What I Learned from Wearing Slippers to McDonalds

It was a big night in my house. My youngest pooped on the potty which is a momentous occasion. To celebrate, he got to pick a special treat. He wanted a McDonalds ice cream cone. So off we went.

I’m not a fan of McDonalds. I’m an even lesser fan of going inside a McDonalds hence the reason I wore slippers. Why would we be getting out of the car!?! But tonight I learned a few things from my McDonalds experience.

1. My husband and I are TERRIBLE communicators. (Although we already know this so at least we’ve communicated that!) I assumed we wouldn’t get out of the car. He assumed we would.

LESSON 1: Apparently people don’t know what’s in my head unless I actually communicate it. Noted!

2. I didn’t have the best attitude about wearing my slippers into McDonalds until I met Tamie who took our ice cream order. Nicest, most engaging, positive woman on the planet who can turn your piss poor attitude around with a smile, while never complaining about working 3 weeks straight. (She has her first day off tomorrow!)

LESSON 2: A smile can go a long way.

3. An ice cream quest can be turned into a poop on the potty party. When they found out why we were there all the employees in the front cheered and then gave both our kids toys.

LESSON 3: Stop assuming what an experience will be like until I walk in and try it (just hopefully in proper footwear next time).

I shutter to report that I haven’t read a fiction book in over eight years. But this book breaks my streak of being only a business and self-development reader.
Nine Women, One Dress, is the book version of a chic flick. It’s super cute and fun to read. I couldn’t put it down.
There’s a quote in the book that I love. It’s so true and what inspires me to do what I do everyday. (Don’t worry, it won’t give anything away.)

“For seventy-five years I have made women’s dresses. That means for seventy-five years I have made women happy. For seventy-five years I have made mature women spin around in front of the mirror like young girls. For seventy-five years I have made young girls look in the mirror and for the first time see a woman staring back at them. I have made young men’s eyes pop out. Because the right dress does that. It makes an ordinary woman feel extraordinary.”

The right image really does make you feel extraordinary (man or woman!). It gives you an edge. And this super cute story reminds you what can happen when you get it right.
Check out Nine Women, One Dress by Jane Rosen.

I teach my clients that if you don’t really love something it’s not meant for you to wear or keep in your closet. Wasting time wearing things that don’t excite you cause you to miss opportunities.
Knowing my philosophy my Aunt recommended I read, The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. It’s all about the Japanese art of organizing and decluttering. The author’s main purpose is to show you that unless items in your home are truly making you feel joyful then you probably don’t need them.
It’s a really interesting perspective on how your “stuff” affects your entire life. It’s inspired a few thrift shop runs at my house as well.
MY FAV TAKEAWAYS:

• On the subject of why you can’t let something go Marie Kondo says there are only two reasons: “an attachment to the past of a fear for the future.”

• Instead of thinking about what you want to get rid of just consider what you want to keep. To do so ask yourself, “What things will bring you joy if you keep them as part of your life?”

If this resonates with you check her book out at the library like I did, or you can find it on Amazon here.

Interestingly, a first impression can be positive, without being exactly right for you.
Many people make a good first impression. They easily convert sales and, if they’re good at what they do, the opportunities around them start to expand. It’s that very expansion, however, that can be tricky. Your image must keep pace and be in alignment with your ongoing goals.
I recently asked a longtime client how he felt before we began working together. He said that at that time, he was confident in his ability to deliver what he offered to people—but knew he was in a significant growth phase that would lead to new arenas of opportunity. When he looked at himself and his image relative to the opportunities he was winning, it didn’t match up.
You can make a great first impression but if it isn’t congruent with what you’re trying to do, or sell, potential clients can sniff out that there’s something not totally adding up, even if they don’t know quite what it is.
Here’s a good example. I have a client in the legal industry who entered his career wearing Brooks Brothers suits. He became very successful, growing his business into a multimillion dollar company. His mission is to completely shake up the legal industry so that more lawyers can be happy in their personal lives while still growing a successful law firm. He felt confident and happy. His image had worked well for him up until a certain point. But by the time he came to me, he felt as if something was missing.
Brooks Brothers makes great clothes. But they are designed for someone who wants to feel more conservative and safe—the opposite of his personality. That was the part that didn’t match up. His vision is to help people do things very differently than what they have been programmed to do. He does this by teaching out-of-the-box concepts, and by being sort of an out-of-the-box individual. His Brooks Brothers image was far from out of the box. It was very in the box.
So we changed the way he was dressing. Since he is on a mission to shake up the legal industry, we shook up his wardrobe. We swapped boring plaid blazers for ones that were fun and full of personality. I found jeans for him that were comfortable, but also looked good on stage. And we found specific shoe designers that not only matched his out-of-the-box image, but became conversation starters with others who coveted the same brand.
You can make a good first impression all day long. But the real question is whether or not it drives the results you’re after. If the way you present yourself attracts a client base that will pay $5000 when you charge $50,000, you’ve got a mismatch that’s costing you money.
Each day you have a choice. You can put on garments that simply clothe you. Or you can be strategic about the way you dress and ensure your image will increase your bottom line. The goal for you is to easily present yourself in a way that helps you reach your goals, whether that’s a financial goal, lifestyle goal, or a connection goal.

