Can The Way You Dress Make You More Money?

Reality check time! You are absolutely being judged by your appearance. Your appearance effects so many of aspects of your life – who your friends are, who you date, and how much money you make. Yep, the size of your bank account and the size of your wardrobe have a lot in common.

The problem is that most people don’t believe it. What they do believe is that building a great wardrobe is a waste of time and money. “It’s what in the inside that counts” is their go-to phrase. Don’t get me wrong, what’s in the inside does matter BUT it’s difficult for people to get there if they can’t get past the outside.

Having a polished appearance does take time and a bit money but I can assure you it’s worth every penny. My personal styling clients are making an investment in themselves when they hire me. I get rid of the garments that aren’t working for them, develop their new sense of style, and stock their closets with brand new clothes. In the end they almost always get raises, promotions, start their own businesses, or move on to a new job that they truly love.

The clothes do make the man, so to speak.

Still don’t believe me? I have stats.

Beauty = Bank

Woman who wear makeup make more money. This is according to a study funded by Procter & Gamble, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston University, and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. The study found that women who wore makeup ranked higher in competence and trustworthiness. In fact, these women earn more than 30% more vs. women who don’t wear makeup at all.

On the flip side, women who are “too pretty” are discriminated against when it comes to more “masculine” jobs. So save the extreme contouring for the weekends.

Sex Sells But It Doesn’t Make You Rich

Dressing ‘too sexy’ can make a woman seem less competent. So tuck that cleavage away ladies, you should be known for your mad skills instead of your killer curves. Know what I’m saying? The key is balance professionalism with feminist and general “attractiveness”.

Label Whores for the Win

Investing in some designer duds may actually make you enough money to afford them on a regular basis. According to Quickbase.com, a women wearing a piece that is clearly designer (with a logo or a recognizable look) get a positive response rate of 52% (vs. 13% from non-designer wearing gals). In fact, rocking designer resulted in twice as many contributions when soliciting for charity.

Image is Everything

If you work from home and wear your pajamas all day, the image you are portraying is laziness. Bad news. Always dress in line with the image you want to portray. If you want to be a boss, dress like a boss – even if you work from home (read more about that here).

Why All This Really Matters

When you look good you feel good. Exuding confidence just makes you better. Period. Think about the dudes who aren’t considering “attractive” and pull in the hottest chicks in town. How do they do it? Confidence, that’s how. Don’t you think the same could effect how much money you make? Of course it does.

Another reason all this dressing well is that first impressions last. The most important first impression you can make it during a job interview. Wow them and you get the job and salary you deserve.

Finally, dressing well established credibility and credibility fills up that wallet. If you dress like you own the company, you will get that kind of respect, and soon enough that kind of paycheck. For more on that, read this great post.

I’d love for you all to weigh in, do you think the way you dress effects your salary? Weigh in on the comments or over on my Facebook page.