Random Musings

For a few years now, I have zeroed in on a simple white-shirt-and-blue-jeans as a regular form of dressing for myself. Most days, if not all.

It started as a whim of sorts. Our planning team was debating a pitch and had come up with an interesting central theme for a brand. I am able to share it now, as it did not take off, for whatever reason.

The central theme thought of then, was “Simple Hai, Great Hai”. And while I won’t get into the relevance of this, for that brand, as an example of what’s simple and great, came up the white-shirt-blue-jeans concept. That it symbolised the “Simple-Hai-Great-Hai” story.

It stayed in my mind. And refused to go out.

Till one fine day, I thought of embracing it. And decided to make that my dress. My way. My uniform. My style.

Whatever you may call it.

And while the whites have not been a specific type of white, nor have the blue jeans been only a particular kind of blue, broadly speaking, the combination has stayed. And I have been extremely comfortable about it.

And which is when I came across this really interesting article recently:

 

While  I had not thought so deeply when I chose to shift to a defined pair of clothing, I feel flattered to even think that eminent luminaries have / had followed a certain practise of this kind too! In fact, the first person I had seen in my life, personally, who had chosen a standard pattern of clothing, also happens to be someone I have idolised, for the longest period of time, viz. my paternal grandfather.

From the time that I can remember, he only wore a white shirt and a white pant, both cotton. Simple living, high thinking, is what he symbolised.

But obviously, about the only thing I share with these great people, including my grandfather, is that I have also been dressing in a certain, standard manner, for a while now.

But reading the above mentioned article, and thinking a little more about this, I do realise that this dressing sense, has been a part of a certain larger shift that has happened in my life, over the last few years.

And which fundamentally is about LIVING the life that “doesn’t fret the small stuff”!

Yes, in many ways, the message from the article resonates. That there are far too many decisions that DEMAND our time, and if there are others that are not critical, why worry much about them.

I am fine with what food is cooked at home. I don’t want to play a role in planning the menu.

I am okay to be driven by my driver as long as he can take me to where I want to go. I don’t want to tell him much about bearing to the left, going little slow, or taking a particular route.

I am okay to let my colleagues or my team take decisions in areas, where my involvement is not a necessity. I’d rather stay focused on areas where it is important for me to participate as I am probably best suited in those, and they are critical enough for me to be involved.

One always has choices in life. The option could be to stay extremely tense, be stressed about the smallest thing that happens around you (which you must necessarily be in control) or let some things be. And find peace within yourself. And focus to do best, what you anyway, need to do.

Believe me, this is easier said than done, for an entrepreneur. I work on it, but I wouldn’t say I have mastered it. But increasingly, in a busy-busy, dynamic world, this is only becoming more critical, the way I see it.

That is my choice anyway.. don’t know what you feel about it? Would be great to see your views too, on this. Do share your comments.

Finally, as this refers to my white-shirt-blue-jeans routine, I cannot help but mention the wonderful gift that my team gave me on my last birthday. To my pleasant surprise, as I walked into the office that day, I saw the sea of white and blue, as the team came dressed in white shirts and blue jeans! Pretty amazing, it was..