It feels easy to invest in a book that will help you increase your sales. Or software that will increase your team’s efficiency. Or a mastermind program that helps you get to where you want to go. But when it comes to investing in your outer self, sometimes it never occurs to you to open your wallet.

There is ROI in investing in yourself.

Neil Patel of Quicksprout.com is a master of making money. He’s helped companies like Amazon, NBC, GM, HP, and Viacom grow their revenue. He conducted a year-long experiment to determine whether or not the way you dress impacts your revenue, and he specifically looked at the return on investment.

He tracked everything he did. He changed nothing about his pitch, what he was selling, or the type of business he was after. The only change he made was what he wore. That one change resulted in an increase of sales to the tune of $692,500.

He says that when he dresses nicer, he gets larger business deals. What he wears does create conversations with random people on the street, but his true ROI came from the results he got from dressing nicer in business meetings. As someone who dressed extremely well, he was perceived as someone who was extremely successful—making more people want to be associated with him.

In one year, he spent $162,301 on clothing—and it resulted in a return in investment of $692,500. That’s over a 400% return. Not bad, right!? His image gave him an edge. A $692,500 edge, to be exact.

Neil conducted an experiment, but you don’t have to. I tell you Neil’s story to offer the perspective that when you invest in yourself specifically to create an edge in your business, you will get results.

Neil went big. $162,301 spent on clothing is a pretty big number. But he also got a big return, and I would bet he knew that before ever starting his experiment. (Check out his own blog post about it here.)

In order to decide to invest in yourself, you need to look at one thing: what’s the return on investment you will get? Consider how much a client is worth to you. If a client is worth $10,000, and you spend $10,000 investing in your wardrobe, that one client just paid for your image upgrade. So now, investing in yourself has actually cost you nothing. And anything else that one client buys from you, or other opportunities you now land because of your new image, make that return on investment climb higher and higher.

My philosophy is, since you are going to get dressed each day anyway, why not dress in clothes that help you increase your revenue?

Each item in your closet works together to create your business edge. So each article of clothing is an opportunity to increase your bottom line.

Since each first impression is a sales opportunity, each article of clothing you wear is how you prepare for that conversation—so choose wisely.

Have you ever thought about what changing your clothes could be worth to you financially? It’s a simple calculation. You can calculate yours here: http://www.leeheyward.com/calculator

A client with an upcoming team photo shoot often calls me in a panic sounding like this: ‘What should everyone wear? Should we match? Should we not match? Should I be different? Help!”

If you’re planning a photo shoot with your team start here.

STEP 1: Decide how you want a potential client to feel.

You have to determine the feeling you want potential clients to have when looking at the photograph of your team. What do you want them to think?

How do you want them to feel? What makes you and your team different? Get very clear on this prior to thinking about what everyone will wear.

STEP 2: Create a color story.

Don’t all wear the same outfit. The reason your team is successful is because everyone is unique. So instead of making everyone look the same, create a color story. Pick 3 to 4 colors that go together and compliment your branding and marketing goals. For instance, one of my clients is the President and CEO of Sterk Financial Services. For their photo shoot we picked a color story of black, white, and green. Each color was picked for a very specific reason.

Green- It’s a color that symbolizes growth and also is literally the color of money. Sterk Financial Services’ clients are looking for growth and a successful financial future so the color green is perfect.

Black and White – Black and white offers sophistication, elegance, and class.  These are all qualities that are going to appeal to Sterk Financial Services’ ideal clients.

TIP: Once you choose your color palate have everyone bring in what they would like to wear ahead of time. Lay each outfit out on the conference room table and see how everything looks together.

