Many years ago I watched a TV documentary about how a legal team in the USA defended a man accused of murder. As part of his preparations a witness coach was employed to give advice about presenting himself in court. To my surprise, she advocated wearing red underwear to embolden him, and give him confidence.
Not long after this, my brother asked me for advice about interview technique. His career had gone down a cul-de-sac for several years, and he had developed a demoralising string of rejections at job interview. I thought I would suggest the red underwear. To both our surprise, at his next interview, he got the job!
Ever since then I have always advocated wearing red underwear for men attending interviews, and the feedback has always been encouraging. One person said he felt more confident, and he felt that whatever question he was asked, he knew he was wearing red underwear, which put a smile on his face and, presumably, gave him the edge in his answers.
Recently a mate has been applying for new jobs. He had been successful at getting to interview, but was unable the clinch the deal. I had suggested the red underwear technique, but he was sceptical, and didn’t bother. Knowing that he had another interview today, when we met for lunch on Saturday, I took him to a department store and made him buy the most vibrant energetic red pants we could find. Still sceptical, he did seem pleased with his Calvin’s, and I thought nothing more of it.
Since adopting this technique many years ago, research has began to catch up with the intuitive advice given by the witness coach I had watched on TV. For example, recent research on teams in the English football league found that teams that have red in their kit tend to score more goals, and win more games, than teams that don’t have red in their kit.
Why does wearing red make a difference to men? I think there is an evolutionary explanation to this. Red is both the colour of blood, and therefore of danger, and also the colour, in many primates at least, of sexual arousal (the female genitals of many primate species turn red when in season ... a reason why spanking a women may also turn some men on ... but that’s an aside).
Wearing red, I therefore believe, serves to activate the arousal of both aggression and sexual potency in men. With these two systems on your side, you become unstoppable at interview! Don’t overdo it though. Wearing red on your visible clothing could be seen as intimidating for the same reasons i.e. indicating aggression and/or flirtation.
I suspect wearing red might also help ‘on the pull’. Wearing a flash of red somewhere on your clothing or underwear, might be just enough to give you the advantage over the other men in the bar or club. There is a study in there somewhere, and I’d love to see the results.
As for my mate, he said he wasn’t sure if he consciously thought about the red Calvin’s during the interview, but he did feel extremely confident. I’m pleased to say he also got the job!
Dr Phil Tyson is a Men's Psychotherapist based in Manchester in the UK. He offers:
- Group therapy weekends for men in London and Manchester
- Beginners meditation weekend retreats for men in London and Manchester
- Counselling for men in Manchester
- Psychotherapy for men in Manchester
- Cognitive behavioural therapy for men in Manchester
- Telephone and online counselling for men wherever you live
- Mediation for conflict resolution at work in London
- Mediation for conflict resolution at work in Manchester and the North West
- Supervision and consulative support for therapists in Manchester
