When I'm in the mall, there is always an eternal struggle that pulls at my heart like a fat man pulls at a still attached chicken leg. Forever star-crossed, I know the decision I'm going to make will affect me for months, maybe even years. Standing next to the Indian dude selling video games out of the little cart that I'm pretty sure Nintendo came out with 20 years ago, a step must be taken, a decision must be made.
Will I drop my hard-earned money at youthful Champs or at suave Rockport? I think Lebron had an easier time choosing Miami, which was accompanied by betrayal and deceit, but that's another story.
Dressing for success or dressing for fresh is a choice everybody makes everyday. Some find it easy to choose while others, like myself, find it excruciatingly painful. This is because we live in a superficial world where you are judged by your clothes.
Your hat, your shoes, do you tuck your shirt in, do you let people wonder at your brazen chest hair, which ear and what type of earring do you use - it all tells a story. And unfortunately, perception is reality. So no matter how comfortable you are wearing your beat-up yet still usable Chuck Taylor's out at the club, trust me when I say this:
People are watching; people are commenting.
It's a sad truth but one I think deserves some insight. Why is it so difficult to skirt that line between dressing for success and dressing for fresh? Is it even that difficult at all or am I just the crazy one? Perhaps a definition is in order to help organize exactly what is dressing for success and what is dressing for fresh.
Let's get our grown man on first, shall we. Dressing for success, in my humble opinion, is buying clothes that you would wear to these types of events - a job interview, high end wedding, your own murder trial, rigid Southern Baptist church, President Obama's dinner party. Typically, these types of clothes fit your frame, are more smooth than flashy, come in complementary designed pieces/sets, and aren't found (again, typically) at the local seedy swap meet. Not necessarily always built for comfort, but built to make you look like somebody.
Freshness, swag, whatever you want to call it, is equally as troublesome to define in terms of clothing. Universally, dressing for fresh is purchasing clothes that you would probably wear to these events - fraternity/sorority picnic, basketball game, music concert, Miami Beach vacation, Lil Wayne's dinner party. While fresh clothes are more casual, pedestrian isn't the look the owner is trying to convey. Brand name is where freshness is often found but originality and uniqueness are often more desired, leading hundreds of people to trying anything to stand out. These are the clothes that you usually want, but don't need, the clothes that don't wear the man, it's how the man wears them.
Now that both have been defined, here is the core of the problem that seems to plague me and so many others. Can the two mutually coexist?
To me, it's yes and no.
Dressing for success and dressing for fresh are like twins. They can look very similar, but are fundamentally different from each other. This is because business clothes, which often signify your success clothing, tries to bring as much individualism as possible while blending in with the crowd. On the flip side, most fresh clothing wants the wearer to look representable, like this outfit actually cost some money and isn't completely random.
A good example is Polo. Polo shirts have become the poster child for looking professional yet stylish at the same time. You can wear a polo to work and then put that same shirt on, after some heavy cologne probably, and hit the bar. It's a brand that everyone recognizes and it is virtually worn by all races, groups and ages. You will find a Polo shirt in Donald Trump's closet as well Gucci Mane's. Trump's will smell like crushed dreams and Gucci's will smell like strippers and drank. Point is, the shirts are there.
But all brands aren't Polo, and Donald Trump is not Gucci Mane.
It is still rare to be able to mix fresh and success. Jordans don't belong on suits and Loafers don't go with checkered shirts. It's that simple, no matter who tries to make it play. Lady Gaga can't even make a business vest go with a Hawaiian shirt, and she gets a pass for everything, including being absolutely mad. A full meat dress? Enough said right there.
Now this where my labor pains are fiercest with no epidural in sight. Do you have to choose one or the other? The older I get, it seemingly seems that way.
While I should be exclusively looking for my next new white dress shirt at Dillard's, I'm messing around in FootLocker looking at t-shirts with catchy phrases some dude who watches way too much SportsCenter comes up with. Is that wrong, because it kind of feels that way. As an aspiring lawyer, I should be focused on fitted ties, not fitted hats. But I'm not.
Part of me feels guilty, the other part doesn't. I feel guilty because when I do get older, I'm pretty sure I won't be wearing my colorful design t-shirts anymore, at least not out in public. On the other hand, people have styles and go with what they know. I'm not a grandpa yet and I still like younger looking clothes.
My dilemma is the way it is because I actually recognize the importance. There is a time for watches and there is a time for LiveStrong bands. You can dress for success and fresh - its just going to hurt the wallet. And I guess that's why its so puzzling.
My eyes constantly see people much older than me wearing age inappropriate stuff. You can't tell me its okay for a 53-year-old man to be wearing the same outfit Mike the Situation had on. Not in America anyway.
Are people locked into one or the other because of lifestyle choice? Is it money? Is it purely culture? One second I think I know and then I step outside. There are people my age that dress like they're already retired, but its fine because that coincides with dressing for success somehow. Then there are those who are my age and keep up with trends that only a high schooler could follow, yet its extra clean. I think the line must be drawn in invisible ink.
Still, clothes are important, but they aren't everything. A personality will take someone a lot further than a Prada purse or a Rolex. People engage with each other, not threads. However, knowing the key for dressing for success and fresh is paramount. And depending on what and who you follow, your fashion sense will too.
Is one more important than the other? Again, it depends on who you ask. Still, when Nike starts making suits, someone pinch me.
I like it. This is definitely an issue that people our age have to deal with. How do you balance what you should do and what you want? I think you could even go a step further and touch on hair color, piercings and tattoos. How far is too far and when is the perverbial cut off age for all things "fun and unnecessary"?
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