The Lightbulb/LinkedIn moment
Sometimes inspiration comes in the least expected places. In this case, I was scrolling through my LinkedIn feed when I stumbled across a post where the author was sharing how she often got overlooked when attending networking events based on her being young. What they did not know was how she worked in media – including working for the BBC corporation – and now, she was the founder of a start-up company. And all of this had been achieved before she reached her third decade.
How wrong they had been, on making judgements based on her age.
Do not judge a book by its cover
As I was typing my response to her post, I thought this was a relatable subject, as I, too, have experienced judgement in different guises. I experienced a “Pretty Women” moment with a boutique I used to visit frequently. And no, I do not charge for the pleasure of being in my company.
I was visiting a different branch of the boutique, and I was dressed more casually than usual and wearing my hair in its natural curls. I noticed there was a coldness, from the outset with one of the sales assistants. I asked her a question and her response was sarcastic. I proceeded, and then when I came to the end of my shopping experience I remember feeling “uncomfortable” when she made a comment which was unnecessary and rude, about how I tried on the clothing.
Unbeknownst to me, she was the founder and owner of the store. Unbeknown to her, I was a frequent customer and ‘high spender’- and on one occasion when I had turned up near closing time of the store, the sales assistant allowed me in and allowed me to browse and try on the clothing. I had my real VIP moment of literally having the store to myself. But that visit had changed all of this.
A week later, I visited my usual branch and spoke to one of the sales assistants about my “unpleasant” experience. She asked me to describe the person I met. And then gave that knowing look. She explained it was the owner who I had met, and how she was not surprised by her behaviour. I made the decision after all this was confirmed, and after reading some reviews by the staff not to shop there again. I had experienced “prejudicial” behaviour from the owner just because of the way I looked.
I was soon reminded by the different conversations about how everyone had a story about being judged. It could be from their parenting styles to the story of an ex-convict who, despite serving their time for white-collar crime, they were shunned by certain members of their family and ex-acquaintances. And this was despite them sharing their story about how they made certain bad choices that led them on their previous path, and now donating some of their time to helping people who were “overlooked” – sometimes because of the housing estate they came from.
Birth of a slogan/campaign
So, as I go back to that tale of that LinkedIn post. This inspired my idea. Would it not be cool, to have the slogan on the t-shirt that read, “Do not judge me by my t-shirt”? I was now launching a t-shirt business! “Nothing happens before its time”, my mother would often quote. The time was now.
Question: When was the last time you were judged by your t-shirt?
