The suit is making a come back as an option for a casual night out. While it seems like an oxymoron to pair a suit with casual, it’s a new trend in men’s fashion. A great fitting suit will make you look like a million dollars regardless of what you paid for it. The opposite is also true: an expensive designer suit that’s not tailored well will make you look sloppy and unkempt. Just this week I received an email from Hugo Boss featuring how a man should wear a suit in 2012. They appropriately titled it: suiting 101. Here are  the basics you should know: If you follow these guidelines, you will not only look more stylish, but you will actually look just like the model above. Guaranteed. What do you think about the suit making a come-back after being almost extinct from the casual American male wardrobe?

In a sales presentation, you need to know who the decision maker is. And if you’re going to succeed, you must get that right. I have been in situations where I have presented to a room filled with people but I also understood that ultimately, the decision maker would make that call by himself. In a room of 20 people the opinion of one trumped the 19. Had I not known it, I would have missed the mark on my presentation. Next time you need to make a compelling case for an idea, or a product, you must identify the decision-maker in the room. However, do not assume it’s the boss. The ultimate word sometimes comes from an influencer who might not be the highest ranking person in the meeting. I learned that as an young music director. While on paper I was “in charge” of the music program of…

I love the instant and concise nature of Twitter as well as the quick feedback and the community I’ve enjoyed being a part of it. However, I have seen a lot of people misuse and even abuse Twitter. So here are my top 5 Tweeves (Twitter Peeves): Twittarrhea: An unstoppable string of running Tweets for no reason. If you have 12 tweets within an hour, something very important, dangerous, or extremely cool should be happening. Otherwise, don’t punish us for your boredom. Twitteralogue: A long Twitter dialogue between two people. If you want to text your best friend, then great…text him, but please don’t have a long private conversation on Twitter. I really don’t want to know that you use Yukon Gold potatoes for mashing. Remember, you can use the direct tweet option for your personal, confidential, and or boring conversation. Twittertising: Uncontrolled self promotion of goods and/or services. Ok,…

No matter what you do, you need your creative batteries recharged from time to time. Creativity help us solve all kinds of problems and not just pick paint colors and furniture for the spare bedroom. There are a few experiences that have helped fill my creative tank. A few years back I took my entire family to  Cirque du Soleil’s show “Love.” It features the music of the Beatles and the cast of Cirque’s über-talented performers. It was an amazing experience–a double wow! The whole thing, from beginning to end, was just jaw-dropping. I won’t try to spoil the show and not do it justice by trying to describe something that needs to be experienced. It is intriguing to me how the creative minds at Cirque continue, after all these years, to surprise and give us the unexpected. As I was sitting in the theater waiting for the show to…

Spring came early for most of the USA this year. While white polo shirts and khakis seem to be a staple for many guys, sometimes you just want to venture out and try something new. Here are a few options you should consider:   I purposely did not choose young models for this post because I have been told that I feature clothing that only skinny-jeans wearing models could look good in. What do you think of these options? Would you try any of them?

The proliferation of customer satisfaction surveys is taking its toll on me. Once I was inclined to answer them. Now, I immediately dismiss the many requests for my feedback. According to an article in the NY Times, the exponential growth of the satisfaction survey is annoying consumers world wide. In the past, these surveys were an expensive proposition. Market research firms charged a lot of money to define, craft, and administer polls and to find a good representative sample of the target group. There is a lot of science and experience that goes into good quantitative and qualitative research. But with the advent of easy-to-use survey tools like SurveyMonkey, anyone can create a quick one and throw it online. What once was viewed as a privilege is now seen as a nuisance. So should you give up on getting feedback from the stakeholders in your organization? Of course not; but…

“I want to look better.  What should I wear?” I get that question all the time. My answer, however, might surprise you. I don’t point people towards a store, a brand, or even a personal stylist. Before you buy the latest edition of GQ for fashion advice, consider the following: You have to “feel” good before you can “look” good. Your outlook and attitude have more impact on the way you look than what you’re wearing. You can dress up in the most expensive designer suit, but if you’re a miserable, unhappy person, you’ll still come across as, well, a miserable and unhappy guy with nice clothes on. All about the fit. Beyond style, well-fitting clothes will make you look your best. I cannot tell you how much better a man looks wearing clothing that fit, instead of over-sized shirts and ill-fitting pants. I wrote more about it here.  This…

For some Twitter is a waste of time. For others it is a way to stay in touch with the world. But it has helped me become a better writer. Twitter forces me to make an argument or develop a thought in no more than 140 characters. In a world of digital verbosity, that’s hard to do. But how much can one communicate in such small chunks, including spaces and punctuation? A lot of people tell me it’s too restrictive. But it has compelled me to focus on the power of words, using them deliberately and effectively–painting a clear picture with few strokes. As a former college teacher, I expected my English composition students to get to the point quickly and give their readers a reason to read on. In a time of endless blogs and social networks where prose flows unfettered, a well-crafted thought has the opportunity to rule…

I often walk through a church service as a secret shopper. It’s my way to assess how aware and prepared a church is for a newcomer–specially one that might be outside of the faith. As I experience a weekend service for the first time, I try to answer the question that every first-time guest asks himself: “why should I come back here?” The question is not as much about musical style and preaching method as it is about connecting spiritually and emotionally. The Answer to that question begins at the parking lot and ends on the way home. It’s not about any one thing, and, yet, it is about every single thing. I’m not sure most pastors and church staff realize that newcomers want to like the church they chose to visit. They are looking for reasons to say, “I want to be part of this congregation.”  Whether they are…

How far into the future should your technology plan look? That’s a question I am asked often these days. Technology can be a capital expenditure for businesses and not-for-profits. It seems like yesterday I was sitting in board meetings considering investing in technology, websites, servers, and productivity tools that we expected to be useful for “the next 10 years.” Oh my, how times have changed. Unfortunately today I run into all sorts of limitation issues when clients who bought expensive technology 5 years ago want to continue to use it in today’s context. The proliferation and democratization of technology has taken innovation from the large software and hardware developers such as Microsoft and has moved them down to the level of a college kid who starts a little online tool for his friends based on an open-source platform we now call Facebook. It seems like every day something amazing has…