Transitioning Your Professional Style to Your 30’s

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One of the most common challenges I hear in my work is transitioning your style as you move from your 20’s to your 30’s and, inevitably, move up in your career.

If that sounds like you, you’re not alone! And help is on the way!

Many of the clients it work with at are in some sort of transition, whether it’s age or career related. As your life changes, you evolve. And as you evolve, so should your style.

Though, evolving your style is easier said than done.

There are SO many factors to take into consideration …

– what is your work environment?

– where do you live?

– what do you do in your free time?

– do you have children?

– do you want children?

And those are just the lifestyle factors.

Then, you have to consider a few more things about yourself …

– how old are you?

– what is your body type?

– did you just have a baby?

– are you starting menopause?

– are you losing weight?

– did you gain weight?

Once you’ve done that, it’s discovering the brands that work for what you need. This means they work for your body type, your personal style preferences, your quality preferences and your career and lifestyle needs.

No wonder it’s daunting!

Here are a few keys to transitioning your style from your 20’s into your 30’s.

Create a Vision

Take a moment to close your eyes and imagine your ideal style. What are some of the key elements? How do you feel? Do you turn heads? What are the colors? Create this vision with as much detail as possible and use this as a guiding post as you start updating and evolving your style. (Hint: you can use some magazine cutouts for a visual.)

Ruthlessly Edit

Go into your closet and be incredibly honest and tough on yourself. Let go of all the pieces from college and high school. There may be a few special pieces that can stay, but the majority will need to go. You don’t need 20 pairs of flip flops (if you went to school in Southern California, like I did!) or all those casual tees (specifically if there are graphics). You can save a few, but not all 35.

This is where it’s helpful to have a guiding eye – whether it’s a friend you trust implicitly to have YOUR best interest at heart and who won’t try to impart THEIR style on you or it’s a professional.

Create a Plan

Now that you’ve gone through your closet you can assess what you have and what you need to balance out your wardrobe.

If you have enough heels, then you may need more skirts and dresses. Or, maybe you need to update your jackets. We love a great, tailored jacket in a fun color to be able to throw on and add instant polish to an outfit.

This also ensures you know what you’re looking for and that you DON’T buy any more shoes or white tee-shirts. Everyone has a couple of items they tend to buy over and over again. Don’t do that!

Focus on Quality, not Quantity

Finally, think of this as a marathon, not a race. You don’t need to get it all at once.

Prioritize the plan and space out your purchases so that you can buy nicer pieces that will stand the test of time. Then, you’ll find yourself with a closet full of clothes you LOVE and many of them you’ll have had for quite some time.

You can certainly add some pieces that aren’t as fancy so that you can add some fun and personality without breaking the bank while you continue to update and evolve your wardrobe.

One of the keys to know is that it is an evolution.

As you go through different parts of your life – building your career, having children, getting promoted, retirement, etc. –YOU and your needs will continue to change, and your style should reflect that evolution.

In fact, it’s when you don’t continuously update your style and evolve your wardrobe as you go through these changes that you find yourself with a closet full of clothes and nothing to wear. It’s because it’s out of alignment with who you are and how you want to show up.