What Do Your Shoes Say About You?
What you wear on your feet on a daily basis can tell a lot about who you are and your overall style.
Although shoes aren’t usually the first thing that others judge about you, it is at the top of the list of things that can reveal much about who you are. There are many things you have to think about when purchasing shoes including size, color, cost, brand, comfort, and style. The shoes that you wear regularly can reveal personal characteristics about yourself as well as what you do on a daily basis.
In a 2012 study, researchers investigated people’s precision in judging characteristics of an unknown person, based solely on the shoes he or she wears most often. They found that:
► Ratings of shoes correlate with shoe owners’ personal characteristics.
► Age, income, and attachment anxiety can be judged from a picture of a person’s shoe.
► Shoes convey a thin but useful slice of information about their wearers.
Can you find your day-to-day shoe within the following shoe styles?
Dress shoes/Oxfords
These make a lot of sense in any formal or business casual setting. If you wear these on a daily basis, you work somewhere with a professional dress-code. You like to appear intelligent, mature, handsome, and confident. Compared to other styles, dress shoes don’t provide an immense amount of comfort, however your appearance matters more to you than being completely comfortable. Personality-wise, you are goal oriented and passionate because you have a specific mission that you want to accomplish. You are additionally focused on details and strategic about decisions you make. You are often everyone’s go-to person because you’re very reliable and a jack of all trades. People gravitate towards you because you’re a confident orator and you can make conversation with just about anyone.
The good news is, unlike the latest sneakers, most quality dress shoes will last years, not seasons. By sticking with the classics, trading up on quality when you can, and taking good care of them in between wears, you can be set for the next decade.
Slip Ons
If you wear these, you are all about being comfortable, casual, but also remaining considerably stylish. You like them because they’re easy to slip on and off and they essentially coordinate with any casual or “cute” outfit. You consider yourself to be relatively trendy, cool, and “with it”. You consider yourself both extroverted and introverted which makes it easier for you to become good friends with people on both sides of the spectrum. You don’t like to stand out too much, but you also don’t like to be considered “boring”. That means you’re chill. You’re easy to talk to and you can make friends pretty easily. You’re not extremely attracted to working in a corporate or a super professional setting — you’d rather become an entrepreneur or do something that helps you express your passions and individuality.
Street shoes
Vans, Nike, New Balance, and clean Converse all fall under this category. If you wear any sort of street shoe, you’re probably in your teens or early twenties. You’re current and up to date with the latest fashion trends in street wear. You purchased these shoes because you saw many others wearing them as well, which means that you enjoy fitting in with the young crowd and being “cool”. You don’t like to stand out too much and you wouldn’t dare wearing something on extreme sides of the fashion spectrum including extravagant uncommon fashion styles or out-of-fashion “uncool” shoes unless you see others doing it.
Flats
If you regularly wear flats — especially ballet flats — you are considered to be easy going and kind. You enjoy looking intelligent and feminine. You are modest, focused, and and a very hard worker. You are motivated and make things happen, which can be inferred based on the professional style of the shoe and also its ability to provide comfort and ease when walking around. You do quite a bit of standing and walking on the day-to-day, which is another reason why you wear these more often than heels. These aren’t statement shoes, so you don’t have the intent of looking flashy or sexy but rather agreeable and polite. You consider yourself both introverted and extroverted, maybe more on the introverted side. Print flats, though, tell another story.
Running shoes
If you wear running shoes on a daily basis you are a contemporary. You enjoy working out at the gym on the regular. Back to the word contemporary — it means athleisure is big for you. You have a busy schedule jam packed with activities on top of work and chores, and that’s the way you like it. You probably don’t like to take too big of breaks because you thrive off being busy. You are a motivated individual. You’re organized, goal-oriented, confident, and a hard worker. Wearing running or training shoes on a daily basis even when you’re not working out means that you like to work quickly, multi-task, and stay on your feet. You need to wear shoes that will keep you comfortable and get you places swiftly and productively.
$150+ Sneakers
If you wear Jordans or a cool pair of Nikes or Adidas shoes that costs over $150, you are a person that enjoys making a statement. It says that you’re updated on current trends, new collabs, and that you’re willing to spend your paycheck on shoes that have significance to you. You stay up to date with what celebs of the music industry and NBA athletes are wearing. You’re versatile — willing to explore a lot of options and different ideas. You’re energetic and try to stay ageless: not too young and not too old. You move fluidly through age groups. You like to stand out a bit from the mundane crowd because you don’t want to be just like everyone else. You’re motivated in life and you are serious about achieving your big dreams. You want to show others that you’re cool and a knowledgeable in sneakers.
