PassionForColors talks with colorful women about the way we dress. First out is Ann-Katrin Hegart.

At PassionForColors we believe that the way we dress, is one way of expressing our personality. The way we dress influences how we feel and how others around us feel. In our exciting digital era, where we can access everything everywhere – searching for that individual expression becomes even more important. Research shows that color can have a positive effect on how we feel. It increases our energy level and can put us in a better mood (not to mention the people around us…). We are curious to learn more about how different, colorful, women in various roles in society think about the aspect of how we dress, and we have had several interesting talks with some of them. We will share the top line from this series of talks here on the blog section of the PassionForColors site. First out is Ann-Katrin Hegart, principal at the School of Roslagen in Norrtälje, here wearing the green Clara jacket.   Tell us about your profession, what do you do? I am the principal of Roslagsskolan in Norrtälje, with 575 pupils, 7-9th grade.   What gives you energy in your profession and in your spare time? I enjoy being the principal of a big school. I enjoy digging into understanding the underlying forces that have caused a certain situation, or challenge at the school. I believe that it is very important to have a culture and climate in the workplace that encourage people to share their stories, also about setbacks or failures they have experienced and what they have learned from this. Some time back, we implemented something we called “a flop series” with guest “floppers” who shared their stories about their setbacks with their subsequent analysis and the learnings they had gained. This helped us to start talking more openly to one another and it improved our co-operation and contributed to a change in culture. All these dynamics and the co-operation with people, give me a lot of energy. But it also gives me energy to meet people who work in completely different fields and share experiences and end up in discussions about unexpected topics. Sometimes I can get a bit “tired of school” and find it refreshing to change subjects. I also get energized from running and from the nature at our summer house by the sea, from travelling, reading and from the theatre.   What does the way you dress in your professional role represent to you and how do you prefer to dress? To me the way I dress has always had a very big importance. In the early days I used to work for American Express, which was very, very American. Even though we were sitting “back stage” in a call centre and never met any customers it was forbidden to wear jeans and we had a strict dress code. So, from early days, for me, I have felt that I put on my professional role, as I put on my clothes to go to work. At the end of the day when I come home, I take off my work clothes and then I take off my professional role as well. I believe that the signals we send are important. For me it is important to send the signal that I take my role and responsibility seriously and that I am professional. Sometimes the school world can become a bit unprofessional, and then it can help to put on a more formal dress code and send a signal of professionalism. On the other hand, where I am today with a higher self confidence than a number of years ago, I also believe that it is important to dress “outside the box”. That’s what I like about the PassionForColors clothes; that they are elegant, classic and of high quality, but it is the colorful, unique materials that make the difference. The models in themselves are quite simple, so the impression gets much stronger as you put them on, or see someone else wearing them, as opposed to seeing them hanging in the store. I have gotten a lot of remarks about the PassionForColors clothes when wearing them at work; “you are always so stylish they say” and that makes me happy. That means that they see that I take my role seriously.   Who inspire you when it comes to the way they dress? When it comes to inspiring women and the signals they send by they way they dress, I would name Christine Lagarde. She is smart, correct and she dares to “dress outside the box”. Amal Clooney, I believe is stunning and she has a very personal style. Jackie Kennedy was of course very stylish. She dressed in a simple and strict way, but never tacky. I like the type of styles she wore, but they could be a bit more fun, with more fun fabrics.   Finally, which is your favourite item in the PassionForColors’ range? It is definitely the green Clara jacket. It is cocky. It says that “I know what I can, and I know what I want”. I like that.