strategies, and hacks for the new tech world. Here, you will learn everything about personal branding: the system, the techniques, and the right mindset to have a successful personal brand, image, and reputation.

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Hello everybody, and welcome back to my master class. Today we're discussing a topic that goes deeper than surface level style, and that's the psychology of clothing and personal branding. And I'm going to share with you today the top five. So let's get started. The way we dress is not just about looking good. It's a strategic tool to communicating who you are, what we are, and reinforcing our personal brand. So what I'm going to do is I'm going to start off with a concept called number one enclothed cognition, and that is dressing for the mindset you want. So let's begin with the concept of enclosed cognition. This theory suggests that we wear what we wear, but also it influences not just how others see us, but how we see ourselves? And according to a study in 2012 published in a journal of experimental social psychology, participants were in a lab coat, were associated with attentiveness and perform significantly better on cognitive tasks. This is really interesting, right? How perceptions have an impact. Other examples, of course, include the police, the military and of course, parliaments flying for large commercial airlines. Clothes represent authority, trust and of course, also safety for the individual, but also in this case, for others, and this is again, where perception becomes reality. So the takeaway is this, what you wear can change how you think, feel, and the big one behave. Now I'll give you a real example in the business world. Imagine wearing a tailored suit that fits perfectly. You know that feeling of being put together, remember, isn't just external. It shifts your internal dialog. You feel more confident, more in control. This is because your clothing aligns with the confident self image, creating a positive feedback loop between your inner self and your outward expression, your wardrobe becomes the only you put on when you go into battle. Very, very important to remember that next we'll cover the power of color psychology. Now to amplify your message and get noticed. If that's part of your intention or not. Get noticed. You know, depending what colors you're going to use, choose colors, though, that can evoke specific emotions and shape how others perceive you. This is very important, because color will speak a lot louder and will speak about you before you even open your mouth, and it's nearly always influenced consciously or subconsciously, but sex, money and power, and research shows that different colors create different emotions. So for instance, blue, in this case, and I'll just use blue as an example, as opposed to go to different shades of it. You know, from cobalt blue to light blue. It conveys trust, stability, professionalism. So it's no coincidence that major brands like IBM, LinkedIn, etc, lean heavily on blue. Another color that has a different association is red, associated with passion, energy and urgency. And studies reveal also that athletes wearing red are perceived as more dominant and even achieve higher performance in competitive settings. Did you notice what Donald Trump was wearing constantly throughout the election campaign? And by the way, he did win, it was red, red ties. Red ties everywhere. Now, again, I'm not suggesting you follow this advice without specific to your particular situation, because red doesn't work the same way, for instance, in other cultures like Australia. So you're going to be really conscious of the cultural significance of a color as well other colors, for instance, green and earthy tones. And of course, Teal is also a very important earthy tone that also has significance from the point of view of influence. These colors, regarding the natural colors like green, are associated with balance and calm, making them perfect for leaders.