Heels
If you wear classy heels on a daily basis, then you work in a professional setting that requires some level of formal or dressy apparel. If you wear these heels you don’t want to look tacky by wearing too flashy or decked out of a heel. Instead you want just the right amount of heel and classy style to make you look confident and glam. You remain confident and poised in everything you do and you enjoy doing your makeup and looking glamorous. Additionally, these heels reveal that you’re very open to conversation and you don’t consider yourself socially awkward. You can make conversation with just about anybody.
Dirty Converse
I’m not talking bright white Chuck Taylor All-Stars that were all the rage for teenagers in 2016. I’m talking colored, slightly to heavily dirty converse that you wear nearly every day. If you wear old converse, you’re old-school and into classics. You enjoy these shoes because they provide a good amount of comfort, they’re affordable, casual, and they can go with any regular outfit. You don’t care too much about looking expensive or super trendy. Personality wise, you’re generally emotionally stable and relaxed. You don’t get bogged down by what other people think about you. The word “athlete” isn’t the first thing that you would use to describe yourself, but you are an extemporaneous person with numerous interests that may cover sports every once in a while. You’re probably not the most tidy person in the world — you leave dishes in the sink for long periods of time and cleaning your room isn’t a daily habit or priority. You also consider yourself more introverted. You might lack in self-confidence at times, but you understand that it’s personality rather than appearance that truly matters.
Birkenstock sandals
If you wear Birkenstock sandals, or any type of “outdoor sandal”, you have many reasons for doing so. Some of these reasons include the fact that they’re extremely comfortable due to their moldability, trendy, and can be worn with practically any outfit. You’re willing to allocate $100 or more for these sandals because you know you’re going to make good use of them. Personality-wise, you enjoy the outdoors, and the whole regenerative effect of being outdoors. You’re all about staying active and on your feet throughout the day. You care more about comfort rather than looking a certain way, which means you have a laid-back and casual personality.
Chukkas
If you wear these you’re a laid-back person that would be classified as a “hipster”. You have a undying passion for coffee and have a special connection to your favorite locally-owned coffee shop. You’re aware of trends in fashion and you enjoy wearing classy styles of clothing. You consider yourself educated on a wide variety of subjects, and you’re a life-learner: always eager to learn more. You don’t want to appear mainstream because you want to set yourself apart from trend-culture as a whole, and you like standing out from the crowd a bit with your indie style. You consider yourself creative and you’re always on the move. You’re an experienced nomad, consistently thinking about how to make your life more exciting. One day you’re exploring nature, the next you’re finding your way through the big city for a business meeting.
Chelsea Boots
You wear a lot of grey and black because it’s chic and always in style. You’re a bit aggressive — in a confident, good way — because you know what you want, whether that be in the workplace or in your general life. These are sleek and modern boots, so you clearly have a strong sense of what your personal style is and what kind of clothes you like to wear on a daily basis. You’re always ready to take on whatever life may throw at you next.
Western Booties
You’re laid back and you like to look cute on the regular. You consider yourself somewhat of a girly-girl and you enjoy wearing clothes that flatter you. You consider yourself to be creative and somewhat artsy. You like to do activities that allow you to express this creativity, and maybe it’s part of your day to day work. You like Kate Spade and you know how to look your best in any photo. You’re not an attention seeker but you consider yourself a bit more extroverted than introverted. You’re graceful, assured, and always have a strong presence. There’s something inviting and warm about you that draws people to your company.
Off-Brand Sneakers
You haven’t though too much about what your personal style is because it’s not what matters to them in life. You’re aware that the shoes you’re wearing aren’t as mainstream or popular as some of the other brands like Nike or Adidas sneakers, but you really don’t care. You’re modest, and you prioritize affordability and comfort. You don’t feel the need to stand out in your appearance because it’s personality that really matters to you.
Feel free to let me know how I did on my analysis of you! Was it completely correct, partially correct, or completely wrong? Did I forget to include your day-to-day shoe in the list?
