Image isn’t everything, or is it?
Image is not everything. Or is it? Most people have a very distanced relationship with this term. It is often implied that building one’s image has something to do with pretense.
You would have to play a role on the outside that doesn’t suit you, is a common opinion. The British actor Peter Sellers even described one’s own image as one that one must become more and more like. Is that really true?
At our Presentation Bootcamps, your own image is an important topic for which we like to invite experts. Martina Hunger is a real specialist in this field and has been dealing with the important issues surrounding the right style and authentic image practically all her life. “I feel like ‘the’ Miss Marple of color and style advice,” says the style expert. “I scan and collect 1000 details, take apart and reassemble. This creates coherent images. This is what I call psychological self-dramatization or BodyBrand. In the end, you will have developed a confident sense of yourself as a type, of your colors, of shapes and situations. Now you can safely ‘play’ with your presence. My motto for this is: authentic, genuine and strong. Not playing a role, but being.”
We conducted a short interview with Ms. Hunger about the importance of one’s image.
How can I influence my image, that is, what others think of me?
Martina Hunger: By getting to know my impact profile. I am aware of exactly how I appear at the moment, how I would like to appear in the future, how my environment “ticks” in which I move. I know my customer structure, their company philosophy and company values. I know and appreciate my abilities, skills, values and personality structure. This way I can specifically use “my” colors and dress shapes that support me. You know, one-upmanship occurs at first sight, in the first 150 milliseconds of an encounter. There my potentials must be expressed immediately.
How important is the appearance for the image?
Martina Hunger: “Those who look good are better received”. By this I do not mean “being beautiful” in the sense of a model, but harmoniously expressed. According to the motto “everything fits on me”, I feel comfortable in me, with me and in my (second) skin …
What if I don’t want to pretend to create a certain image of myself? Should I then expect success to pass me by?
Martina Hunger: It’s never about pretending. None of my customers will ever have to pretend or bend. Together with him, I work out his impact profile according to his values and personality profile. Real, strong, authentic and charismatic. I am not creating an artificial character. Because to “hold out” and live this permanently would mean, in reverse, to live constantly in an illusory world. Unthinkable!
What role does the image I have of myself play in changing or generally controlling my image?
Martina Hunger: It’s actually very essential. Many, many people have a “displaced” image of themselves, partly interwoven with “false” beliefs. These are our own false assumptions, perceptions that we make into our personal truth in the course of our lives, such as “that doesn’t suit me”, “I’m too fat”. This list can be extended at will. What I believe/think about myself internally, I actually radiate outward and make it visible to my counterpart. The “problem” is not physicality, but my inner attitude towards myself and my body. So the goal is to first accept yourself as you are, with all the circumstances, and then make the BEST of it. According to the motto “get out what’s inside”.
What do you want participants to take away from Presentation Bootcamp 2015?
Martina Hunger: Awareness that clothing is by no means about superficial things, but about the question: HOW do I want to be seen and HOW do I want to appear? Which of my abilities/skills/potential/values do I want my counterpart to recognize immediately?
