So what’s the meaning of that? The reason for me is to talk about accessories and surround myself with those items. They are not living creatures but have their own souls and act as our buddies for the lives.

That’s the difference in just buying items or having the meaning and value in them. Once you find the reason for your life to have them, it makes you complete. I still believe there is nothing wrong with purchasing lots of stuff, but you must ask yourself why?

So my point is not about buying unnecessary stuff, but rather finding the meaning firstly for yourself. Eventually, it will make you feel better. There is a saying that watches are those accessories that are literally the closest items next to your skin. It determines you to explore the adventures of accessories. As indeed, these accessories are the soul buddies that always next to you.

Bruce Wayne is known as a businessman who lives a luxurious life. Everyone pays attention to his sophisticated lifestyle. Not many people knew his alter ego who brings the fear during the nights. In the trilogy Dark Knight, Christopher Nolan gives a hint not only to the audience but also to other characters by one single accessory - watches. Bruce Wayne wears the Reverso watch by Jaeger-LeCoultre.

The history of the watches goes back to 1931 when Cesar de Trey challenged Jacques-David LeCoultre to bring up to the world the watches will be a fit for British polo players in India. The idea was to protect the watches from playing the polo on the field. The watches has a function to reverse the dial to protect from being smashed. So did happen in the movie. We can see Bruce Wayne as a business man requesting his personnel to create the new features for his adventures. Probably being inspired by the history of watches and giving the appreciation to the horology, he chose Reverso.

Bruce Wayne plays two games by keeping alter ego on his wrist. He releases his inner by reversing the dial to protect and hide his real identity. He does the same for his city. He is a realm keeper of Gotham city serving as the Dark Knight. The servant who brings the justice to his enemies protecting his kingdom and family legacy.

Have you ever had a feeling you want to have a different life? You have a desire to open up your inner to the world. The Reverso watch is the unchained act that challenges people in the world of our potential. This is the very detailed element that probably majority of us do not appreciate the art of accessories.

His storyline creates a space to keep an eye on his movements and next step actions. The audience is intrigued. Even that (in)famous handshake with other leaders drew out attention from us. What does it tell us? Is he showman, great tactic manipulator, or just nasty hooligan in a high elite society? It does not matter. His name says it all - Trump. Trump means unpredictable stability. I would like to ask you to take a closer look at his accessory - pens…

I remember when his first days when he entered oval room as a second time president of the USA. He bombarded his presidency with a vast number of new bills signed by SHARPIE permanent marker. It surprised me whether it is okay singing the official documents with permanent marker pen. Few seconds later, I gave a thought “well, that’s Trump”. What I have learnt from that is following:

Trump plays many roles as an individual and the main philosophy of him is “attack, attack, attack”. So does SHARPIE pen. The permanent marker is hardly to be removed and stays for goods on the surface. Trump gave the message to us that he’s back. He is taking a second round after failure. His signature act is stating “alright guy, I am here. You will remember me for good. I am making history”.

Even though Trump is remembered by his glamorous and fancy lifestyle, and his appreciation to the high-status. My expectation did not meet the reality of that moment in the oval room. I expected to see any other pens that would probably show his luxury. Apparently, I forgot one important part of his mindset. Trump is rough, bold, straight to the point and leaving his marks in any games he played at. Trump himself is more than just a name, it is a huge brand. So does his choice of the pen again prove his identity.

Manny Ribera wore a Rolex Day-Date, the so-called President watch. In the 1960s–80s, American presidents favoured this model. Manny was desperate for the American Dream; he wanted to be a leader, to imitate the people he idolised. The President on his wrist wasn’t just time - it was aspiration. His Rolex reflected his popularity and his magnetism. But, fittingly, Manny remained Tony’s right hand - always number two. He could buy a Rolex, but he couldn’t buy class.

Tony Montana wore a Concord Delirium Mariner. Concord hit the American market during the Quartz Crisis, when quartz technology disrupted the traditional watch world. Quartz was sharp, cheap, and aggressive - exactly like Tony. He stormed into America and demanded his own rules. He unsettled the old order, just as quartz watches shook the industry. Both were welcomed at first, and both eventually became threats to the established powers.

