Whether you're going to sport a regular neck tie or a bow tie, the first step is learning to tie it yourself.  Clip-ons appear tacky and lazy and you should skip them all together.  There are endless guides on how to tie it yourself, so with a little practice you'll be a pro in no time.  

Learn to dress your body type; the way you dress effects how you are perceived and dressing to suit your body type will make you appear more powerful and respectable.   If you are a bigger guy, with a bigger face, you should go with a wider tie, think 3-4 inches at the widest point.  Shirts with spread collars (collar points spread by 90 degrees or more) also make a wide face appear more balanced.  The chubby dude should also take advantage of his chance to sport a wider tie knot.  If you are a skinny man, wear a skinny tie! Think 2-2.5 inches at the widest point.   If you wear a wide tie, it often makes your shoulders appear slimmer and makes you look less powerful- and more like a twelve year old.  

When you're shopping for ties, you should think about your favorite pants and your favorite shirts.  That's what your tie should match.  If your tie doesn't coordinate with your shirt or your pants, you may appear goofy and mismatched, even if it matches small accessories.  Lots of men's accessories are too small to be seen from far away, so it's best to avoid them being the focal point of a look.  Your tie should be darker than your shirt.  If you're wearing a black shirt, look for a black tie with a pattern or a unique texture.  When choosing colors for your outfits, use a color wheel and think about color theory.    

Shiny shirt = shiny tie.  If your shirt is flat with no shine, you should be wearing a flat or textured tie.  Shiny ties with cotton, non-shiny shirts makes you look like a waiter and should be avoided at all costs, even if you are a waiter.  There are exceptions to this rule, of course.  If you are sure your tie looks awesome with your shirt, then rock it!

When wearing ties to work and you're doing anything other than an office job, you should either be wearing a bow tie or a tie clip with your neck tie.  Your tie should not get in the way of your work.  It should not get wet when you're going to the bathroom, washing your hands, it should not touch someone's food, it should not risk falling into machinery and it should not fall away from your body by more than a few inches.  Tie bars are a great opportunity to get a few new accessories.  Etsy is a deadly clickhole of wonderful fandom tie bars.  Your tie bar should be worn between the third and fourth buttons of a shirt, lower or higher, whatever works best for you.  Many people wear their tie bars too high which breaks up their appearance unevenly and also makes the tie bar useless. 

If you are wearing a long neck tie, the tip of the tie should hit your waistband when you're standing with natural posture.  The widest point of the tie should line up with the top line of your trousers.

Skip the bow tie if you have a very long beard.  People may not see it beneath your lush beard and you may seem more casual than you aimed for.  

If you cannot afford to spend much on ties, go vintage.  Your local thrift stores will almost always have nice ties available for very cheap.  

Socks showing?  Socks and ties being the most saturated color is a well liked look.  It's exciting to the eye.

Try to avoid busy patterned ties with busy patterned shirts.  You can mix patterns, but you need to balance everything out.

These were just a few ideas I had on how to wear ties better.  If you have any questions, please leave a comment!  If you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear those too!  And if you ever have any ideas for something you'd like me to post about, whether it's for Manly Monday or anything else, I'd always love to hear them!  Don't forget to follow me on Bloglovin'!