(618) 791-8491 kim@kimlkirnlaw.com

A young executive Vice president in the entertainment industry came clean that he wore the same shirt for ZOOM work calls for 70 consecutive days and NO ONE noticed.  Granted it was a nice shirt—Brooks Brothers, black, red and white small plaid with a button-down collar.  He began this experiment as a prank.  He wanted to see how many days before someone would notice and call him out.   

The exec was a bit of a fashionista.  He previously had hosted a design show on TLC and noted that his shirt collection had reached 210 shirts hanging in his closet.  (How many ties do you think he owns?)  BTW, my husband might be a close second to the exec’s shirt collection in his ever-expanding shirt assemblage. 

So, the exec began to crack and leaked out the news to his colleagues that he was wearing the same shirt and was astounded to learn many of them also had ZOOM shirts or for women a ZOOM sweater.  Both genders had a ZOOM jacket, usually hanging on the back of their chair, ready for action at a moment’s notice.   

Are attorneys and their clients who mediate with me wearing the same shirt/sweater every day?  Maybe so but if they are that is kinda cool.  As a mediator I want to parties and their attorneys to focus on the dispute and not on uncomfortable clothing.  As I spend hours and hours on ZOOM in mediations or phone calls at my home office, I find myself sneaking in comfortable shoes and pants and even shorts.   

So much like the Mullet haircut, where the look is business in the front and party in the back, I am officially coining the phrase “ZOOM mullets” where the look is business on top and comfort on bottom.  I salute you ZOOM workers of the world who are wearing crisp business attire on top and stretchy elastic waistband shorts and flip flops on bottom.  I have proudly joined your ranks.