Alejandro Sosa owned a Cartier Tank - pure classic, still unmatched today. Sosa had nothing to prove. He wore a watch that didn’t shout: less gold than Tony or Manny, more refinement. Cartier pieces are jewellery that happen to tell time, and this fit him perfectly. His Tank says, “I work with sleeves down; I don’t do dirty jobs.” No stains, no marks - just polished alligator straps and control from a distance.

The watches even foreshadow the characters’ endings. Seen from the perspective of their era, Concord crushes Rolex - innovation overpowering aspiration in the race for the American Dream. But the chaos it creates makes space for Cartier, steady and timeless, to outlast both. Cartier endures by keeping its pace, its consistency, and its aesthetic discipline.

“All that glitters is not gold.” Shakespeare captures it exactly. They all wore gold watches, but only time reveals how brightly each one truly shines.

I speak of accessories. Small objects, quiet witnesses of what we have loved, what we have lost. They are amulets of memory, anchors of presence. People drift away. They vanish. But the moments they leave — a laugh, a glance, a tear — remain, sealed in trinkets, locked in the weight of metal, glass, and wood. I cry in secret over these items, for they are the only remnants of certain lives, the only proof that time has passed.

Time — past, present, future — slips through my hands. The past is gone; the future waits, unseen. The present trembles, fragile, uncertain. I clutch my totems, small objects vibrating with memory, hoping to secure this now, to freeze it before it disappears. I watch life through layers of glass, questioning whether it is real, whether it moves forward or spins endlessly in a dream.

I remember Inception. Fischer in his labyrinth of dreams, reaching for a father he never held, receiving a toy that becomes a key, a pulse, a tear in the sky of memory. Cobb spinning his top, eyes fixed on the uncertain, children beyond the horizon, tethered to a wife who may or may not exist. Their desperation is mine: the effort to anchor oneself, to grasp presence, to hold the intangible in trembling hands.

Then I remember a day when the world fractured. A stranger, religious, enigmatic, approached twice, pointing at his forehead, saying: “You have beautiful eyes.” Twice, in different places, in different hours, the words repeated, surreal, uncanny. I wept, lost, my mind spiraling. Reality seemed to fold, to double, to fracture like glass. I clutched my accessories, my totems — my watches, my rings, my keepsakes — trying to secure the present, trying to remind myself: this is real, this is me, this is now.

And yet, inside, another voice echoed. Once, I was told: “Do not search for meaning. It does not exist.” The words hollowed me, emptied the structures I had built, leaving a void. For a moment, the world collapsed inward. And yet, in the small, quiet objects I hold, I find counterpoint. Meaning need not be grand, universal, absolute. It lives in the tangible, the immediate, the emotionally resonant. Totems, then, are both practical and philosophical: they affirm presence, commemorate memory, allow acceptance.

We sacrifice time, feeling, presence. We question why we act as we do, why we fail, why we cannot return to the moments we wished to hold. Yet the objects remain. They are small, silent, and in their stillness, they anchor us. They do not change. They do not vanish. They are proof that life happened, that love happened, that presence mattered.

In Fischer’s pinwheel, in Cobb’s spinning top, in my watches and rings, I see the same truth: even if fabricated, even if planted, the objects become real in the hands that clutch them, in the hearts that mourn and rejoice. They allow release, surrender, letting go of guilt, regret, fear, while still holding memory tenderly.

Accessories are my foundation. They hold fragments of life, of emotion, of presence. They allow me to move through the labyrinth of thought, to question, to feel, to hope. I let go of illusions, yet I hold on to the small, tangible remnants of life: the weight of a watch, the curve of a ring, the pulse of memory in a toy.

Reality, dream, past, present, future — they fold into one another. I spin my own totems, and in their quiet, I am present. And perhaps, in presence alone, the search for meaning is no longer necessary.

I have been associating having watches as act of standing out. Everyone is watching you. You lead and guide the rest, because you have a time. Like a compass.

Once I bought my appella watches, every day was special for me. I wore them to school. After my dad gifted me new watches after I graduated the school, I gifted my current ones to my brother. I felt it was a tradition I am building. He wore them too.

Years passed, milestones achieved. I remember having already my daughter being born. I still carry around my watches that my dad gifted me at my 18th year. Meanwhile, in between changing the diapers and my dirty T-shirt after baby accident, I wanted to put on my watches. I realised they were broken. The crown got broken, the movement got stopped again after some a number of repairs. The time has come.

