While it is a positive sign that people are purchasing socially responsible and eco friendly fashion, using the old model of unrestrained shopping to feed never-ending desires is still unsustainable. With my beautiful friend Adriana wearing a distinctive pair of Shag Vintage pants that I’ve worn time and againĮven in sustainable fashion circles, you will still find people caught up in avoiding wearing the same thing – even though it is an unsustainable practice. We now take selfies and are looking for our own brand of ‘celebrity.’ Take a look at your Instagram feed and you will find that normal everyday people are rarely photographed wearing the same thing twice further feeding this ‘faux pas.’ Getting double taps and ‘likes’ for posing in an outfit (that you borrowed and probably don’t own, or even worse, bought just for the social media occasion) is a high-schoolish way to measure self-worth, but somehow we play these silly games anyway. Social media has also influenced our thoughts on fashion. Glamour, for example, is something people aspire to and there’s something inherently unglamorous about wearing an item you’ve worn before. From the reality TV shows we watch such as the “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” to the trash magazines we read, our standard of success is based on superficiality and disposability. We only need look at our culture to understand why we have such a problem with being seen in the same outfit twice. It led me on a search to understand the influences of this irrational fashion notion and I found it: pop culture, marketing and media. When I began my journey into sustainable fashion way back in 2008, I began to wonder: since when did wearing the same thing twice become socially unacceptable? Now I know that “yes” can mean “no” in China, as they don’t want you to be embarrassed in public.Wikipedia defines a faux pas as a socially awkward or tactless act, especially one that violates accepted social norms, standard customs, or the rules of etiquette WHY CAN’T YOU WEAR THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER? I remember feeling very happy as our new colleagues agreed with us on everything! What was my surprise when a few weeks later, I received an email announcing decisions that were completely different from what I thought we had agreed on. Sara, Lead Software Developer at an IT Company, Canada Cultural faux-pas #6: Be aware! Yes can sometimes mean no.Ī Chinese group acquired my company, and so we had a series of long meetings to discuss the new strategy and direction we were going for. I am glad we discussed this as he explained he was not aware of this expectation because, at previous jobs, juniors were expected to only listen to senior staff members. I decided to speak to him privately and tell him that group participation was part of his performance and so he needed to speak up and actively participate. I noticed a relatively new virtual member of my team from India often stayed silent during meetings unless prompted to contribute. Read more Cultural faux-pas #5: Relationship to hierarchy. Helen, HR Assistant at a Financial Services Organization, UK Further reading Being American and having worked within the team for months, I was quite offended by the comment and didn’t know how to take it. One of my colleagues said, “I enjoyed the session even though the trainer is a bit too American!”. ![]() I remember my manager asking for our feedback about a consultant who had recently led a training session in our offices. Cultural faux-pas #4: Americans have feelings too! Leo, Account Manager at a Global Software firm, Sweden. ![]() I later realized she never thought she was late before I mentioned it! She quickly apologized, but I felt a sudden sense of awkwardness. ![]() Towards the end of one of the meetings, I calmly explained that I expected her to be on time unless she had a valid reason. I found this frustrating and quite disrespectful towards the other members of the team. Cultural faux-pas #3: Remember that time is subjective.Ī member of my team based in Mexico used to show up a few minutes late to our weekly virtual meetings. Marc, Advertising Specialist at a Fashion company in Spain. Cultural faux-pas #2: Get your greeting right.īeing German, I remember feeling very awkward the first time my colleagues kissed me on the cheek to greet me. I joked around the fact that he probably didn’t want to share his cooking secrets with us before realizing it was Ramadan and he was actually fasting.Ĭlaire, Marketing Manager at a Pharmaceutical Company, US. One day, my graphic designer showed up without any food. Therefore, I decided to organize a monthly virtual lunch. I really missed having lunch with my teammates since we all started working remotely due to the pandemic. Download eBook Cultural faux-pas #1: Oh! Is it Ramadan?
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