Always keep a spare tie in your drawer
Having a good time at work is a crucial element that ensures you arrive with a smile each day; well, that and a cup of coffee.
A decade ago, while working at a client's office, this delightful combination was a part of the work culture. One day, a colleague and I embarked on a playful mission: to introduce the tradition of wearing a tie to work, just for the fun of it. However, there was a catch; it was exclusively reserved for Wednesdays, don't ask me why. As expected, people found it absurd and hardly anyone agreed to join our endeavour.
A few weeks later, in an effort to win more participants, our department manager took a bold step. She brought in a bag filled with ties, courtesy of her husband, and distributed them to the team for a day. Suddenly, there was no excuse for not owning a tie. Everyone was practically forced to wear one that day, and for that brief moment, we achieved a milestone.
Faces of accomplices have been masked to protect their identity.
Fast forward to the end of 2014, my wife and I found ourselves in China, exploring the vibrant streets of Hong Kong.
As we were strolling through a local market, we stumbled upon a small booth where an old woman was selling an array of ties; big, small, vividly colourful, and surprisingly high quality, all at an incredibly low price.
Yes, I get it; "Made in China", but these were different.
Recognizing an opportunity, I purchased about 20 ties, ensuring I had a new one to wear each week.
And so, our Wednesday-Tie-Day tradition persisted for years, just the two of us. It became so imbedded that people could easily recognize that it was Wednesday just by spotting us in ties. It was almost as if our ritual had made its way into the Gregorian Calendar. Occasionally, we took it a step further, wearing suits and addressing each other as "Mister Director" throughout the day. The surprising shift in how people treated us when we wore suits was remarkable; it felt like being an entirely different person.
Then came the day when we decided to play mind games. Instead of wearing the tie on Wednesday, we switched to Tuesday. The result? Utter chaos and panic swept through the office. Everyone was bewildered, convinced it was Wednesday, scrambling to check calendars and phones. It was a fascinating observation of how easily people can be conditioned to accept something as simple as a mid-week dress code as part of their daily routine.
This amusing charade continued for a couple of years until we eventually called it quits. Those were indeed good times; a reminder that not everything has to be serious all the time.
If you're curious about China or other countries, be sure to check out my Random Awesome Mental Pyctures website for more random images of our travels: Random Awesome Mental Pyctures - China.