Why Style is Worth Caring About4 min read

We are on the cusp of a men’s style renaissance. From the ever-growing list of bloggers, YouTube channels, Instagram influencers to Tumblr and Pinterest inspiration, as well as countless subscription services, we live in a time that there’s an abundance of resources to help men dress better.

Dressing well has always been an ideal worth striving for, [Tweet this] but that ideal is more important now than ever.

Look around and what do you see? Men who just don’t seem to care. You see ultimate style sins, ill-fitting clothing, poor color combinations, clashing patterns, a lack of attention to detail, blind trend chasing. The list goes on and on. It doesn’t take much to break from the sea of unkempt guys out there.

Here’s the million-dollar question: why don’t more men dress like they give a damn?

I think a big part has to do with not knowing where to start. And not knowing what dressing well actually looks like. Another reason being that style and dressing up is associated with fashion, and “fashion is for girls.” Or a man might be perceived as gay for dressing stylishly.

Many men just don’t believe it’s all that important. And that’s fine. It takes some guys a bit longer to realize the power in dressing well.

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Style in Our Time

When it comes to style today, people think of GQ or fashion runways. Magazines like GQ and Details are are full of advertisements and usually too fashion forward and trendy. These magazines simply don’t appeal to everyday men, making them apathetic towards the subject. Men figure that they just aren’t stylish or could never pull off the look.

To make matters worse, when a man does try to “up” his style,  he’s sure to face criticism from family and friends. Of course they mean well, but it will take them some time to get used to the new you.

And as for trends, of course they have a place in men’s style. After all, cargo shorts and v-neck tees are trends. We all follow them to an extent. I advocate experimenting with trends because it’s a part of the process in developing one’s style, but it’s easy to go overboard.

A surefire way to consistently dress sharp is to know your wardrobe essentials. By having awareness of what you’re wearing and how you wear it, you’ll be sure to look great when looking back decades from now. I’m also of the mindset that fashion and style are not one in the same.

Fashion is trendy and expensive, it fades over time. Style, on the other hand, is timeless and can be affordable. The classic staples will always be “in style.”

Gentleman, it’s time to embrace this renaissance by looking inward. The clothes won’t make the man, but they can break him. People judge and form opinions about us in a matter of seconds. The first thing people notice is our appearance.

It may be shallow, but it’s human nature. When we have nothing else to go by, we classify people as competent or incompetent based on their style. A poorly dressed man will be seen as incompetent and unkempt in other areas of his life, regardless of how successful he is.

You want to give the best representation of who you are from the start. By dressing up, you can show up knowing that you’re putting your best self forward. Your confidence will skyrocket and people will notice.

Who tells Your Story?

You want to dress comfortably, you want to dress appropriately for the situation, and you want to dress in a way that tells your story the way you want to tell it.

Personal style is unique to you. It’s okay to mirror what you like, but ultimately it’s about putting your own spin on it. You want to develop a personal style that reflects the man on the inside. And in time you will find that dressing well becomes effortless—and that ease carries through to other parts of your life as well.

It’s simple: the better you dress, the better you feel, and the more inspired you will be to take action, to tackle the plans and goals you’ve been kicking around in your head for all these years. But first, what kind of story do you want to tell?

Every day, you tell a story with your clothes. What kind of story do you want to tell? [Tweet this]

There is a renaissance happening, gentleman. Men are striving to dress better and learning the importance of why it pays to be a stylish man. They are inspiring others to be their best selves. The men who put thought and effort into developing their personal style are in a position to live better in all aspects of life.

I’ve talked about this men’s style renaissance as it pertains to dressing well. It is worth noting that a man’s style goes beyond his outward appearance.

Style is about more than the clothes you wear. It’s who you are on the inside and how you present yourself to the outside world. It’s having appreciation and cultivating gratitude.

And most importantly it’s about how you live your life.

Ultimately, style comes from within.

 Let me know in the comments below. How do you feel about style in the grand scheme of things?