36 / Hotel Bathroom Attire. Sudeikis. Otter. Leaders.

How to think about clothes.

Jul 27, 2021

The Olympics started and Bitcoin hit a six-month low. Both things might be worth spending some time on this week.

"No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself, or to get all the credit for doing it." — Andrew Carnegie

Leadership cannot exist in a vacuum. A leader requires support because no single person is the best at everything. Who can you give credit to? Who might be capable of taking on some of the load?

"Our dental issues are not normal. Most other vertebrate creatures do not have the same dental problems that we do." This deep dive into the history of oral health uncovers why our diets and environment are so important for our teeth.
Two things I didn't know about Jason Sudeikis before reading this: how to spell his name correctly and that he was a college point-guard. The point guard-turned-comedy-a-hole-turned-director shares a life that is equal parts philosophical and entertaining.
Professional, free fonts for you next project, presentation, or creative endeavor. Serifs, san-serifs, bold, or wide. There are so many fonts and styles to choose from.
You can support my IRONMAN fundraiser. I’ve been pushed physically and mentally over the last year for so many reasons. I sit here thankful for the lessons learned while training: grit and exploration to name a couple. I’m registered for IRONMAN Maryland as part of the IRONMAN Foundation team. I want to give back to the foundation because it is on a mission to pass on those same lessons that I’ve learned.
Otter.ai has been a powerful tool to use alongside all my Zoom meetings. It allows users to import or record audio that is transcribed. The transcription can be commented on, edited, and shared. It's the ideal tool for saving informative calls to not miss a detail!

Hotel Bathroom

3 Lessons for answering: What is appropriate attire?

(Read this online here.)

Here's an unoriginal sentence you've probably heard before: What you wear matters.

But you probably haven't read this Tweet:

"When you want to cultivate serendipity, stick to the 'Hotel Bathroom' dress code. Always dress well enough to walk into any bathroom at a hotel you're not staying at and get away with it." -@david_perell

Three lessons came to mind.

Picture this: your boss or maybe parent mumbling at the TV about how CEO's back in the day wore suits when they appeared on CNBC for an exclusive interview.

Now you have tech CEO's being known for a trademarked t-shirt and jeans look. The last few years have seen changes by even the most historically stringent of industries — banking. In 2019 CNBC wrote about Goldman's policy changes: "The dress code is symbolic of a deeper cultural transformation at financial firms, which are trying to project themselves as innovation hubs where individuality and autonomy is emphasized."

People have more opportunities than ever to show their individuality through personal style in work and life. Manufacturing, technology, and materialism have evolved over centuries to bring us clothes that make it possible to look sophisticated and be comfortable at the same time, for very little cost. Emphasis on sophisticated. Lesson 1: Be comfortable and look tasteful.

Another aspect of the Hotel Bathroom Principle I love is this message: what you wear matters even at the times when it's tempting to think it doesn't.

This lesson I picked up while on Ariana Grande's Sweetener tour. In my post-tour notes I wrote:

"Appearance matters. Especially when working in different groups, it’s very distinct and it’s easy to be treated differently based upon how we are each dressed."

It wasn't a glamorous two weeks, but even covered in grease and dirt, by taking pride in my appearance I was afforded client-facing opportunities that wouldn't have turned up otherwise.

Dressing for a hotel bathroom is about cultivating serendipity. Dress to be approachable and you never know what will come your way.

Lesson 2: Dress nicely, even backstage. Allow opportunity for the serendipity machine.

I needed to dress how I wanted to be treated on that tour.

It was good I had my favorite belt.

Lucky underwear, favorite belt, a go-to yellow hat.

All these are confidence boosters.

Having pride in appearance serves as a boost of confidence.

There's a reason baseball players have superstitions that seems silly, like Aubrey Huff wearing his wife's thong and knocking in the game-tying run in the NLDS.

Confidence breeds success. Lesson 3: Wear your lucky underwear. Personally liking what you wear boosts your confidence.

These lessons serve as my reminders.