Personal stylists are as vital to a man as the services of an experienced resume writer . Why is this so!

When a man is seeking a new job or a promotion he well might seek the professional advice and services of an experienced resume writer.  He would appreciate the skills and knowledge this person would bring to bear on his quest for advancement. After all, a resume says so much about a person’s work experience, qualifications and aspirations. A prospective employer makes important judgements based on a resume. The job seeker would acknowledge this fact and that a professionally presented resume makes a positive impression.

However, would the same job seeker recognise the importance of his own personal presentation and accept that an employer makes equally important judgements based on this? The saying, ‘you can’t judge a book by its cover’ may be true, but when there are thousands of books vying for readers, it helps if your book attracts positive attention. And I’m not sure that this analogy is completely true for people. We tell the world a lot about ourselves in the way we visually present. People may not always interpret us correctly but the point is that people use our appearance to form opinions about us.

Many men would acknowledge that appearance matters. Many others would challenge this premise with arguments that the quality of someone’s work is what really matters. However, few men would truly understand the subtleties of subliminal messages and visual short cuts. The job interviewer does not have the time to get to know the candidates sitting before him. Consciously or otherwise he or she will use visual shortcuts to form opinions about a candidate. Often they will rely on their intuition to decide whether they trust and like the person in front of them. The way a man dresses, stands and speaks tells the world a great deal about who he is, what he does, how he feels about himself, where he comes from and where he is headed.

Consider two professional men looking for a job, one in a conservative law firm the other in an innovative advertising agency. Both men will wear a suit and tie for their interviews. Both men need to be judged as qualified, capable and professional. But one needs to convince his prospective employer that he is learned, conservative and careful, the other needs to be perceived as creative, dynamic and a risk taker. Both need their visual appearance to support them. How do they do this?  Engaging the services of a personal stylist would be a great option.

Stylists understand the subtle nuances created by the colour of a tie, the cut of a suit and the nature of accessories such as watches, briefcases and cuff links. A personal stylist can assess a man’s current image and give him an honest appraisal of the tangible and subliminal messages he is sending about himself. Then the stylist and the client can decide if those messages are conveying accurate and positive information. If not, the stylist will lead the client on a journey of self discovery to create a visual image that will truly reflect his personality, abilities and potential. The stylist will help the client present in a way that best suits the position to which he aspires.

No visual image will ever replace professional skills, work ethics and qualifications however an appropriate visual image will afford a man opportunities that a poorly presented person rarely receives.