Six qualities make you cool, according to science. Trying too hard isn’t one of them |
What does it take to be cool? A group of researchers last year claimed to have cracked the code, identifying six criteria for coolness.
Cool people were generally seen as extrovert, hedonistic, powerful, adventurous, open and autonomous, according to the study which polled 6,000 people across 12 countries and was published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology.
It’s hard to tick all six boxes but think of someone like David Bowie, Sinéad O’Connor or CMAT perhaps.
What about politicians? Can they be cool? Certainly, they are capable of setting fashion trends. Emmanuel Macron wearing aviator sunglasses for an eye condition at the World Economic Forum led to a jump in sales for Maison Henry Jullien, the makers of his Top Gun specs.
The Barbour wax jacket, the workaday coat of the British country squire, has been enjoying a retail boom in the UK in no small part thanks to Nigel Farage. In contrast, the “SS” winter coat appears to have had its moment. Not even Donald Trump wants to be seen next to US border protection commander Gregory Bovino, a pin-up for the “Nazi” aesthetic.
Politicians may like to be cool – and political parties in Ireland have been investing heavily in boosting their social media presence. But staying on-trend can be difficult. Policy stances fall in and out of fashion. A few years ago, “woke” was in vogue. Now all the cool kids in Government Buildings are talking tough on immigration.
The trick is to avoid........