The Power of Ordinary

A couple of Sundays ago our church had a missionary pastor in town. As he stood up to lead the sermon he was crying. He then said something that really stuck with me. He said, “They’re is such power in what is ordinary.” Our large congregation, the sound of the hand bells, the amazing music from the choir, it was all part of an ordinary Sunday to us. But for him, it moved him to tears.
It got me thinking about how easy it is to take the ordinary for granted.  It’s often the ordinary that can create some of the biggest opportunities—like a chance encounter at the grocery store, a kind smile every day to everyone you see, or simply someone pointing out how cool the ordinary truly is.
When it comes to your image, it’s often the out of the ordinary moments that drive you to make a change or push you to become your best self. But it’s the days that might feel just like all the others that can sometimes make the most impact. So instead of putting on whatever is clean and comfortable to go about your ordinary day, I’d like to inspire you to create an image that makes each day feel extraordinary. I bet some pretty amazing things will happen!

I had the pleasure of attending the Authority Marketing Summit last week with Dan Kennedy and Adam Witty. It was a great event showing authors how to market themselves to be the top authority in their industry. On the first night of the event there was a cocktail party directly after the closing session. Everyone was excited about the occasion but befuddled by what to wear.
To make life easier the next time you find yourself in this situation here are a few tips on how to go from conference attire to cocktail attire in just a few minutes.
Tip #1: Plan ahead and pick an outfit that you can easily make feel dressier by changing your accessories. I wore a DVF wrap dress similar to this one.
Tip #2: Wear different shoes to make your outfit feel more professional and then more fun. For example, with this dress I chose to wear a knee high boot during the day and changed into a sling back stiletto for the cocktail party.
Tip #3: Change up your hair. Pack your bag with a few essentials like a comb, hair accessory, and bobby pins. You can pull your hair back into an easy up do for an evening look.
Tip #4: Bring fun jewelry to change into before the cocktail event. I wore a large chunky necklace during the day. It filled the space of the v-neckline keeping it more professional. For the cocktail portion of the evening I removed the necklace for a more open neckline and added large blingy earrings.
Tip #5: Refresh your make up. Pack a few make up essentials in your bag to add a little night time glamour to your look. Eye liner, lipstick, and blush can help take your look from day to night.

I had the pleasure of attending the Authority Marketing Summit last week with Dan Kennedy and Adam Witty. It was a great event showing authors how to market themselves to be the top authority in their industry. On the first night of the event there was a cocktail party directly after the closing session. Everyone was excited about the occasion but befuddled by what to wear.
To make life easier the next time you find yourself in this situation here are a few tips on how to go from conference attire to cocktail attire in just a few minutes.
Tip #1: For men a suit with an open collar shirt is a great option for the daytime conference. Or, wear a dark colored blazer such as navy, grey, or black. Both looks can easily go to a cocktail party simply by applying the tips below.
Tip #2: Bring a fresh shirt with you to change into
prior to the cocktail party, particularly if you’re
someone who sweats.
Tip #3: Accessories are key to take your look from day to night.
If you are already wearing a tie during the day swap it out for a
tie with a little bit more shine or pizazz. Or, simply add a pocket square or lapel pin like this one from Brackish Bowties.
If wearing a suit with an open collar shirt during the day, bring a tie and pocket square with you to add to your look for the cocktail party.
Tip #4: Ensure your shoes are shined, polished, and in top shape. Nothing makes a man look more disheveled and casual than a shoe that is scuffed.

Attracting the right man is all about tapping into what makes you feel your best in a very authentic way. Don’t Make These First Date Style Mistakes!
#1 Forget about wearing something that makes you feel as if you have to suck it in all night!
Spanx are the greatest invention but if you’re uncomfortable it will show and prevent you from making a great first impression.
#2 Don’t always wear your little black dress.
If possible do a little research on where you’re going. Not all dates are meant for a hot dress, so dress with the venue and activity in mind. It’s always safe to air on the dressier side but do this with accessories so you feel fabulous no matter where you go.
#3 Don’t show it all off!
If you love your legs wear a short dress but then ensure you aren’t too revealing up top. If you’re going for a little cleavage keep everything else simple and sophisticated, and skip a super short skirt.
If you want to find out more about What to Wear to Attract Mr. Right sign up for my new webinar now!

