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10 Powerful Women Who Have A Work Uniform (And Why You Should Too)

Dress for success

Karl Lagerfeld. Steve Jobs. Barack Obama. Mark Zuckerbergโ€ฆthese are but a handful of successful men whoโ€™ve attributed a small portion of their success to having a โ€˜work uniformโ€™.

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Although society grants men the luxury of dressing plainly with no questions asked, it hasnโ€™t always been so kind to women in the workforce (just ask any female politician), however, there are theories to suggest it may well be one of the hidden keys to career success. Why? It all comes down to a concept known as โ€˜decision fatigueโ€˜.

With the average person said to make roughly 35,000 choices every day (Which staffer should I hire? Skim or full-fat? Should I bring an umbrella today?) and women facing more pressure than men over appearance-related decisions, itโ€™s thought that eliminating the need to come up with a new outfit every day can allow the brain to prioritise other work-related decisions.

In short, itโ€™s supposed to save your cognitive capacity for creative thinking where it really counts.

Theories around decision fatigue aside, it could well be that the decision (yet another one) to repeat outfits or choose a signature look simply readies you for a day of work, the old โ€œdressing for successโ€ adage, by creating a daily ritual to mentally enable success.

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And itโ€™s not only powerful men whoโ€™ve adopted this mindset, with many female founders and celebrities citing the work uniform as a fundamental part of their daily life.

Here, we take a look at 10 famous women whoโ€™ve developed their signature work look over the years and exactly why they love it.

Sophia Coppola

Sophie Coppola

The Marie Antoinette director is all for simplifying her wardrobe, so she can get on with work, previously stating that having โ€œa kind of uniform helpsโ€.

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โ€œThere are a few things I wear all the time โ€“ Acne jeans, the staples that you just know you like and donโ€™t have to think about too much. And then itโ€™s fun to dress up for special occasions,โ€ she told The Telegraph.

Colour-wise, Coppola relies on classic navy blue.

โ€œMy friend who designs shoes at Louis Vuitton, heโ€™s always laughing at me. โ€˜Do you want it in navy blue, Sofia?โ€™ and Iโ€™m like, โ€˜Um, yes, I doโ€™. My memoir will be called: Does This Come in Navy?โ€ she said.

Arianna Huffington
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Arianna Huffington

The founder of Huffington Post and Thrive, Arianna Huffington is one founder who swears by uniform dressing, and has even gone so far as to advocate women to repeat outfits more frequently to save on time and energy. Sheโ€™s so big on it, in fact, that she even writes #repeat whenever she shares a new image of a previously worn outfit on Instagram.

โ€œI think women should deliberately repeat things they love,โ€ Huffington said at the 2017 Fortuneโ€™s Most Powerful Women Summit.

โ€œMen have a competitive advantage. They donโ€™t have to waste the kind of energy we waste. Feeling that we have to wear something new every time we have a speech, every time we do something importantโ€ฆso, I deliberately use my Instagram to show myself, for example, at the Time 100 dinner, next to [a photo of] my at the White House Correspondents Dinner, wearing the same long gown.โ€

Angelina Jolie
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Angelina Jolie

While Jolie may have access to all the best outfits high-end designers have to offer, the actress and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador keeps things straightforward and low-key when her work doesnโ€™t involve the red carpet.

โ€œItโ€™s all the same. When Iโ€™m not doing this, I wear the same pants and same shirt every day. I donโ€™t change,โ€ she told MTV at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival.

โ€œOn occasion [I wash them] but I have a few of the same things. Itโ€™s like a uniform.โ€

Vera Wang
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Vera Wang

Also a fan of the work uniform, bridal designer Vera Wang relies on a handful of all-black key staples that she puts on high rotation.

โ€œI realised that everybody in the end comes down to a uniform,โ€ she wrote in her blog Vera Unveiled.

โ€œIn the endโ€”even as a fashion professional, or fashion insider, someone whoโ€™s looked at fashion for so long, and from so many different anglesโ€”there is a uniform that works for you. And that uniform can be modified, and it can be changed, and it can be dressed up, dressed down, explored, taken more street, taken more couture, but in the end, itโ€™s an editing process.

โ€œAnd as you become more certain of your own vision, and your own taste and your own style, as you evolve, as a person, not just as a woman, you do end up in a uniform.โ€

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Sheryl Sandberg

Sheryl Sandberg

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg has also โ€˜leaned inโ€™ to the power of the work uniform, favouring tailored dresses with minimal jewellery and classic looks that have stood the test of time.

Kate Middleton

Catherine, The Duchess of Cambridge

Arguably our favourite outfit repeater, even Kate Middleton has developed something of a work uniform when it comes to her royal duties. Along with re-wearing many of her outfits, the Duchess sticks to silhouettes that are clean, chic and comfortable.

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Diane von Furstenberg

Diane von Furstenberg

It seems fitting that creator of the iconic wrap dress, an item revered for its potent all-in-one mastery of style, comfort and timelessness, would also create a such a uniform for herself. And while one would naturally think that itโ€™s the wrap dress, for von Furstenberg, itโ€™s actually the tunic dress, or what she calls a โ€œpetite valiseโ€.

โ€œThe wrap dress was born out of that idea,โ€ she told Instyle.

โ€œI wanted something that was easy, that I could wear anywhere, and, you know, it is easy to pack. It doesnโ€™t wrinkle, and it makes it easy to get dressed, so it works like a uniform.โ€

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Carolina Herrera

Carolina Herrera

Also amongst the ranks of fashion royalty with a penchant for a work uniform, Venezuelan designer Carolina Herrera considers her signature white Oxford shirt her โ€œsecurity blanketโ€.

โ€œFashion is supposed to be for the everyday. I have worn the white shirt since I was very young,โ€ Herrera told Instyle.

She also praised the classic white shirt for its easy day-to-night versatility.

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โ€œIt doesnโ€™t always look like a white shirt even though it is. With trouser or a short skirt it can be worn for day and then later with evening jewels and a ball skirt for night. Sometimes I see people wearing sequins for lunch, and I think there is a right time and place for what you are wearing. You must follow that in whatever you wear,โ€ she said.

Hilary Clinton

Hilary Clinton

Always a fan of the power suit, the former US Secretary of State used to step out on numerous important occasions in varying shades of the same tailored pantsuit.

In her book What Happened, a recount of her experiences as the Democratic Partyโ€™s nominee and general election candidate for 2016 presidency of the United States, Clinton wrote in detail about her love for her signature outfit.

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โ€œWhen I ran for Senate in 2000 and President in 2008, I basically had a uniform: a simple pantsuit, often black, with a colourful shell underneath,โ€ she wrote.

โ€œI did this because I like pantsuits. They make me feel professional and ready to go.โ€

Along with wearing the same thing as an anti-distraction technique and to minimise time spent โ€˜overthinkingโ€™, Clinton cited one other major reason for wearing a pantsuit every day: to help her fit in with the male politicians.

โ€œI also thought it would be good to do what male politicians do and wear more or less the same thing every day,โ€ she wrote.

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Keira Knightley

Keira Knightley

When it comes to Hollywood celebrities, itโ€™s what they wear when theyโ€™re not on set that tells the real story. In the case of Keira Knightley, her off-duty uniform of an oversized bomber with boots and jeans (which sheโ€™s been spotted out wearing many times) shows a woman whoโ€™s clearly at ease with herself.

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