4 DIY Tips For An Instant Mood Boost

“Looking good isn’t self-importance; it’s self-respect.” Charles Hix

For as long as I remember, I have felt a distinct correlation between clothes and our moods. Researchers have identified a series of psychological changes that occur when we wear certain clothes.

We generally take a little extra effort to look nice for special occasions. But for the most, people remain conflicted between wanting to dress up and feeling guilty about taking the time to focus on clothes. Science suggests that how we dress may just be the difference between giving ourselves the extra edge in our professional and personal lives. And the?clothes?we wear affect our behavior, attitudes, personality, mood, confidence, and even the way we interact with others. This is called Enclothed Cognition, a term I came across approximately 10 years ago and consistently reference in articles/ podcasts/speaking events.

Enclothed Cognition is a term coined by Hajo Adam and Adam D. Galinsky in their experiment from 2012. It is used to describe the effect that our clothes seem to have on various psychological processes like emotions, self evaluations, attitudes, and interpersonal interactions. And it involves the co-occurrence of two independent factors—the symbolic meaning of the clothes?and?the physical experience of wearing them.?

We consider some clothes to be powerful, some to be fun, and so on. We even evaluate people in seconds before actually meeting based on their clothes and the occasion.?It would seem that we also evaluate ourselves and our roles based on what we are?wearing at a?particular time; because of the way they make you feel. This means that the experience of wearing something subtly affects our attitudes and our choice of behaviour. You only have to go back in history to see how the likes of royalty, religious & empire leaders, aristocrats dressed to not only distinguish them selves from others, but also 'feel' different (save that for another post).

I could write a much longer newsletter on the various psychological factors to how what we wear affects us such as work success, political persuasion, uniforms etc but I'm going to single this one down to dressing to improve our moods, otherwise known as Dopamine dressing. Fashion psychologist Dr Dawnn Karen came up with the term which simply means that to dress in something we love, we can activate the release of dopamine, the feel good chemicals our bodies make.

While our mental state?most definitely affects the way we dress; the reverse is also true. What we wear does affect how we cope on days when we are?depressed, anxious and stressed. The quickest?little fix for a bad day is to wear?cheerful colours, textures and items that give us that mini pick-me-up; and thus?boosting our energy and moods. Karen calls this concept 'mood enhancement.' If you feel terrible, try wearing something you love, and it may make you feel better. Also, we associate bright colors with happiness, sunny days, and carefree times (like summer vacations).

On the other hand, we associate deep and dull colors with low energy, being tired and a more somber mood. So the next time you feel like donning loose, dark coloured items to hide a bad day, reach out for something brighter!?I back this up 100% as I adopt this approach and it certainly helps.

One of the main reasons I made personal styling a career after several career changes is because I mastered the art of creating and recreating my own style and loved how I felt when I dressed, which generally set me up for a great day ahead. There was something in this that I wanted to share with women ( and men) so they could create the same sense of confidence and feel good on a daily basis. Notice how there are millions of books, medications, courses, blogs, seminars, podcasts, You Tube videos, you name it, guiding you on how to feel good yet few teach the simple and ancient process of dressing up to feel great? I am a firm believer in adding this one to your daily routine as an instant pick me up. A couple of years ago I was invited to speak at a YPO event in Sydney. I came up with the 5th Element ( below photo).

Here are my top 4 DIY tips for an instant pick me up:

1) Editing: This is the only preparation part you need to do. Re-arrange your wardrobe so you place the items that you love, where you can visually see them, not tucked at the back or folded away. These include items you love and rarely wear because you consider them only for special occasions only, or they are too good to wear around the house, or for a one day when feeling confident day, or whatever reasons. The items you pick may hold a memory of a fun location/vacation where you danced around all night, or someone special you met or were with when you wore it, or a memory of a loved one recently passed. Or the colours/ prints/ designs simply light up your face. It doesn't matter, the items just need to give you joy when you wear them.

2) Make It A Habit: I do this with all my clients after they have completed the 3 step style transformation: Every morning for 2 weeks, regardless of whether you are working from home or heading into the office - wear an item or outfit that you love and you know makes you feel great (active wear/ overly comfy wear/PJ's are not an option as they have a counter effect). And pick a different outfit each day for 2 weeks. This can also mean wearing the same piece but re-inventing it with something new. i.e. your favourite red blouse worn with a black skirt & earrings one day and blue trousers and necklace the next. This is important in order to kick old habits and ways of thinking. The creative part of your brain also starts to kick in and that raises your endorphins giving you a fun hit each morning. Once you reach the 2 weeks, you will want to keep going with different outfits and re-inventing. One more important thing with this exercise - Instead of pre-planning your outfit the night before, dress according to how you?feel?when you wake up in the morning.?You will select different colours/ textures based on how you want to feel.

3) Rattle Your Comfort Zone: Most women only wear 20% of their wardrobe and trust me, the best & most exciting pieces are not part of this 20%. Ensure that some of the pieces you wear have the wow factor that lights you up when you place them on and can be a little out of your comfort zone. Of course within reason - wearing a sparkly dress to represent a client in court may not be the best option - but a sparkly pair of shoes or shiny brooch may be! The Important thing is to wear something a little out of your comfort zone - this boosts your endorphins.

4) Power of Accessories: Utilise accessories - do not underestimate the power of accessories and how they can instantly lift an outfit - the same outfit. I see this time and time again; is all it takes is a statement accessory to make an ordinary outfit into an extraordinary one. So dust off your accessories and have them where you can easily access them.

And lastly, have fun with it all. Life is so stressful we take ourselves too seriously when it comes to our style. Yes be mindful of your fashion choices to reflect you and your moods, and at the same time, have a blast putting your outfits together. In the end, if you dont like it, you can take it off, nothing is permanent.

To con?lude: My long held belief as to why we want to dress up to feel good is our basic human need of self-respect. By self-caring, tending to our inner needs, we are self -respecting ourselves.

About Me: I'm a personal stylist based in Sydney, travel worldwide for my clients. My vision is to create a world where artistic bravery and creative expression are revered above mediocrity and trends. I help every woman (and man) who covets the unique, the distinctive, the sartorial flair, to fearlessly embrace their own individual character, through their style...to express their voice through their style. If you want to harness your creative flair and to stand out from the rest in your own unique way, let's chat. If you want safe and what everyone else wants, I am not the stylist for you! X

You can read more about me here and follow me on IG @stylebygessica where you will be inspired by my curations to shift your style boundaries and shake things up.

Enjoy

Gessica X