What does your vision look like really? If you were to see it ON you… would it be purple? green? blue? Would it be fitted and sassy or loose and comfortable? Would your vision be tailor made or one size fits all?
How you dress everyday, regardless of whether or not others see you, will set the tone to what your vision looks like. Specifically if you are the leader of that vision (and if you are the business owner you are the leader of the vision 😉 So the real question to ask yourself is: “When I reach my vision, or when I reach my goal, what do I look like?” Or if it’s easier, you could say, “How do I dress?”
Let’s explore some fun details here, because I think a lot of people don’t think in this way. But, you know, maybe in three years you wanted to have your business be in X spot, and that included the fact you’re going to drive a certain car. Or maybe you finally bought the designer bag you really wanted. Or maybe you have a closet full of clothes that you really love to wear and you get dressed in three minutes because of it. The list can go on. Even, “I have somebody come blow out my hair every morning.” Why not? It’s whatever you want and once you can see this, then we can start making changes that are going to help you reach both the vision for your business, but then also for who you want to be and what you want to look like when you get there.
It doesn’t have to happen overnight, but when you start to play with who you are once you reach your goals and vision you’ve built yourself a road map to help you achieve looking and feeling great. So, that’s cool, right? Here is an experience one of my clients had:
She is now married with children, but she met her husband probably the Saturday after we had done our work together. Needless to say we up leveled her image 😉 We did a full wardrobe shopping trip. She was totally dressed to impress, looking super cute. Then she shows up at this party, and low and behold, she meets the gentleman who becomes her husband. She swears that she never would’ve met him if she had not taken the time to uplevel her image and really think about how she wanted to present herself. She said she probably never would have made it to the party, because she would’ve used the excuse that she had nothing to wear.
From a business perspective lets take a look at another client I have:
I worked with a gentlemen and we did a full uplevel of his style. He called me the Monday after, he had been at work, sort of debuting his new look (who doesn’t want to show off a new look?). He said his boss called him into his office, and it was kind of awkward. He shut the door and sat him down and said, “Look, I just need you to give it to me straight. Are you interviewing for other jobs?” It was kind of funny, because he wasn’t. But it ultimately led to a conversation that got him a raise and a promotion. And it was interesting because we had sat down before working together and really looked at where he wanted to go in both life and work, and, you know, the Monday he gets back to the office, he sort of instantly positioned himself to be there.
In both situations because each one made a decision to commit to a new level of how they and others would see them, completely shifted the result of not just their business experience but their life.
So my question to you today: Are you dressing your vision? (if your not, I wonder what opportunities you are potentially missing out on?)

For today’s Style Inspiration I have a funny story for you…(you may have heard me tell this before but I was reminded of this again today). It’s about someone I call the Bird Shit Lawyer.
A few years ago, my husband and I refinanced our home.  The attorney we used for this showed up at our house to complete the paperwork. He parked his car in our driveway and within the first few seconds of seeing it my perception of him was formed.
Right then and there I was skeptical of his expertise, I knew I would never use him again, and I was certain I wouldn’t refer him to anyone. And there was only one reason why.
His car was completely covered in bird shit. You’ll have to pardon my French but a car covered in “poo” just doesn’t have the same impact.
It’s not every day that someone arrives to your house with a car that looks like it’s been attacked by pterodactyl poop—so I had to know why.
The story goes that there is a tree in his driveway where a ton of birds live and poop on his car on a daily basis. Sure that sucks…but here’s the thing, there are at least 3 car washes within 5 miles of my house. It would have been pretty easy to run through one of those before meeting with a new client. And if he had, I would probably remember his name, the firm he works for, and might actually send more business his way. Instead, I only remember his car.
This guy didn’t take the time to attend to a minor detail—which has nothing to do with whether or not he’s a good lawyer. But because of that I can’t imagine that he’s going to take the time to attend to the details that will make him a good lawyer for me.
This is the power of first impressions.. It’s super easy to wash your car in order to form an impression that’s going to create a lifelong client. It’s also super easy to dress in a way that makes you feel authentic and attracts the right clients. The best part is that it’s just a decision. You decide to put on what feels comfortable—or you can put on what feels confortable, looks great and gets you business! I vote for the latter! 🙂
The bird shit lawyer chose not to pay attention to a small detail like his car. It’s my hope that this story gives you a little giggle and inspires you to ask what perception do you create when you meet a new or potential customer. Are they clamoring to know more about you and how you can help them? Or, are they never going to remember your name?

