Mood Dressing
Control Freak?
When I suggest to people that they choose the next day’s clothing the night before to save time and stress in the morning, the most common reply is “But what about my mood? I may not feel like those clothes in the morning! Then I’m starting all over again.” I don’t mean to sound unsympathetic, but who’s in control in that situation? Are you in control of your mood, or are you letting your mood control you? If you have been up all night long with a sick child, and are now going to the doctor instead of work, I understand you need easy, wash and wear comfort clothes. Go change. The suit and pumps you chose last night aren’t going to cut it for the day’s activities!
Dress for How You Want to Look and Feel
I would posit that on 90% of the other days, you don’t even really know what kind of mood you are in (except the Need More Sleep and Coffee mood) when you get dressed in the morning! To be honest, I’m not sure I want to see what the Need More Sleep and Coffee outfit looks like… The problem with letting your mood control your dressing is that moods are temporary. They flit from one place to another, up and down all day long. Do you really want to drag a lousy morning mood along with you all day? I suggest that dressing for how you want to look and feel is a better choice. Studies by a UK researcher in the showed that when people wear superhero shirts, they feel more likeable, and test subjects wearing white coats (doctor-type) do better on mental agility tests. What we wear affects not only how others perceive us, but how we ourselves feel and behave.
Try it for a Week
So, let’s do some science! Make yourself the subject of a dressing experiment. Take two minutes at bedtime Sunday evening to lay out or hang up your clothes for Monday. Repeat each evening. (I know a man who does this on Sunday for the whole week! That’s a bit much, even for a planner like me…) See if your mornings aren’t less stressful. Then come back and let me know how your experiment went. Please do, I am insanely curious!
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2 Comments
NATALIE K
Liz, I must pick out my outfits for two days at a time!! On dialysis nights I’m simply unable to pick out my clothing for the next day!! I do a much better job of being fashionable when I layout my clothing a day or two before!! I actually prefer to layout all my outfits on Sunday afternoons for the week!! Accessories and nail polish done for the week!! This makes me feel better about myself and calmer during the week!! I personally need this!!
Liz K
That makes SO much sense, Natalie! I’m glad you’ve found something that works for you, especially for those challenging days. I was just talking to Mr. CP yesterday about how I used to be so much better at doing my nails when I did them every Sunday evening!