In middle of nights of adult life realisation, I indeed wanted to get back to my childhood because it was an easy time. I could not find those watches which I had with me at school time anywhere online. I contacted the HQ of this brand. They told me they discontinued producing this unit.

To me it was a moment of realisation, you can’t get back your time back. Enjoy the current stage of your maturity. Every watch will serve you at the right time and right place. I think that was journey of discovering the watches to establish my inner vision of combination of stability, exploration, adventure, and wealth. At last, my previous watches were quartz mechanisms. Later I have started searching for automatic ones. This is a symbolism of my priority of choice. Why? I am the motion now of my own family, even watches rely on me if I keep them up to date and carry on the life.

Since when did men start wearing these “flashing lights”?. I was told that “it is for real men to show the power and influence”.

To contradict, I will use Shakespeare’s quote: “All that glitters is not gold”, which is suited to my point. No matter how tough you are, it does not need to prove everyone. But there is always something needs to remind you (firstly!) how beautiful world is. And you have that small part of a beauty on your wrist. You are in the motion with the whole world.

Was Mohammed Ali powerful, influential and strong enough for you?

Mohammed Ali is known for his “butterfly” analogy. This is very symbolic. He wore the Cartier tanks. It shows how small things can impact on the environment. The greatness is in small details.

But sometimes, we need to give a chance for the growing brands like children who do their best to make their first steps and being nearby them seeing how their small steps develop into the long running marathon. I was amazingly lucky to visit a local store in London “Time+Tide”. The boutique that specialises in microbrand watches. The sale associates welcomed me so warmly and were eager to demonstrate a wide variety of watches. The designs of theirs were so enthusiastic and aesthetic. Eventually by picking up the watches of my preference from the showcase I made a collection to view. Then I thought “these are as good as big brands”. Intuitively I broke down these watches in comparison to the well known watches on the market.

1. Dennison Green Malachite Stone Dial vs Piaget“Andy Warhol” Malachite Dial, White Gold.

2. Echo Neutra Rivanera White vs Reverso Classic Monoface Small Seconds

3. Baltic Hermetique Summer Orange Dial vs Patek Phillipe Calatrava 6007G-001

4. Furlan Marri Castagna Mechaquartz Chronograph with Asthmometer scale vs Speedmaster Moonwatch Chronograph Professional

The total sum price of the famous brand watches is roughly £100,000.00. And the sum value of the micro brand I mentioned above is around £3,000.00. The difference is crazy. The design is not worse, it can be even better. It all comes to the subjective opinion. And only the value through the times will prove how much meaning you put into them. One day your grandchildren will bring them into the store and approach to the sale associate for some questions by saying: “My grandparents gifted these watches to me for [blank] occasion…”.

The traditions are meant to be secured and passed to the future generations from your ancestors. However, you are to be your own founder of the traditions. This is a sign for you to have a look at other brands which will eventually will serve you well too. To conclude, I will use again Patek Philippe motto: “Begin your own tradition“.

Here is exactly my comment to the next items which I think they have in common - Rolex yacht-master, Patagonia vest, and (funnily enough) Crocs shoes.

Rolex Yacht master is again the topic that I discussed in a different article. Some watches are designed to be for the special cases. As I repeat again and again, Yacht master and other so called diver watches have functions and features to be used at its best. Wearing them in the offices is the worst thing that can happen to them. It is an imitation of alternative lifestyle with its bulky design in unnecessary locations.

I remember walking down in financial districts in London and noticed that most finance people wore that vest with logo “patagonia”. I saw that on almost every single person in those areas. Even once I thought that it was a special clothing only reachable for finance industry of such brand. Then I checked online and found out that Patagonia is a geographical location of southern America spread across Argentina and Chile. Then checked other outfits the brand sells. I had exactly the same feelings as for Yacht-Masters. These patagonia clothings deserve for a better experience.

I saw an episode from Joe Rogan podcast about Crocs being used in the movie “Idiocracy”. Those shoes believed too ugly to become popular, but demand in the market proved it wrong. They are worn massively by adults. To me, however, these shoes resemble the children fashion. So I come up to the idea that adults wish to be free, childish, and a bit idiotic (reference to Idiocracy). But I have a feeling that mostly by wearing these shoes, we miss our childhood time and wish to get back to those moments again and being secretly jealous to children with their “silliness“.

