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Michelle Obama says ignoring your appearance is self-sabotage

Michelle Obama says ignoring your appearance is self-sabotage

How I go viral on LinkedIn and build my personal brand

Avni Barman
January 29, 2026

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This 30min weekly routine changed my career

Just post on LinkedIn once a week.

I’ve been doing this for years and it’s never taken me more than 30 minutes.

That one habit got me my first job in big tech, my first investor in my business, free tickets to some of the biggest tech conferences in the world, several five-figure brand deals, and even a billionaire grabbing coffee with me.

I wasn’t doing anything special.

I’d candidly talk about something I learned that week, a project I was working on, a person I admired, or an interesting piece of news I couldn’t stop thinking about.

Posting like that kept me top of mind.

So instead of me going out and networking, my inbox started working for me. I’d average 50 to 100 messages a week from recruiters, coffee chat requests, speaking opportunities, and other unexpected doors opening. Over time, posting consistently is what helped me build credibility, grow my brand, and have brands come to me.

The hard part wasn’t knowing what to say. It was showing up every single week without burning out.

That’s why I like tools like Taplio.

It helps you find viral post ideas for your niche, write faster in your own voice, know what's working, and stay visible without living on LinkedIn.

Try Taplio free for 7 days and get your first month for $1 when you use the code ‘GENSHE1X1’👇️

Michelle Obama said ignoring your appearance is self-sabotage

Michelle Obama just went on Call Her Daddy and said not leaning into your appearance is actually how women lose power.

Michelle shared how even with a Princeton and Harvard law degree, people still mainly focused on her hair, her clothes, and her body when she was campaigning. Not her work or what she was saying.

Michelle’s point is actually pretty simple: women are judged visually whether they want to be or not. So if you’re a woman early in your career, with bills to pay and no real leverage yet, this really matters.

Because the choice isn’t “do I play the game or not.” It’s: what actually helps me be taken seriously in this room, right now? You can put effort into your appearance on your own terms, or let other people decide what story it tells and get punished for it.

This shows up all the time in very normal moments. In interviews, men walk in and are assumed capable, while a woman’s outfit is judged before she even speaks. At work, a low-cut top can get you dismissed, but clothes that look sloppy or careless can make people overlook you. And early on, opting out doesn’t send some big powerful message…it just makes you easier to ignore. It’s self-sabotage.

And to be clear, this isn’t about doing whatever gets attention. You can’t just wear a mini skirt to work and call that a strategy either. Both extremes work against you.

We don’t get to decide the rules in a male-dominated world. And pretending they don’t exist doesn’t dismantle the unfair systems. You dismantle them by playing the game long enough to build leverage and then choosing when to disengage. That’s why Michelle can go on a sex podcast without undermining her credibility. And that’s why Alex can wear sweats in her interviews.

Leverage comes first. Freedom comes later. That’s how smart women navigate the game.

If you’re ready to start building that leverage, I put together the full playbook on how to dress for success on a budget. This is not theoretical advice. These are the exact rules and links under $100 that I used, tested, and refined with my stylist that created the biggest shift in my confidence, credibility, and how people responded to me professionally. Get it for free👇️