I’ve been logging on to the Accidental Icon blog every week now.
Lyn Slater the blogger posted a response to one of her comments stating that how you dress impacts what you think and how you perform.
I was curious so Googled these research studies and here’s what I came up with:
Subjects dressed in formal business clothing as opposed to casual clothing had increased abstract thinking, a cognitive hallmark of creativity and long-term strategizing.
Subjects who wore a white lab coat clearly announced as being a doctor’s coat focused better and made half as many mistakes on an attention-demanding task.
In a twist, women who were told the expensive sunglasses they wore were counterfeit cheated more often on lab experiments with cash payouts. This behavior was thought to occur because wearing the counterfeit glasses made wearers feel less authentic.
An interview years ago in a magazine with Judith Hill a singer poised for stardom sums this all up in a down-to-earth way:
“I believe that playing the part on the outside affects how you feel on the inside…So even when I’m not feeling my best, I put on clothes that make me look confident.”
There’s something to be said for dressing the way you want to feel when you’re not feeling up to par.
I know that when I dress up I feel better.
Soon I turn 54. The focus of this blog in the coming months will be on what it’s like living through “the change.”
I would like to talk about the dual nature of fashion: the fashion a person wears and how she fashions her life as she gets older.
Lyn Slater has been a true inspiration to me.
I’m confident when I say that turning 50 heralds the advent of the best years of our lives.
Left of the Dial 