Since I started the this post with reference to the movie Fast and Furious 7, I will wrap up here with reference to another movie “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”. We wear certain clothing, accessories and items to secretly admitting to have another life and be in a different place. We are dreamers, and these items serve us well to fulfill the dreams. It is a determination to pursue your dreams. But why would you wait and spend money on items that brings only miracle to your life? Why dont you act now and escape the prison of consumerism?

As the main idea I will quote from the movie is “To see the world, things dangerous to come to, to see behind walls, to draw closer, to find each other, and to feel. That is the purpose of life”.

For me, one of those accessories has always been speeches. The details in how someone chooses words, how they pause, where their voice cracks or steadies. Speeches, especially the short ones under the bright lights of the Oscars, are like cufflinks: not necessary to survival, but necessary to meaning. They hold together the fabric of the moment.

And so, when I am sad, I often turn to them. Like others rewind music or revisit a favorite book, I rewatch acceptance speeches. They remind me that a life can be compressed into two minutes, that gratitude can be poetry, that love can be announced publicly without shame.

Here are the ones that never leave me.

Eddie Redmayne, 87th Oscars (2015)

He holds the statue as though it might escape him. His voice is cracked, jittery with disbelief. And then he grounds it: by naming the people who built him. His wife. Their soon-to-arrive child. The speech is not just about him - it is about them.

“…I will promise you I will look after him – I will polish him; I will answer his beck and call; I will wait on him hand and foot…”

Awards often look solitary. But here, Redmayne breaks that illusion: the win belongs not only to the actor but to the unseen partner at home.

Ke Huy Quan, 95th Oscars (2023)

The story is already a miracle: refugee camp, boat, almost forgotten actor - now, a man standing on the brightest stage. But he does not lose himself in the glow. He calls home. He calls his mother.

“…Mom, I just won an Oscar! … I owe everything to the love of my life, my wife Echo, who month after month, year after year, for twenty years told me that one day, one day, my time will come…”

This is not a speech, it is a condensed autobiography. Pain, exile, love, faith. Proof that a dream is never small if someone keeps it alive for you.

Jamie Foxx, 77th Oscars (2005)

I can’t count how many times I’ve watched this. Every time: tears. He does something rare - he lets grief and gratitude walk hand in hand.

“…This is probably going to be the toughest part… My grandmother’s name was Estelle Marie Talley… She was my first acting teacher… And she still talks to me now; only now she talks to me in my dreams. And I can’t wait to go to sleep tonight because we got a lot to talk about…”

This is more than an Oscar speech. It is a conversation with the dead, carried into the living world. A lesson on dignity: act as if you belong, because you already do. His grandmother’s presence becomes the invisible standing ovation.

Roberto Benigni, “Life is Beautiful” (1999)

If you want to know how to accept an award - watch this. He doesn’t just thank people. He lives joy in the moment. He climbs over chairs, he dissolves embarrassment, he makes cinema of gratitude.

“L’amore che muove il sole e le altre stelle - Love will move the sun and the other stars.”

Benigni reminds us that love, if we trust it, makes even ceremony divine.

Rowan Atkinson - Silence Speaks

And then, the opposite: silence. Rowan Atkinson turns absence of words into speech itself. Proof that action, gesture, restraint can sometimes carry more weight than any thank-you list.

Sometimes you don’t need to speak. Sometimes you only need to show.

Why These Voices Stay

What links them all? Not craft, not cleverness, not perfectly rehearsed lines. But the rawness of love. The reminder that our highest moments are never only ours - they are built by mothers, wives, grandmothers, partners, even the memory of someone long gone.

And maybe that’s why I rewatch them when I’m sad: because they remind me of what’s bigger than me. The people who keep our dreams alive. The voices that stay.

This is the first essay in Voices That Stayed, where I shared the words, gestures, and moments — from mentors, poets, authors, or artists — that continue to shape the way I think. Small details that, like accessories, complete the larger picture of life. Subscribe to stay tuned.

Subscribe now

As someone drawn to slow living, I see something better: the analog camera.

Remember when film rolls had 12, 24, or 36 shots? Each frame was valuable. You didn’t just click - you decided. One photo could tell the whole story of an event. That was the beauty of analog: the unknown result. The wait. The preparation. The care for the “one and only” shot.

