The wrong shoe can ruin the right outfit.

Like anything else you wear, your shoes should give you confidence. For me, my shoes need to be comfortable, the right heel height, the right color, and the right style. I can’t focus on my work if I’m hobbling to the podium or if I know my shoes don’t look quite right with the rest of my outfit.

I love wearing heels, even being fully aware of their main purpose — to enhance the feminine form from behind.  While I know they weren’t originally intended to make me look powerful, I believe I can use them for that purpose because, in my mind, they improve my posture, give me additional height that allows me to look more men in the eye, and they help me combat being self-conscious about my thighs and calves. However, I think there’s certainly some truth to the joke that heels were invented to prevent women from running away, so I make it a point to choose the most practical pairs I can find: kitten heels, wedges, and block heels.

I’m also not going to be able to make a compelling argument to the Court or pay attention to opposing counsel’s response if there’s a stabbing pain in my feet. You probably know the kind, the piercing, burning pain that only a pointy pair of pumps can inflict. I go for heels that are soft enough to shape to my foot and that have a rounder toe.

If you, like me, try to create the illusion of longer legs (in my family, the saying is that our butts are built too close to the sidewalk), go for a shoe with low vamp (the shape of the shoe on the top of your foot), which generally falls at least an inch below your ankle. The higher the vamp, the shorter your legs will appear. For instance, wearing booties in a different color than your legs will break up your feet and your legs, giving a less streamlined appearance. Even shoes with straps will create the same effect of a defined line between your legs and feet, although nude straps will be less noticeable.

The shape of your shoe should, like the rest of your outfit, be sleek. Gaudy embellishments, like lace and straps, give shoes an unprofessional appearance. I would also never where open-toe/open-heel shoes to court.

Regardless of the type of shoe that makes you feel confident, and perhaps for you that is a sleek ballet flat, color wise, the most versatile and universally flattering is nude, a color close to your skin tone. You can wear a nude shoe with any outfit, and it’ll be the least distracting choice.

I’m not opposed to statement colors, so long as they make sense with your outfit. A classic red shoe, for instance, can be professional. However, the flashier, the brighter the shoe, the less professional.