Power-Dressing Moves: What To Wear For The Most Important Moments Of Your Life

When deadlines loom or first dates beckon, the last thing you want to do is second-guess what you're wearing. A not-great outfit might only be a small annoyance on a normal day, but in a high-pressure situation, it can rattle you when you need to feel completely self-assured.

So what if we told you there was a styling silver bullet to lend an extra boost of confidence during big life moments? As we define it, power dressing is just that: fail-safe looks that lift us up and make us stand straighter. To demonstrate this, we've partnered with the LYCRA® brand and Maidenform® to show four women in their real-life power-dressing moves. We might not be able to help you meet the parents or wrangle difficult clients, but when you've got the right ensemble on — and perhaps a touch of revolutionary LYCRA® FitSense™ technology for lightweight, targeted support — you don't need much else to feel like your strongest self.

"I’m most confident when I’m completely dressed down," says model Aiyana Lewis. "But with the shapewear — which was really comfortable — this is the perfect example of how to wear a bold piece in a more comfortable way."

Here, she owns the room in a romantic, show-stopping evening look that takes her Maidenform® High Waist Brief and upgrades it to a crucial player in a major ensemble. By day, it's confidence-boosting armor that won't show (unless you want it to); by night, it gets top billing (while still playing a supporting role with its new LYCRA® FitSense™ technology). Undercover or on display, it's there for you.

Hear writer Rhianna Jones roar in a mix of leopard, tiger, and jaguar. No print is so closely linked to feminine power, perhaps because what a big-cat print really inspires is intrigue.

"Leopard is really bold," Jones says. "It gets you wondering, Who’s that girl, what’s she about? So when I'm not wearing leopard, somehow, a part of me is silenced."

It's another way of ensnaring a captive audience, so to speak, so whether you're presenting at an all-hands meeting or negotiating a peace treaty, don't just think like an apex predator — dress like one.

Drip, noun: undeniable, iced-out swagger; style so strong it positively oozes confidence. With this jewelry-forward look that recalls the high-rolling lifestyle of rap artists and their heavy-handed accessorizing, we highlight Lizz Jardim's craft — she made most of the many (many) chains, ID bracelets, and baubles you see here. In this context, drip means dressing with a sense of purpose. "When you have your thing...you feel two feet taller," Jardim says. She's serving executive realness, reinforced by the personal meanings and symbolism we assign to our jewelry and the power we derive from the talismans we make and wear.

A wall of royal violet, worn from the top of her hijab to the vamp of her woven heels, presents a unified front — especially necessary when you're a teacher, poet, and artist, as our model Sabrina Abdalla is. Clean and cohesive, a monochromatic look suggests a certain togetherness.

"Because I’m so comfortable wearing monochromatic looks, I get a reaction from people that’s almost empowering them like, 'Dang, I wish I could dress like that,'" Abdalla says. "And I’m like, 'You really can.' It’s just how comfortable you are in your own skin, and if you’re doubting yourself, it’s not true. It’s not right to put yourself down like that."

In the end, it's a power-dressing move whose making can be as complex and multifaceted as you are, that ultimately achieves its effectiveness by bringing together the many colorful shades of you.