AWKWARD! Be stylish without sticking out 🎩

Published: Sat, 09/19/20

Elevate your style without feeling AWKWARD

As a men’s image consultant, a significant concern is looking out-of-place among friends with a new look. Clients are concerned they won't be able to integrate their elevated style into their life without sticking out.

With that being said, I have a few tips I have recommended to men that I worked with (1) to up their game and (2) to still fit into their social setting. A great deal has to do with your core of friends. You might hang-out with a group of guys and the level of dressiness or level of sloppiness will determine where you're going to start with elevating your style.

Style Strategy | One Level at a Time

First, determine where your starting level of dress is.
Analyze and identify yours and your friends’ current style levels and then elevate yours one level.
Do not go full force, jumping in with both feet. In other words, don't go from ‘sloppy’ to ‘James Bond’ in one fell swoop, which is typically when your friends will notice and then give you a hard time.

Here's how to do it. If you look around and everybody in your group is wearing NASCAR t-shirts and sweatpants all the time, then you have bigger issues because these guys definitely don't have a clue. You could probably show up wearing pajamas, and they wouldn't even notice. Generally, your friends aren't going to be that bad all the time, but they could be wearing big & baggy jeans + sneakers + ratty old t-shirt kind of crew (aka super ultra-casual). The first step would be to progress to simply elevate one level to casual.

Instead of wearing baggy, high rise relaxed-fit jeans, wear a nicer pair of fitted jeans such as straight leg with a mid-rise. This modified version of the previously ‘normal’ dress is just elevated one level.
Instead of the ratty t-shirt, you can show up in a cool vintage t-shirt that is more fitted. This change still fits within the culture and people that you hang-out.
Instead of wearing running shoes (aka functional sneaker), opt for a fashion or all white minimal leather sneaker.

Now, if everybody is sitting around in big and baggy cotton khaki pants, the next level up would be a better fitting khaki slack or a nicer chino with a higher thread count. This one level elevation does not put you in a three-piece suit, but it's elevating your style by taking you one step further outside of the style box you're currently in with your friends.

Another example is: if you're wearing a nice t-shirt but you want to step it up a bit more, throw on a cardigan or perhaps a nice v-neck sweater. You could even progress to a sports coat or sharp jacket. Elevate piece-by-piece.

Your friends may notice, and perhaps they will be into it as well. Often I find with the men with which work is that once they elevate their style, friends may give them a hard time at first (if they even notice), but then they start asking questions. The friends ultimately start making similar style changes, which is a really an interesting phenomenon.

Gentleman, don't let your friends or fear of being mocked stop you from elevating your style. Take calculated fashion risks. Analyze where you are stylistically and then step up one level at a time-- don't take it two or three levels.

Your friends probably won't notice these slow and subtle changes, but as I said, by implementing the 'One Level at a Time' strategy, your overall image is going to elevate.

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