I've rephrased a line from the musical Wicked in today's title because I am studying, observing, and feeling the ways we are informed, styled, and motivated by how we look. Have you been thinking about how you look--at yourself and at others--more during holiday social times? This is when you see new people (and they see you), and people who (literally) size you up since the last time y'all got together--everyone from grandma to your sister's new boyfriend. That's what you are doing right back at 'em, right? But it's all good--even fun--when you take over yourself!
During the holidays, you encounter more people in social situations than you experience in other seasons of the year. Even the clothes you wear for wintertime, rather than summertime, for your particular environment, affect your feelings about how you look to others and how you look at others.
To Make Over Yourself, Take Over Yourself
So, do it: Go to a Western store and try on hats and boots. Go to a department store and try on fedoras and caps. Go to milliner (yes, there ARE still places to find sized hats) and find a fine style for your face, features, and head size! Charlie Brown needs one size of hat; but you may need another.
Notice the fabulous style and flair of Santa Claus. His hat is all you need to conjure some of the positive vibe from Santa. Start your hat chats with a Santa hat, and notice how it complements everything from jeans to strapless gown--the mark of classic elegance. Wear your Santa hat while you go inside a service station to pay for gasoline, while you stand in a grocery store line, to your dinner party with friends--and, especially, at home. Write down at least one thing you notice in how another person responds to your wearing the hat.
Years ago, when I shopped for my grandfather at Christmas, I had his neck size, arm length, waist, and pants length (and began my envy of men's clothing tailoring then, as I got 1/2 size increments on his presents--while guessing if anything fit my grandmother from general masses of 'small'--'medium'--or 'large'--too often resulting in a shapeless nightgown). I usually opted to buy Papa a hat, as I had his exact hat size. Years later, I found that women's clothes, too, can be tailored--for an additional fee. But in those years, even though women did wear fabulous hats to church and to other events, I had never been in a milliner's store, with hats made to order. The women's hats I found then (and now) were not sized.
Male or female, treat yourself to finding a way to have some clothes tailored, by exact sizing or by alterations, to fit! First, do this with a wonderful hat. Shop around for the style you like for yourself. Then, get one that really fits!
Get a new hat! Santa is the world's best hat wearer. Try one of his style. While you are wearing your Santa hat, think about having fun and taking care of all of our friends who are 'there' for us no matter who we are or what we do: See the video. (It's funny.)
How do you see other people? How do people see you when they meet you for the first time--or after a long time? What do you want to see when you look into the mirror? How do you look? Why do you look this way today? How will you look tonight? How will you look tomorrow?
The following is a brief animation about the interaction among different types of participants in a conversation or meeting. Using the hats to designate each 'type'--the 'E4 project' presents an organized way to realize the effective ways to interact with others, accessing the various strengths, and how to realize and animate your personal strengths. You can identify if you are using all of the colors of hats in your own participation--and to use the strengths of others in 'team' effort. This is a way to use how we look to others and toward others in making united effort toward complex and creative objectives. (Unfortunately, in my opinion, all of these animated hat wearers are male; but I'm including this anyway. It's well done, otherwise.)
My first chapter of my book, How We Look, begins with hats. (JudiethCarolCooper, c.2010) (for details about entire book, send an email to Word Pro, Inc. wordproinc@gmail.com with subject line: How We Look )begins with hats. The next chapter is 'Hair'--for awhile. Then we work through neck and shoulders...all the way to feet (Think outside your Socks! See http://www.coolrocketschool.com/) and shoes. From the stars above to the ground below, we are set in the stage of the world. Hold your head up. Pull your shoulders back. Find something to make you laugh. Here's a start.
