by Jesse Johnson, www.jessejohnsoncoaching.com
When you are your business–and all spiritual teachers, healers, and coaches are — any area where you find yourself insecure creates a magnet for poking. As you work on your mindset, master sales, increase your visibility and impact, whatever little bits of doubt, fear, and worry you’re holding onto get amplified for all to see.
This phenomenon reminds me of the story of the Emperor’s new clothes — he was naked, and everyone could see.
When I started my coaching business in 2016, my fashion sense was questionable. I had learned rather late in life how to dress professionally. I would say that my “look” was that of a high-school math teacher. My wardrobe needed an upgrade and a rebrand, and I had no idea how to do it on my own.
Within the first year of my business, I hired a stylist and have elevated my wardrobe at least every season ever since. My new clothes were a way of helping me step into a new version of myself. Spending money in new ways, deliberately taking ownership of how I wanted to be seen, and making conscious choices about how I wanted to show up in the world were all life changing decisions for me.
I took my business from startup to seven figures in only two years and I can’t imagine doing that without growing my clothes along with me. At first, the clothes elevated me, helped me become the woman, CEO, and spiritual teacher I knew I was born to be. They were a tool in my personal and professional development. There is no doubt that upgrading my wardrobe to align with the newer version of myself helped me to make more money.
My experience of personal development work is wide ranging, intense, and powerful. I have cried, screamed, punched, reflected, and questioned deeply. I appreciate my many teachers, mentors, and coaches who have guided me in my quest to more deeply understand myself and my potential. In all of this work, my work with my stylists has been the most personal, most tearful, most private, and most vulnerable of all of this work. It has consistently involved me being literally naked as I try on clothes, see myself wearing things that take me to the edge of my comfort zone, and allow all of my baggage about my own self-image come to the surface and transform. In the beginning, it was my least favorite work because it felt so painful to see myself and let myself be seen. It has been a deep healing for me.
Now, my clothes reflect my authenticity — I feel very much myself in my clothes. My clothes, my bags, and my shoes are all beloved to me. I love getting dressed every day. I love shopping for myself and adorning my beautiful and unique form. I know what looks great on my body and what clothes make me feel good on the inside. All of these things are skills I didn’t have until I hired a stylist to help me. Every entrepreneur deserves this fashion upgrade, and if your face, energy, and presence are assets in your business, this work is essential.
In 2017, I hired Jenni Lee (www.jennileestylist.com) to be my stylist. She has cleared out my closet with me, shopped with and for me, planned my wardrobe for events and travel, and truly touched every aspect of what it means to move throughout my day. She sees me even when I don’t see myself, and reflects the truth back to me. Working with her is fun, playful, and powerful — she is a professional, an expert, and she gets my mystical identity and knows how to help me express all of who I am.