Style Defence
or
What Do Intuition, Defence Mechanism, And Style Have in Common
by Karolina Chic
Fair warning: 1 min read on why you may feel offended when people don’t like your outfit or your style
Photo credit: Marc Louviere
For the longest time I couldn’t understand why are people so extremely sensitive and, mostly, strongly defensive when it comes to even the slightest mention of their clothing.
Whenever I simply answer their question “What it is that I do?”, people react as if I was trying to find their weak point.
Or conversely, other group of people tends to attack me verbally assuming I will judge them. They expect a fight of sorts, so as prevention, they start talking in a highly defensive manner in a non-existent battle. In the worst case scenario I read (because they would never tell me these things to my face) that I am vain, shallow, pretentious, and superficial. And judgmental. All that just for what I say I do. For answering their question.
The battle, though, is only in their heads. I am not their enemy. They simply draw uncomfortable conclusions. For them, that is.
Being a rather logically thinking person, I wanted to find out what kind of a pattern induces this tragicomical behaviour in people.
It didn’t take me long to define it once I started contemplating on the subject. I found the answer in my own words of advice.
Whenever I help a client with their image or their digital visuals – websites, sales pages, thank you pages, landing pages, etc. I say:
“Whenever you are not sure if colours work with your picture, or if the font is the right one for your verbal message, it is your intuition telling you not to do it.”
Here it is! In a nutshell!
In the world of aesthetics, everything is based on our emotions. Therefore, when you hesitate, when you have doubts, when you are not sure whether you should go with these colours, with this visual, with this outfit or not, the answer is always a no.
Why?
Our aesthetic perceptions are based on our feelings. Our feelings are formed by intuition. Intuition is a one of the three parts of our subconscious mind. Intuition protects us. When we feel protected and safe, we feel also free and confident.
Aesthetics = feelings = Intuition = protection = Immunity/safety = confidence
Aesthetics = safety = confidence.
Two sides of the same coin.
Therefore, when our aesthetic perception is being questioned or we think it is about to be questioned, our subconscious mind turns on our intuition, which consequently activates our defense mechanisms. …which on social media easily flips to offence mechanisms.
That was easy!
Next time I encounter yet another highly and easily threatened individual with a hand on their sword ready to attack after I utter: “I teach image,” I know what I will do.
I will honour them with my silence.
Image mentor Karolina Chic doesn’t see the world in black & white. She’s the secret weapon of ambitious public figures, touring authors and public speakers ready to move from coffin chic to custom chic in the blink of her highly-trained colour-focused eye – so they can gain trust and persuade the right audience with their awe-inspiring image.