And here’s why I call it a time machine. With analog, you don’t just take a picture - you live the process. You spend time adjusting, waiting, thinking. That effort locks the moment into your memory. Later, when you look at those photos, you don’t just see the past - you return to it.

For the photographer, it’s even more. You set the parameters not with automatic presets, but with knowledge, instinct, and a little intuition. The magic is not just in the final picture. It’s in the motion: the moment, the preparation, the action, and only then - the result.

That is life itself. We move, we prepare, we act, and only then do we see the outcome.

And when I look back, the photos I treasure most are the ones I took on my analog camera. They are fewer, but they mean more. They take me back. They keep time.

In the end, it’s the smallest details that keep time for us.

The photo is by Andre Burdain https://unsplash.com/@anderburdain

One night, I was trying to explain this to a friend. He was applying for jobs and asked me for advice. On technical things, he knew more than I did. So instead, I spoke about mindset and confidence.

I told him it’s not only knowledge that matters. It’s being ready - with the right tools at the right time. To prove my point, I took out a lighter, clicked it on, and said:

“You never know when something small like this will make you stand out.”

He didn’t really buy it. He was hesitant, almost laughing at the idea.

After dinner, we went for a walk. A few minutes later, we passed a group of women on the street. They were full of energy, clearly going out for the night. As we got closer, one of them stopped me and asked:

“Do you have a lighter?”

I turned to my friend, smiled, and pulled out the same lighter from my pocket. The women cheered, thanked us, and went on with their night.

We kept walking, and my friend looked at me in shock.

“You were just talking about this lighter. I can’t believe it actually happened.”

I only said:

“You see. You never know.”

What I didn’t tell him was that it was my first time ever carrying a lighter with me. That night, the detail became the story.

Headphones kept getting more and more “noise-isolated.” But was that really isolation from noise - or from each other? Video content was engineered to trap our attention, feeding us endless scrolls until we lived in a parallel world. Then came the masks. I’m not here to debate right or wrong, but let’s admit it: they silenced us. They made us live the metaphor we once feared.

We mocked politicians for turning a blind eye, for shutting their ears, for staying silent. And yet, somewhere in the chaos, we did exactly the same.

That thought scared me. So much that I rushed to beign my first art installation: Three Wise Monkeys.

Mizaru - See No Evil.

Our phones are glued to our eyes 24/7. And now, VR technology has taken that intimacy even further. We don’t just see - we choose what we see. Its vision narrowed by design.

Kikazaru - Hear No Evil.

There was a time we lived fine without noise-cancelling headphones. In public spaces we respected each other. Now, headphones are a symbol of tuning out, of ignoring the world around us. Yes, I wear them too. But they still feel like a quiet surrender.

Iwazaru - Speak No Evil.

The pandemic reshaped how we use our voices. To speak out - or not to. The debate itself became louder than the words spoken. Silence and speech, each more political than ever before.

So I built a new figure. A reimagined monkey for today. Not carved in wood, but shaped by isolation, technology, and the irony of sending a message to the world from the solitude of my room. Here we have my own “Three Wise Monkeys of the 21st Century”.

And then I took it further. I digitized the work and placed it on the blockchain - an NFT, eternal, untouchable. A piece of the pandemic locked in code, preserved as an infinite product for the future. Not just art, but a mirror of our times, made permanent in the digital ether.

Subscribe

Here’s the truth: it doesn’t matter where you work or what the “mood” demands. You bring yourself into the crowd. You shine through your watches. You set your rules. You are remembered for your style. That’s why you need them—to be unique, to stand apart.

I’ve heard it all: Rolex Yacht-Masters are a “must” for finance guys. Some say they’re for pretending to be yacht enthusiasts behind office desks. Everyone sees it, yet the potential is wasted. Too many wear them because everyone says they should. Pathetic, isn’t it?

Don’t follow the herd. Wear watches for your own vision. My friend got stuck trying to pick a watch that respected his position without outshining his manager. That’s the moment identity dies—when you chase the “right one” instead of your own.

Be different. Be bold. Robert Baratheon defeated Rhaegar Targaryen with his War Hammer, changed history, became king (Game of Thrones). You can do the same with the right tool in your hand. Choose your watch. Rule your story.

