Hey, you! Yeah, you in the wrinkled cargo shorts and running shoes! Listen up! Welcome to Tyler’s Wardrobe Watch. In this series, I plan to run through a wide array of fashion topics that’ll help anyone improve their style. Let me preface this series by stating that I am not a trained stylist, fashion student or any other type of professional authority on fashion. I’m just a guy who loves clothes and has learned a thing or two about style over time, and I feel like I can help those who are looking to better their overall appearance.

I want to start off this series by talking about why you should actually care about the way you dress. Although the saying might suggest otherwise, you can actually judge a book by its cover. People naturally infer a lot of things about you by your appearance. It may be superficial, but that’s just the reality of the world we live in. So, just putting the effort in to make yourself look more put together and stylish to improve people’s perceptions of you is worthwhile.

Let me provide a basic example: a job interview. It is a pretty standard expectation that a guy should wear a dark colored suit to a job interview. However, if you were to show up in, say, jeans and a t-shirt, the potential employer may not take you as seriously as a candidate because your appearance doesn’t convey the professionalism that is expected of you. Just putting in the effort to dress well and appropriately is important and can make a huge difference.

Even if you’re a person who doesn’t care what other people think of them, you should still care about style for your own personal benefit. Making outfits is a lot of fun. Matching up different tops with bottoms with shoes trying to find that perfect look is very exciting. It’s like trying to solve a puzzle. I sometimes plan my outfits out days in advance just because I get the inspiration to put an outfit together. And it’s just an added layer of self-confidence when you know that you look good. Look good, feel good.

Style is also a great way to express your personality or whatever vibe you want to convey. If you’re super into music, rock a band tee. If you’re more professional or formal, grab a suit or a button down and sweater. If you’re more alternative and edgy, throw on a leather jacket and some ripped denim jeans. The clothes you wear are a great way to express whatever image you want to convey about yourself. However, a real expert can wear any style and still look fashionable.

Fashion is important, and not acknowledging that fact is just cutting you off from a whole plethora of benefits. Whether or not you care about your appearance, the people around you do and will judge you based on it, consciously or subconsciously. So, just taking the step to be more stylish can help to improve people’s perceptions of you and boost your confidence. If you don’t believe me, watch any episode of “Queer Eye” and see the massive difference that Tan France makes.