“I’m a Navy Wearer”

Tip – If you want to ‘pop’ on camera or in front of any room, meeting or audience – break up navy and black with a colour – ANY colour!

“I’m a navy wearer!”

My client admitted to me last week. He had watched my TEDx talk about the hidden superheroes, I call “The Invisibles” who are often found around the office wearing black or navy, so they don’t stand out. They purposely wear darks so they are NOT noticed. I used to be one of these. My entire wardrobe was SAFE-BLACK.

At the BBC I wore ASM gear without realising it. An ASM is an assistant stage manager at a theatre or behind the scenes on any production. They always wear entirely black, so they are completely invisible when they change the set or work backstage.

Often invisible superheroes dressed in their ASM outfits are doing more work than anyone else and by wearing black, they are deliberately not drawing attention to themselves. They’ll often say things like…

“I don’t need to stand out in bright colours or draw attention to myself. That’s for show-offs. It’s a team effort, it’s not about ME, I don’t need to be in the spotlight… I’m not arrogant or egotistical”.

Yes I get it. If you care about your team, leading with integrity and being brilliant at what you do, that’s fantastic. Yes, you are respected. However, why not stand out and look, sound and feel a little more noticeable? You’re not going to lose your respect if you stand out a tiny bit more are you?

Look, there’s nothing wrong with wearing navy or black per se!

However, according to experts, and my brilliant professional stylist buddy Natasha Musson, colour ‘pops’.? This is particularly important on camera/Teams/Zoom/Webex. Ok you may not CARE about the “popping”, however, if you want to look, sound and feel a little bit more, well at the top of your game, you need to add a splash of colour.?

You DON’T need to wear:

·???????? Clown like stripes

·???????? BIG BOLD blouses

·???????? LOUD fluorescent fabrics

·???????? Flowers power shirts

·???????? The late Queen Elizabeth 2nd's?garish colours

·???????? Red trousers

·???????? Rupert Bear trousers

You DO need to

·???????? Be visible (if you wear only black, you disappear like the ASMs)

·???????? Break up the DARK materials

·???????? Feel confident

·???????? Feel like YOU

·???????? Dress for success – your way

If you speak to colour specialists (I had my “colours” done and I’m a cool winter!!), you’ll find very few people who actually look good in black anyway. It doesn’t always suit their natural skin tone.

So, my advice to my senior leader who admitted to being a “navy wearer”?

It’s not just about wardrobe choices! It’s about being MORE THAN just SAFE.

Why not up your presence and impact starting with your choice of jacket??So rather than go for the safe and slouchy same old same old, why not experiment with a shaket, or a bright accessory? How about a scarf, a statement necklace or a necktie with a shade of something new?

This inspired me to write this poem!

Ode to the Navy Wearer

Break up the navy, try something new

Break up the black with a vibrant hue

Break up the grey with a golden thread

Or how about a splash of cerise, green or red

Make dull days fresh with bold pinstripes

Colours pop, no matter what your type.

(By Esther Stanhope and a teeny bit of AI!)

The bottom line is…. you need to be visible, so people know how brilliant you are.

Please like and share my TEDx with as many people as you can! You know the drill.

#PersonalImpact #VisiblyBrilliant #Confidence