Time is life’s purest luxury. Unlike anything we own, it can’t be saved, paused, or duplicated. And watches — so close to our skin — are more than accessories; they’re silent witnesses to our days, our decisions, our milestones. That’s why I believe watches carry a meaning deeper than most clothes or objects ever could. They’re not status symbols. They’re timekeepers of memory.

I love watches. I’ve only recently started my collection, but I’ve already fallen for the stories they tell — not just from the brands, but from my own life. I often find myself browsing, reading histories, tracing the roots of heritage houses. One day, in London, I walked into a luxury watch boutique and asked to be taken on the journey of their brand. The sales associate looked at me and asked, “What do you have in your collection?”

It wasn’t the first time I’d heard that. And truthfully, it made me feel a little out of place. I had only two watches at the time. I didn’t want to seem inexperienced. But then something clicked. I remembered why I’d started this journey. I remembered the stories behind those two watches. And I simply answered.

Like many, I began with the classics. My first watch was a Casio, gifted by my uncle when I was a schoolboy. “Take this,” he said, “now you’re ready for school.” That moment stayed with me — not because of the brand, but because of what it meant. It wasn’t about the watch. It was about inheritance, about being seen as ready. That ritual of passing something precious marked the beginning of my love for timepieces.

My second watch came from my first hustle. I chose a piece that mirrored the one my father wore — almost like reclaiming a part of his story for myself. Others were gifted to me at important milestones, and each carries a memory: a place, a person, a version of myself.

That day in the boutique, the sales associate unknowingly did his job brilliantly. His question brought me back to why I’m drawn to watches. I don’t collect for prestige. I collect to time-stamp my life.

Watches are more than beautiful machines. They’re like Dumbledore’s Pensieve in Harry Potter — each one holding a memory, a lesson, a version of who we were. My collection lives not just in a drawer or a display case, but in a timeline of moments — my own private archive.

We’re often tempted by what lies ahead — new models, new obsessions — but once we know who we are, the watches we choose begin to reflect us naturally. It’s no longer about the trend. It’s about alignment.

As I left the boutique that day, I made a quiet promise to myself: Let each watch I choose be a compass — not just of style, but of where I want to go.

I believe it’s our pens that make us men.

I borrow that line from Braveheart. At the beginning of the film, young William Wallace says, “I can fight.”

His father replies:

“I know. I know you can fight. But it’s our wits that make us men.”

That one line stayed with me. It became a foundation.

Years later, as grown William fights his battles, it’s clear—what gave him the edge wasn’t brute force. It was intelligence. Clarity. Strategy. The sword may have cut, but it was the mind behind it that truly mattered.

Life is still a kind of battlefield. We don’t carry swords, but we do carry tools. My tool is the pen.

In a world moving too fast, too loud, too digital, I’ve grown more attached to the physical act of writing. A pen slows me down. It adds intention. It reminds me to mean what I say.

We send hundreds of messages daily—text, voice notes, emails. But do they hold meaning? How often do we pause to consider what our words feel like? We speak in abbreviations. Our messages often come with fillers: “uh,” “ah,” “you know.” But when I sit down to write by hand, every word earns its place.

That’s why I started collecting pens.

Specifically, fountain pens. The craftsmanship behind them speaks to me. The nib feels like a sword—precise, elegant, alive. Writing with one turns a note into a gesture. A sentence into a move. The time I give to the message becomes visible in the writing itself.

One of my first fountain pens came from my wife. A gift.

It was a Montegrappa.

She asked me what I wanted for Valentine’s Day. I said, “Just a fountain pen.” I told her it didn’t need to be expensive. She ignored that and went deeper.

She found Montegrappa—a family-run house known for its legacy and craft. The pen she chose was beautiful. Italian. Weighty in the hand. Warm in character.

From that day on, it became my companion. My writing changed. It slowed. Became more focused. More intentional. Each letter now passes through thought, not habit.

And with that pen, I began to see writing differently—not just as communication, but as presence.

Every single word I write with that pen brings the love value as a protector of my family.