STEP 3: Use color for positioning. 

Use the color palate you choose to help position key players of your team. For Sterk Financial Services, Mary Sterk, is the President and CEO. She is positioned as such in the photograph based on her physical placement in the photo as well as the fact she is the only one wearing all green.

When it comes to taking successful team photos, the strategy you put behind it is key. Have fun with it and if you want helping creating the strategy for an awesome photograph like Sterk Financial Services, reach out to me at hello@leeheyward.com!

When you do a photo shoot for marketing purposes you want to create images that get results. Aka they help you market to your ideal client. Therefore pre-planning for your photo shoot is key to ensure your photos work to get you results.
Prior to your shoot there are six things you must do in order to get picture perfect photography.
HIRE PROFESSIONALS
It seems like a no brainer to hire a professional photographer, but it must be mentioned just in case. A good photographer will sit down with you to explore your goals and vision for your shoot. With a clear goal and vision, together you can create images that are going to get the marketing results you desire. This is key and is the foundation of your photo shoot.
(For the ladies) Once your shoot is scheduled you need to also hire or schedule professional hair and make up. Your photographer may provide this. Having your make up done by a professional is particularly important. In fact, it’s one of the rookie mistakes I made earlier on in my business. Check out the before and after picture of me when I did my own make up for a photo shoot. I immediately scheduled another one. Learn from my mistake and have your make up done!

FEEL LIKE YOUR BEST SELF
Typically when you set out to take photographs, you instantly start thinking about what to wear. Instead first ask yourself how do you need to feel in order to be the best version of yourself behind the camera? Come up with three specific words that describe how you want to feel. (Confident, powerful, successful, Intriguing, Mysterious, Bad Ass, Approachable, Generous, Etc., Etc.) You can pick any adjectives that speak to you but then narrow it down to three. When you begin to plan your outfits for your photographs, these three words become your roadmap. You ask yourself does this outfit make me feel powerful, confident, and successful (enter your own words)? This very simple exercise can help you determine the best thing to wear.
CONSIDER YOUR LOCATION AND STAGING
Once you and the photographer determine the location for your shoot, it’s time to take into account the logistics that you need to prepare for. If you have decided you want photographs both standing and sitting plan your outfits for that. Not all outfits look as good sitting as they do standing, so be sure to have outfits planned that look great for both possibilities.
If you will be shooting outside it’s good to consider the fabrics you wear. If its hot outside or you know you will be nervous, lightweight fabrics show sweat faster. Your photographer can fix this if it shows up on a photo but planning ahead can make you feel more comfortable behind the camera instead of worrying about the fact you might sweat.
SHOWCASE YOUR PERSONALITY
Often what makes you “weird” is what makes you stand out from your competition. When planning what to wear make sure to showcase your personality. Skip wearing what you think you “should” because it’s a professional photo. Instead wear something that makes you feel great, highlights your unique personality, and speaks to your ideal audience. Accessories and the details of your clothing can easily help you create a fun and interesting photo. Let me show you what I mean. Here is a picture of me from a photo shoot where I did not highlight my personality. The blue dress is a great picture but it doesn’t say anything about me. The purple dress gives you more perspective simply by adding a necklace and a bracelet.
TRY IT ALL ON
Prior to having photographs taken be sure to give the outfits you plan to wear a dry run. Put everything on that you plan to wear. And I do mean everything! Down to your undies. Take a mirror selfie or have someone take a picture of you to ensure that everything works well together. Your pants aren’t too short. Your bra strap isn’t showing. It’s much better to discover things like this before you arrive for your shoot.
GO THROUGH YOUR CHECKLIST
As you prepare for your shoot, having a checklist will ensure you show up ready to create picture perfect photos. If you’d like access to the checklist I use with my own private clients, simply click here, and we’ll be happy to share it with you!

