Fashion is not about luxury. Hermès never uses the word, nor does Porsche. An in-depth analysis of many fashion/luxury brands reveals a paradoxical absence of the word “luxury”. The word “luxury” is connected with scarcity and exclusivity, thus being the privilege of a very specific demographic. But clever fashion/luxury brands do not want to limit […]
I am not a fan of New Year’s resolutions. Because they are grand. Because they are overcommitting. And because they put the emphasis on change. They are usually radical. They are after all, “a new beginning”. But a new beginning may not be what we need. Maybe starting from zero every year may be a […]
Every eligible person in the kingdom hoped to be picked by Prince Charming. No one knew what Prince Charming’s selection criteria were as he went from door to door. The criterion was arbitrary – shoe size. And, somehow, Prince Charming managed to skip all those hundreds of houses where he could have found several perfectly […]
Exclusivity: The bravery to choose to speak to the sensibilities of only a few instead of all. We live in the world of niche. There is a magazine dedicated to water! A blog dedicated to growing succulents! A magazine on raising… emus! And one about miniature donkeys. Something exclusive is not exclusionary. It is razor-sharp […]
In 1948 John Cage conceived a composition that consisted of nothing else but 4’ and 33” of silence, or more precisely, the absence of intended sounds, and only ambient sound. Execution-wise, it could have been performed by untrained musicians. Innovation-wise, silence is hardly new. There is silence before every concert – all that Cage did […]
Industry means depersonalising and replacing human agency with processes, policies, efficiency and replication. This is the definition of industry. The wedding “industry” occasionally focuses more on the industry part, not the wedding part. I have been lucky this year to have worked only with creatives who focus on the wedding part. This is the people […]
Would you tip the same if the tip-jar was hidden from anyone’s view?Maybe you would. But most people wouldn’t. Because, like walkathons, bikeathons, or fun runs, tipping is not just about the money, but about how it makes us feel. It is about the story we tell ourselves about ourselves. And it all comes down […]
The answer has little to do with whether people are paying you for what you do. I think the most appreciable distinction between a true professional and an amateur is this:A professional is presenting a self (consistently and deliberately), while an amateur is revealing the self they feel like being in the moment. Imagine the […]
Who is to blame? Your value system? Your time-management skills? The system (“I am in wrong field/ country/ team”)? You will never know the answer with certainty. You can guess, but the true answer will always remain outside anyone’s conceptual structure. The easiest thing to do would be to blame the system. Once you go […]
Being “safe” (in business, art, life) is an illusion. One cannot possibly expect to be safe. The only thing one can expect from oneselves is to be metasafe. Metasafe: to be able to cope with danger/ failure/ death/ _________ (all the nasty stuff the world will inevitably throw). Once metasafe, it no longer makes sense […]
– Copy someone you admire.– But won’t this make me inauthentic? Before you can compose/draw/photograph a masterpiece, something that is beyond any previous memory, you have to first instil skill. Skill comes from grinding repetition and copying (or, better, imitation of) the masters until your brain forms new pathways. Why can’t we accept that Life, […]
Let people outshine you. Even better, enable them. Because then, you can observe and improve yourself. Let’s forgo the pleasure of complaining how stupid/ uncultivated/ unprofessional everybody else is. Whether this be true or not, aside from the temporary gratification of feeling the smartest person in the room, the reality is this: Being the “smartest […]
March 26-28, 2025 I am honoured to be a speaker at the 2024 Difference Masterclass in Provence. You are a professional passionate about the world of weddings. The Wedding Difference Masterclass goes beyond individual training by offering 3 days dedicated to all wedding professionals. The conferences and round tables will allow you to exchange ideas, help each […]
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