Subscribe now

Impression

You can start reaching your goals as soon as you know what are you targeting at. I would highly advise to stop being humble with yourselves and bring all your strengths and superpowers. I liked being on stage performing violin and singing during my childhood. It gave me confidence and taught me how to grab public’s attention. My mother always told me that I have only 5 minutes to perform and everything from start to finish matters. She told me that it is the peak time to serve the best I have in myself so that listeners can witness and remember my message. This 5 minutes whenever I go to the meeting or presenting something became a rule of giving the best of me. “Clothes do not make the man” is partly true, but psychologically we make an impression with overall look in less than 5 seconds. I like to explore styles of different power figures and celebrities. Study their fits depending on the cause and events they are attending. I always draw the parallels and try to understand what exactly they are transmitting via their outfits. Clothing and accessories can make big statements. For example, as published by Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management in 2013 they conducted the study to see the difference between bespoke and off market suits. Please see the bar chart below:

From this study we can see that overall impression of the attire which is made to measure has positive impression overall. While I did not find the study which would conduct the accessories power (maybe I should conduct one someday), this is the closest point where I can scientifically prove that well thought out attire affects in a positive way. I did also finalise the overall first impression pie chart divided by message, voice and appearance. By this we can clearly understand that the appearance plays major role:

Never neglect the power of first impression.

Losing my balance

The best way to succeed in this life is to aim for balance. I learnt it the hard way. It might be vague in terms of where do superpowers end and ego begins. Self-awareness can be a kryptonite and false advantage of the power. All our emotions and feelings matter, but it is advisable to be very cautious with your ego in form of arrogance. It can give a massive resource, but it is also serves a big chance to be carried away by your greatness. I was neglecting myself by trying to bring back that student of excellence alter ego while neglecting my new traits and emerging superpowers. I started to act by the book, following all social rules and roles. I started vanishing my features which could help me to stand out. After university I dived into the diplomacy by starting my role at British-Kazakh Society. I started acting like them, dressing like them, talking like them slowly mimicking my colleagues. My dad was very proud of me as I started pursuing his dream and my life was full of attributes of diplomats. I started feeling myself that I was wearing a cape of the wrong superhero. I rejected my inner self and my true nature, I was drowning in the routine and got at my lowest. The wake up call happened when I was attending one of the international meetings and discovered that my laces were ripped. I asked myself how I ended up in this situation and came to conclusion that the shoes I am wearing do not fit me and I need to figure out myself. I have discovered the importance of self-reflection and constant retrospective judgement. I also highly recommend asking others how they perceive your style. It can be anyone, starting from sales associates to your loved ones.

Case study

Many years after it was a sunny day in Riyadh. I quit diplomacy. Started new chapter and I had a chance to join the conference in mining industry and truly felt the power of self-branding. Before packing up to the trip, I have spent days thinking about my wardrobe and my ‘go-to office’ in terms of everyday accessories. I was not sure how I would carry all my documents and materials so I made a stop at Smythson shop in Heathrow. I wanted to get a folder so I won’t be hoarding too many materials but having everything I needed in one place. I bought a nice leather folder with a notebook inside which could fit several materials, pen, tablet and can be easily zipped. As I was travelling to Middle East and personally like green colour, I bought dark green leather folder. It felt perfect, it was very comfortable and rather than carrying a briefcase, I felt lighter than most of other people there. During the conference, I knew someone was looking at me. A gentleman approached me and asked if I was an Arabic delegate because of my folder. Apparently there was a meeting to sign a memorandum of understanding and they all were carrying the folders like mine. We had a nice laugh and chat about the coincidence and later he shared about his area of business. His area of interests perfectly aligned with mine, we had a beneficial conversation and right now we are at the stage of the potential partnership. This is the power of accessories. Smythson leather folder is a sign of cherishing British craftsmanship, heritage and green is a meaningful colour for Arabic world. I carried a fountain pen because for me it is a symbol of careful decision making but once it is done, ink cannot be removed. Think twice. Arabic world is not slow motion, it is moderate and considerate. Arabic world appreciates family – I got Montegrappa pen in green colour. Montegrappa is a family run company, who took back control of their company after being under conglomerate of Richemont Group.

The most important is to translate your inner self into reality by giving the cues. Right targeted cues will be interpreted and understood by likeminded people resulting in strong connections and fulfilled aspirations.

References: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/256846903_The_influence_of_clothing_on_first_impressions_Rapid_and_positive_responses_to_minor_changes_in_male_attire

Subscribe now