I’ve always bought my workout clothes at Target. Frankly, I preferred to put my money into Louis Vuitton instead of things I’d sweat in. I wore athletic clothes that seemed perfectly good.
But then something changed. I got serious about wanting a result from my workouts. I hired a trainer and immediately gave myself a workout clothing makeover. I went to Lululemon and Athleta and bought what had before seemed like unnecessarily expensive workout pants. Those expensive pants changed the way I showed up to work out, both in how I looked (they really do amazing things for your body!) and how I felt being there. I was ready to make things happen. And I did!
2 inches came off my hips. 1 inch came off each thigh. And ½ an inch came off my arms. Yes, I have an amazing trainer, but I credit the workout clothes.
The simple act of purchasing what seemed like expensive items made me even more invested in achieving the results I desired in my workouts. I noticed when I worked out I felt a little sassy, a little bad ass, and all of a sudden the hard work was a lot more fun.
Were the athletic tights I bought magical? I believe so. They didn’t act alone in taking two inches off my hips, but the act of no longer accepting what seemed perfectly good, and only focusing on ways to make getting the result I wanted easier, was transformational.
In a way, the clothes you wear are magical. They can inspire you to step up and do things you never thought you would do. You just have to discover what clothes get you fired up so much that before you know it, you’ve soared past the result you want.
For tips on no longer settling for what’s perfectly good, check out Chapter 4, The Trap of the Perfectly Good, in my new book,  Strategically Suited. Discover how “perfectly good” could be keeping you from getting the results you’re after.

This article was originally posted on huffingtonpost.com

According to the University of Illinois Extension Statistics, first impressions comprise 55% of your appearance and body language. So if you don’t dress the part, you’re 55% less likely to make a sale.
You often hear the words personal branding thrown around in business as if it’s something you need to go out and get, or achieve. But really, everyone has a personal brand–whether you’ve purposefully created it or not.
In essence, a personal brand is how you position yourself to potential clients. And much of that positioning comes from the way you present yourself. Therefore, your image becomes an integral part of creating a personal brand that you can easily profit from.
Even if you don’t work with clients face-to-face, your image affects your personal brand (aka. how you’re positioned in the mind of your target audience). Your photos on social media, a headshot on a blog post, or the way you look when you meet someone on an airplane are personal branding tools that help a potential customer decide if you are someone they want to hire.
Everyone knows you have to dress professionally for business, but it’s not enough to simply look professional. In order to increase your bottom line you need an image strategy.
Having an image strategy means you present yourself in a way that helps you reach your financial goals. I teach my clients, you must dress for your vision, not just for where you are today.
If your vision is to sell a $100,000 client, then you need to look as if you’ve already landed many of them. So you start here and work backwards to discover how to present yourself in an authentic way that will help you effortlessly close sales.
There is amazing power in what you wear. It takes the same amount of time to create a boring “professional” outfit that makes people question what you do, as it does to put on clothes that give you instant credibility and wealth.
My philosophy is, up-level your wardrobe and you’ll up-level your life. But instead every day I see entrepreneurs dressing how they think they should. They put on clothing that seems professional and call it a day, accidentally forming their personal brand.
No matter what you sell, whether it’s a product, a widget, or a service, people are buying YOU. Presenting yourself in a unique and confident way can put you leaps ahead in the mind of a potential customer.
Take a moment to consider what makes you unique. Why should someone do business with you? Then dress in a way that portrays that to your target audience. If you provide an edgy, out-of-the-box service or product, then it doesn’t make sense to wear a boring suit to a business meeting.
One of the best things about your image is that you control every aspect of it, making you a very powerful marketing tool.
The first step is making the decision that you’re ready to achieve the success you want. Then look at the logistics of how to create an image to do that.
Once you’ve made the decision to up-level your image, the first step is to ask yourself two questions:

• In order to achieve the success I want, how do I want to feel?
• How do I want others to perceive my business?

Then get dressed and look in the mirror to discover if your reflection matches the answers to those two questions. If there’s a mismatch, it’s time to discover what type of clothing will help you create the image you want.
—

Lee Heyward has a passion for helping men and women discover their unique personal style so they feel confident, powerful, and successful. When you uncover your personal style, and your wardrobe and goals are in alignment–the possibilities are endless. Lee is the author of Simply Effortless Style: A Real Woman’s Guide to Making Style Easy and Fun. You can learn more about Lee at http://www.stylewithlee.com.

Yesterday a client texted to tell me she had just met Kevin Harrington
(you know, the founder of As Seen on tv and Sharktank guy).
She said, Lee, it all happened because of this outfit. You see last week we created a wardrobe strategy for the conference she is currently attending.  We put together outfits that specifically portrayed an essence of success. This particular cream pant and fabulous blouse screamed just that when she bumped into a colleague who commented that she looked amazing, and must be doing really well for herself. Then he introduced her to his business partner, Kevin Harrington. Successful people are attracted to other successful people. And meeting key people can be as simple as a killer outfit. That’s the power of image. Isn’t that cool!

 The question is, does your image help you easily achieve the success you’re after?