6 Important Consultation Questions We Ask Every Prospective Client At MIIEN

As a personal style consultant..

for both men and women it’s important that I – Mikara Reid have a questionnaire that is universal to both genders. And to mention, I have a specialty that not only serves men and women, but as well as a specific target audience. My holistic approach doesn’t align with just looking good for the trend. There’s personal inventory that needs to be done while creating a fashion system to your lifestyle and habits, curating everyday looks that showcase the best version of you while feeling good and performing confidently. So here are the ideal consultation questions that are important for me to ask prospective clients..

Question #1

What line of work are you in? 

This question needs to be asked based on my business practices because firstly I have a diverse range of clientele from Exterminator to hedge fund cfo to fashion brands and I need to know what I’m dressing you for. This is important to ensure that your dressing experience is as smooth as butter for your lifestyle and calendar activities.

Question #2

Tell me about yourself 

 I know this isn’t an interview for a job but I need to know my clients’ personal identity (not to be confused with professional identity), so that I am able to get a feel for them and match their persona up with their clothing message. We live in a camera-ready age and some of us don’t separate our personal and professional identity or some of us want to. This is a huge thing for me because I am confidence-driven and big on aligning things appropriately without forcing fashion trends or popular items on someone. If you know anything about the unconscious messaging your clothes and presence signals then you’ll understand why knowing your personal identity is crucial at MIIEN Consultancy.

Question #3

Have you ever worked with a personal stylist or an image consultant?

This doesn’t include personal shoppers; personal stylist and image consultant are the 2 terminologies that resonate with what I do. In case you’re wondering the difference, Shoppers just focus on buying items for clients and that's not the sole purpose of the styling business. Knowing if you have ever worked with a stylist or a consultant lets me know that you understand the process of developing a look/personal style. This doesn’t mean we all have the same steps in our process but it suggests you have an understanding of what goes on versus someone who has never had this type of service. For someone without prior experience, I would need to walk them through the statement of work more detailed so they have a clear understanding of the timeline, expectations, dates, assignments & any other special needs to resolve their wardrobe challenge. 

This particular question has a follow up if you’ve worked with one before. The follow up question is asked because I don’t want to make the same mistake as the last stylist/consultant. It also allows me to dig deeper on what the problem is/was and why it went wrong. Knowing that before I get started allows me to compare notes or spot a pattern in the problem. Lastly, this shows that the client and I can communicate effectively and our values are aligned. Prior to on-boarding I always explain that this personal styling and consultation service is geared toward being a partnership. Communication is key for any relationship you’re in or forming and that is why it's a crucial question for you to give a detailed and thorough answer for me to evaluate the best solutions/results.

Question #4

What are your long-term goals for your personal appearance? 

This is one of the questions that stumps a lot of people because normally when you hear the term ‘stylist’ you instantly think about immediate needs, photoshoots, celebrity or trends. This is the exact reason I pivoted my business to serve to high-achieving professionals on their everyday fashion. I hear people complaining about their wardrobe problems on a daily basis and noticed a lot of people are masking their wardrobe problems by watching others on social media, going on shopping sprees and not really dissecting themselves. 

As a personal style consultant that has shifted her business to be you-driven and not trend-driven, it’s important for me to know what you want for your personal appearance and not what someone else wants for you. When you’ve done the work of knowing what you want for you, it’ll be my job to translate your overall fashion image, hence this is a partnership. If you’re unsure about how to answer this question, my book What’s Your Miien! ? is a great guide to help you search deep and find the answers you need about your personal style and how to set these long term goals.

Question #5

When was the last time you did your personal inventory?

This is another question that throws a lot of people off because most people don’t align their lifestyle, mission, values with their wardrobe. So this is a mandatory question that helps me shape how I’m going to approach you for our consecutive consultation meetings. Let me paint this picture as clear as possible because I’m not with the fluff or how the masses distribute things that only gets you back to ground zero. If you’ve noticed, then you’ll agree that identity is the core of our practice at MIIEN and it wouldn't make sense if I don’t ask the question about personal inventory. 

You’ve known yourself for over 25 years and I’m just the professional with sharp knowledge, experience and creativity that’s on your team to help you elevate. I can’t elevate you if you can’t articulate YOU. Many people don’t do personal inventory of themselves and have absolutely no idea what is going on in their lives but want others to fix it. Knowing that you’ve done a self-inventory lets me know some of the areas in my proprietary system will go smoothly because bridging who you are requires you to do the inner-work aka personal inventory.

Question #6

What is your Budget?

Now that we’ve gotten to know you, the wardrobe challenge and long term objective now let’s talk money. This is no different from a business proposal, knowing the budget or how much you’re willing to invest in yourself is the last step. This lets me know if you're within range of my services to better position you for the journey of transforming your personal style.

Bonus question

Why do you want to work with Mikara at MIIEN?

Even though this is a service that benefits you, I want to know why you are interested in working with me versus the others. It also gives me more of a motive to work as a partner with someone who shares my values or seeks my expertise to add value to their life.

My final note to every prospective client

Fashion can be glamorized as fun and great to see but styling has a lot of steps that most won't see especially when it comes to your day-to-day wear, not just the special occasions. My work is about true, authentic transformations that not only benefits your personal appearance but will steep over to other areas of your life.

By the end of majority of my one-on-one services, you’ll be a completely different woman or man. It's not just in how good you’ll look, it’s how you’ll learn to shop, organize your clothes and pick things that flatter your body shape. Organically, that funnels into your performance in your everyday life and how you do one thing affects how you do most things in life. You can send an email to info@miien.com to begin your journey today.