You’ve got the expertise. You’ve prepared what you’re going to say. You know your stuff inside out. However, the night before a speaking slot, a big networking event or a brand photoshoot, you find yourself standing in front of your wardrobe thinking: what on earth do I actually wear?
It happens to almost every woman I work with, and it happens to experienced, accomplished women who are brilliant at what they do. Visibility is one thing. Feeling ready to be visible is something else entirely.
After 20 years as a personal stylist, I know that what you wear when you’re showing up as the face of your brand isn’t just about looking professional. It’s about feeling so confident in what you’re wearing that it becomes invisible, so you can focus entirely on what you’re there to do.
Here’s how to get it right.
Start With How You Want to Feel, Not What You Think You Should Wear
This is the first question I ask every client before a high-visibility moment: How do you want to feel when you walk into that room?
Authoritative? Approachable? Creative? Polished but human?
Your outfit needs to communicate that before you’ve even said a single word. And that’s not vanity, that’s strategy. The people in the room or watching on screen will form an impression within seconds. Your job is to make sure that impression is the right one, and one that resonates with your audience.
Once you’re clear on the feeling, the outfit becomes much easier to build.
The Outfit Formula That Works Every Time
Whether you’re on a panel, at a conference, or hosting a brand shoot, this formula rarely fails:
- One strong piece. A blazer in a rich colour, a well-cut silk blouse, a tailored trouser. Something that does the heavy lifting.
- One neutral anchor. Trousers, a skirt or a dress in a clean, simple tone that doesn’t compete.
- One considered detail. A neckline that frames your face, a heel that gives you presence, a piece of jewellery that feels like you and elevates your outfit.
That’s it. You don’t need more. Complexity in an outfit often reads as noise, and you want people listening to what you’re saying, not being distracted by what you’re wearing.
Colour Is Your Most Powerful Tool
If you take one thing away from this post, let it be this: wear colour near your face.
Block colours always photograph and present better than small prints or patterns on stage, on screen, in headshots, across a room. Patterns can compress visually and compete for attention. Colour does the opposite. It draws the eye upward, toward you, toward your face.
Choose a colour that’s in your palette, one that works with your skin tone rather than against it. Not sure what that is yet? That’s exactly what I help women work out. But as a starting point, if a colour makes people say “you look well” when you wear it, it’s doing its job.
One thing I’d steer you away from: all black for the top half. I know it feels safe, but it can lose definition on camera and read as flat, rather than powerful. A coloured top, a silk layer, or even a strong blazer over black changes everything.
Comfort Is Non-Negotiable and It Goes Deeper Than You Think
Here’s something that doesn’t get talked about enough: if you’re uncomfortable in what you’re wearing, it will show. Not in an obvious way, but in the small things. The way you hold yourself. Whether you’re fully present or half-distracted by a waistband that’s too tight or a heel you’re not comfortable or confident in.
When you’re speaking or networking, you need to be able to breathe, move, stand tall and sit down without thinking about any of it. Test your outfit before the day. Sit in it. Walk in it. Raise your arms. If anything pulls, gaps, rides up or makes you feel self-conscious, it’s not the outfit.
This isn’t about playing it safe. It’s about wearing something you’ve already planned with precision, so on the day, your energy and focus goes where it matters.
A Note on the “Is This Too Much?” Thought
I hear this so often: “I thought about wearing that, but it felt like too much.”
Too bright. Too bold. Too dressy. Too confident.
Here’s my honest take after working with women for two decades: you are very rarely too much. You are, however, sometimes not quite enough, in the sense that you’re shrinking yourself to make other people comfortable, and in doing so, you’re dimming exactly the presence you worked hard to earn.
If you’re standing at the front of a room, or on a stage, or representing your brand, you are allowed to take up space. In fact, that’s your job – to stand tall, be proud of you and who you are! You’ve worked hard for this and now is the time for recognition.
Dress like someone who knows their value. Because you do.
Before Your Next High-Visibility Moment
A few final questions worth asking before you get dressed:
- What would I wear if my dream client was in that room meeting me for the first time?
- Does this outfit reflect who I am now, not who I was five years ago?
- Can I move, breathe and fully focus in this outfit?
- Is there one thing I could add or change that would make me feel 10% more like myself?
Often, it’s a small transformation, a different neckline, your favourite earrings, a colour you almost put back, that makes all the difference.
If you’d love support building a wardrobe that’s ready for every visibility moment in your business and life, I’d love to help. Book a free clarity call and let’s talk about what’s possible.
Chantelle is an award-winning personal stylist based in Devon, working with women nationally and internationally. Find out more about working together at personal-stylist.co.uk.