It’s interesting to me the things that make one person decide to trust and work with another (or decide not too.)

I have a friend who was telling me how her husband (corporate manager guy), would not even complete an interview with a candidate simply because his socks didn’t match the suit he had on. Something about a black suit with white athletic socks is where the issue was. The minute ole corporate manager guy saw that he completed the interview and marked the guy off the list. Didn’t even care if he was qualified… basically, his thought (says his wife), “if he can’t pay enough attention to the details, to put on the correct socks, I am not trusting him with a multi-million dollar budget.”
OUCH! You know that guy went on his interview likely feeling like he had it in the bag… little did he know his credentials NEVER mattered once he revealed himself through his, shall I say style faux pas.
Let me ask you… are you turning clients away because your style, image, wardrobe doesn’t match your brilliance? Because unless you know you are rocking that look… there is a good chance potential clients are knocking that look… sorry! I hate to be the one to say it but I want to be honest with you. How you represent your outward appearance speaks more about you than your words ever will.
The good news… I can help! Well more than help, we can transform your style into the poster of WHO YOU ARE!

What is a Personal Brand and What Can It Do For YOU?
Can you really create opportunity in your business simply by getting dressed? YES, let me share:
I recently went to volunteer for the Special Olympics here in Charleston as a timer for a kayaking race. We are all finishing up, and I’m walking back along with one of the other timers. She asked me what I do. So I told her how I help business owners DRESS their vision, truly creating the style that represents how they see themselves and their success. She said I needed to be connected to her daughter… an immediate referral and there might be some real opportunities there. You just never know what opportunities are going to show up for you.
So what is a personal brand? This is something that we hear a lot people talk about. It’s a new buzz word. You have to go out and get a personal brand. If you don’t have a personal brand, you, don’t have a business kinda verbiage. People are talking about ‘personal brand’ as it pertains to becoming famous. The important thing to understand about a personal brand is it’s not something that you just go out and get: “Today, I’m going to get a personal brand.” It’s something that you’re creating, everyday, whether you are meaning to or not.
Personal branding is all about how you position yourself to others. Often you’re doing this in lots of different ways, whether it’s with your website or business card, how you’re wearing your hair, or what you choose to wear. All of these things make up a personal brand. Ultimately, the result is how your image communicates to potential clients, or you can think of it as how your are received by a potential client.
So think about a goldfish. Everybody’s seen a goldfish, it’s orange with black stripes, a certain size, etc… now what if you see a ‘blue’ goldfish, which by the way are totally real. Now your interest is peaked. Why is this goldfish blue and not orange? What happened in the scope of evolution that this could happen? See what happens, when something shows it’s self out of the norm or even in contrast to it’s expectation, one can’t help but be intrigued.
This is how you want to think about creating your own personal brand. You are essentially creating an opportunity to stand out. The idea is not to kind of put yourself out in a way that you’re like, “Oh, I don’t want to be the blue fish. It’s scary to be the blue fish.” It’s about positioning yourself so that the blue fish is somebody that feels authentic and is somebody that you feel confident being.
When you develop this personal brand that you feel really confident around it will make a HUGE difference in how you present yourself to your clients, how you feel about yourself on a daily basis, and how energized you are to do the things needed to reach your goals.

Personalize Your Apple Watch with A Great Band

 
(Photograph from PCmag.com)

Make your Apple watch your own. Check out some of these great options for a watch band to suit your image. Simply click the image to see these watch bans online: