Shoes maketh the man.

DFOF would not dare to discuss women’s shoes. He leaves that to either his co-editor or she who must be obeyed. But on topic of men’s shoes, he is intrepid.

 

It is not often that one reads a post from graphics geek at Adobe on shoe etiquette.  (Thanks James)

But, gosh, Chet’s post is a gem  

In Corporate War-drobe, it’s all about the shoes.

• The shoes are what your minions see when, awestruck by your power, they look down at the floor as you walk forcefully by.
• The shoes are the only article of clothing you wear that sounds with each step (apart from the chain mail girdle), announcing to everyone around that You Are Walking.
• The shoes, when shined appropriately, can reflect your visage enough for you to be able to tell in an after-lunch meeting whether you have any of that chili verde burrito left on your face.

Profoundly sound advice for any person attempting to climb the greasy corporate pole. It is maternal in its wisdom, only funnier. Chet’s whole post is a must peruse, more than that, it is a clarion call.

It has inspired DFOF to do two things.

1. Commit to write more about the importance of the shoe, yes, we have discussed  Converse, the Doc,  and  New Balance, and we briefly touched on the Oxford, but it is high time, dear reader, that we introduce  you to some serious shoe theory. Crockett and Jones, John Lobb (one day, when DFOF is rich), Church’s, Paraboot, Loakes, Oliver Sweeney’s.  For the geek readers out there,a Lobb brogue is like an Apple MacBook Air, only more elegant, and without the design flaws. Oh, and  DFOF requires an Australian guest to write on Australia’s national treasure, R.M.Williams. You have been warned.

2. Pause while he polishes his favourite shoes; a pair of Jeffrey West brogues. They are about 10 years old, and have had 3 sets of new soles and heels. He guesses that they have been worn roughly 1500 times (3×52x10) and have probably walked at least 2000 kilometres.

 

DFOF has one point of dissent with Chet.

He suggests

Now that you have the shoes in your hands, take them. It’s not good enough to just copy what they wear - you need to wear their exact shoes. The Corporate Warrior’s version of the old saying goes, “You can never be the boss until you’ve walked a mile in his shoes.” It’s not a metaphor.

DFOF suggests that one’s shoes should be better than the  manager wears. This will ensure that one day, the manager will be reporting to you instead. Forget polishing the résumé, polish one’s shoes.

(photo from the CC of Christian et Cie. merci!)

 

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