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Want to project a grounded, approachable presence, and also there's a relevance of that. So you could also mix this up, depending what your intentions are. But a practical tip on color is this, if you're an entrepreneur pitching to investors, considering wearing blue as an example, all other colors if you want to make an impact just understand and know what you're trying to convey to obviously, Project trust, and trust is essential. On the other hand, if you're leading a motivational session, it could be even a therapy session. For that matter, a touch of green might actually work. Or, of course, red. And of course, we know this with women, especially women in leadership, they would wear a lot of red, for instance, on stage where they want to have impact. And, of course, energy. The problem also is if you overuse a color, it starts to become boring and starts to lose some of its impact. So you're going to balance it. Certainly in my experience, though, especially during my design days, what it tells me is, when color is used smartly, it helps to deliver outcomes, and some colors are best avoided if you want to positively impact so next, we'll discuss some of the signature pieces.
These are items that become synonymous with you, creating a memorable visual association, whether it's Steve Jobs, black turtleneck or Anna winters, signature glasses. These pieces are more than fashion. They strategic branding tools, a personal story. I once worked with the CEO. I've always wore a pair, a unique pair, actually a bold frame, glasses. It wasn't just about the style, though. It was a deliberate choice to be memorable in every room he entered so visually, it was about making first impressions. And of course, the glasses became a conversation starter, reinforcing his innovative persona. However, they also were intimidating to the wrong audience, so we developed an eclectic signature style that talked to different people, a bit like horses for courses. It was certainly a huge success, because allowing some mystery in your storytelling, and that also means the way you present and a bit of a surprise is a smart strategy when it's well thought out. So basically, the accessories used as part of your image also play a role, because you can imagine the wrong accessories, what they can also do to your image. So a wrong accessory, for instance, is, you know, not understanding how to use a computer, and you're still caught up with using something called Snail mail. Okay, that would be a wrong strategy. Of course, being current is important as a person, just being trendy. Number four is context appropriate authenticity. So an authenticity here is used as a strategic tool, and that is your right as a human being, to do that. So it's flexibility, but without compromise. So clothing as a branding tool doesn't mean you know, originally stick into one style, as we've noted previously, it's about adapting to different environments while staying true to your personal brand. What it means is horses for courses be really smart on how you present out there, because some audiences expect totally different. Politicians, by the way, in many cases, will try to do that break wearing casual gear when they're visiting the country and so on. They rarely do it well, by the way, but generally, that's one good example of how they might try to mix up their image. And of course, the way that would link to the presentation personal brand. Another example is a casual networking night might call for smart business casual, while high stakes presentation demands a more formal look, the key insight, though, is authenticity doesn't mean sameness. It's about making sure that even as you adapt to different contexts, the choices you make still reflect who you are. And think of it as using different accents of the same language depending on the audience. And finally, let's get to number five. And number five is about comfort and fit. It's about projecting confidence from the inside out. Lastly, let's talk about this concept called comfort and fit in a way that becomes a natural way for you to consider when you're actually purchasing future order. There's a reason why athletes focus on their gear. Comfort directly affects performance. Having experience in the sports management world. Of course, we would say that makes a big difference in sports, elite sports people that were not comfortable in their fit also impacted their performance. 

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So ill fitting clothing can be a constant distraction, putting focus away from what surely matters, and it means also the shoes, in this case, the runners. So your presence and your message, according to a study by Harvard, showed that professionals who dressed comfortably and confidently were perceived as 30% more competent than those who dressed uncomfortably, regardless of the actual attire. So what that means is your outfit, it can't be like a sack of potatoes. It has to fit you properly, and that this is where tailoring comes in, and of course, getting fitted. It's essential. And also starts to communicate to the world, different messaging depending what market you're actually trying to communicate, my lived experience addressing leaders around the world, including Prime Ministers, leaders of industry, and of course, right down to authors and celebrities, is that the statistic that I noted earlier for 30% from Harvard is far too low. I once worked with a client who felt stifled in traditional corporate and that was because obviously their own education around that was lacking, and they didn't understand that this is all part of the game, no different to the sports person wearing a uniform on the field. The corporate world, the business world, also has a corporate uniform, and at times, it's not actually clearly displayed or communicated exactly what that is.
So by tweaking their wardrobe to fit their personal style, while still maintaining professionalism, this particular client reported feeling more at ease, which translated into better performance, especially during high stakes meetings. And I'm not talking about casual meeting with your friend here on Zoom. I'm talking about when the meeting truly matters. In my opinion, most meetings matter all the time, including when you are having a casual unless you're you know you're having a bit of fun, because first impressions just matter. And if you are serious about presenting your gravitas the world, even on a relaxed situation, that doesn't mean you're going to be a jerk and look like a jerk and present like a jerk. So professionalism matters, and I think it also matters sometimes in your personal life, but that's up to you to work that out. But what this LED and of course, there's many testimonials of this from the point of view of dressing for success, if I can use that term today, it's quicker promotions and the remuneration package way above his colleagues. Just so to sum up, remember that clothing is a powerful tool in building your authentic personal brand, my advice is, do not listen to people that don't know and if they claim that they do, ask for the evidence. By intentionally curating your wardrobe, you communicate your values, project confidence and align your external image with your true inner self. So we've come to the end of today's program. If you found value in today's episode, please subscribe and connect with me on LinkedIn. And next for personalized coaching, reach out to  patricia@image group.com.au. Until next time, cheerio.

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Jon Michail’s Personal Branding Masterclass Podcast is sponsored by Image Group International, a global team of practical, digitally savvy personal brand and image strategists based in Australia, committed to maximizing your impact, influence, and authority in the business world. To learn more and apply for personal coaching, seminars, and group workshops, please visit imagegroup.com.au or call 1800 631 311.