Ever wonder what makes you feel comfortable putting on your favorite jeans? It may prompt you to think about how your clothes affect the way you think and feel, as well as your behaviour and performance.
A lot of people put extra effort into dressing up for special occasions, but most of them are confused between dressing well and feeling guilty about wanting to. Some people don’t want to put a lot of time or think about their attire.
Recent research and studies suggest there’s more to the story. Science suggests that a makeover can help you to be more successful in all aspects of your personal, professional and social lives.
Therefore, there’s some truth in sayings such as ‘look good, feel good. The way you dress affects your personality, attitudes, behavior, confidence, and mood. If you’re thinking about it, the term for this is known as the enclothed cognition.
Clothing Cognition
The term”enclothed cognition” is a reference to the effect that your clothing has on various mental processes. The most common are self-evaluation, interpersonal interaction emotional state, and attitude. Because of the symbolism behind various types of clothing in our society, enclothed cognition can be a consequence.
Society leads you to believe certain clothes are more elegant and impressive than others. However, there are certain styles that are interesting and enjoyable. This is the reason your mind begins to analyze the persona and fashion preferences of a person you just had the pleasure of meeting.
Clothes and occasions enable us to judge ourselves as well as others. People are naturally judged of their own self and evaluate their roles according to the clothes they wear. It’s usually a reflection of the way an outfit makes you feel at a given moment.
The concept of clothed cognition means that your experience of the clothes you wear can affect your behavior and attitude.
How do clothes affect your thinking?
Dressing smartly is vital to your confidence and self-empowerment. However, your clothes don’t only show your personality, but also send messages to the brain. It could even have a profound impact on the way you think.
One scientific study regarding the effect of professional attire on how you think suggests that professional attire promotes abstract thinking. Since it helps to define social boundaries as well as distance, it increases your ability to think more abstractly and distant concepts.
The formal attire you wear influences your way of processing, improving your decision-making. Therefore, your suit and tie could be providing you with a broader perspective that can be very helpful in gaining promoted.
The same study also found that students who have more formal education to college exhibit a higher tendency to be abstract in their thinking.
Thin-Slicing
Thin-slicing refers back to a psychological procedure that lets you instantly deal with visual details. It gives you an intuition, gut feeling or impression of a person or thing.
Any new stimuli triggers your brain to make quick judgments. Ever feel like one person is more reliable and stable than another? This is why you evaluate books based on their covers.
So, thin-slicing makes it essential to be selective about how you present yourself, and the clothes you wear play essential to the overall look. Remember that this is the stage and how you dress will affect your performance.
Let’s examine the impact that certain outfits affect your mood.
Gym Clothes
What do you do on days that you’re not feeling motivation to workout? You throw on your activewear to get your mind ready. You’ll feel more motivated to exercise after you don your gym clothes. What’s the reason?
It may be because your gym clothes set the mood and serve as a reminder to stay healthy. If you dress in a certain attire, it automatically changes your mood and sets you up to perform a certain function.
Uniforms
Your clothes influence your behavior and attitude as well as your thinking. The uniform is a piece of clothing connected to certain roles and expectations. Uniforms can help you to be more knowledgeable about your job.
In addition, it can also give you a sense of responsibility which makes you aware of what is expected from you. Your coat can also encourage you to pay concentration on the task at hand, which means you are less likely to make mistakes and mistakes.
School-going children also need to understand the psychological value of uniforms. Numerous studies prove that uniforms make children more productive. Uniforms make school more important and worthwhile.
Suits
Do you you feel more confident wearing a well-tailored jacket than you wear when you dress casually? Have you ever heard the expression dress for the job you’d like, not the job you’re currently working for?’ It seems like formal attire could make a significant impact on your attitude and how you think about your business or job.
Structured clothing and office wear like suits and dress shirts will help you get your mind set to work. These powerful outfits will make you feel more confident, energized and at ease. This is why that many call it power clothing.
Wearing powerful clothing releases certain chemical substances in the brain to help you display power. This contributes to making you an abstract thinker and a better negotiator.
Try it yourself
If you are aware of how your choice of clothes affects your emotions and thinking process, here’s how you can play around with different outfits. This will boost your mood and help you succeed more in your professional and personal life.
Colors
The color you pick can instantly lift your mood, and also convey specific meanings. Therefore, you should pick the colors accordingly to dictate your emotions, behavior and confidence.
- Colors with a lot of brightness, like yellow, can make you happy.
- Blue is a colour that promotes professionalism and calm. It also increases trust.
- A darker shade of blue represents consistency and dependability
- Red can make you feel sexually excited so don’t be afraid to wear it if want to feel hot and sexy.
- Black gives you the power and control you need.
- Purple is the symbol of mysticism and spirituality.
- Brown can be worn to make you appear more grounded and trustworthy.
- Orange is a fruit that emits a jovial energy
- Pink can make you feel more romantic
- White is the best color for maintaining a positive and positive emotional state
- The color green has soothing and healing effects
Fabrics
The clothing you wear can alter your appearance and outlook.
- Fabrics like wool and cotton develop a sense of calm and peace, encouraging a more relaxed lifestyle
- Silk and other fabrics that feel smooth against your skin could improve your mood and decrease stress.
Prints and Embellishments
We’ll move on to embellishments and prints. These can regulate your emotions.
- You can feel overwhelmed with excitement, excitement and joy when you use sequins and other ornaments.
- Animal prints, such as stripes from tiger help to create fun emotions
Bottom line
Your mood and motivation, as well as your confidence and your behavior throughout the day could be affected by how you dress and what clothes you choose. The colors and styles you choose to wear could affect your thoughts and affect the way you think. This is why it is crucial that you choose your clothes with care.
