In Nigeria, people dress for every occasion, and not dressing appropriately can give the impression that you are poor. To some extent, dressing may reflect some people's financial statements, because one way to detect an improvement in people's financial status is how well they feed and dress; it is nearly impossible for people to earn more money while continuing to dress the way they did previously.
However, this is not always true.
When my finances improved in 2018, it reflected in my way of life; however, I have noticed that I no longer dress as flamboyantly as I once did. I think it was because I no longer needed to prove anything. I am not financially free, infact, I have medical debts and other debts which I will eventually find ways to pay, but I'm actually not broke to the extent that I cannot cloth, pay rent or feed.
People used to buy things to prove they could afford them, and I believe I did as well, but as I grew older, I stopped doing so.
Many people choose to wear expensive clothes to impress others, perhaps a woman, or to attract wealthy suitors; however, aside from dressing to look decent, I believe there is nothing valuable about dressing to kill or impress, as it has no inherent value.
A few days ago, I was dressed to go shopping for medicine when a man approached me and asked about my cousin. He asked why I had not asked my cousin to get me a job. He probably did this because I preferred to wear shorts and T-shirts to almost every occasion. He assumed I was probably broke and hungry, which is why I was not dressed like every other young guy out there, with Gucci and expensive clothes.
If I sold the Galaxy A72 phone I was holding, it would probably cover his rent for a year and leave enough money to feed him and his family for about a month. However, he was unable to notice this detail because society relies heavily on how you dress to determine your financial status. It is true that I chose to dress cheaply, and this is most likely because I believe that life is vanity, that we are all strangers in this world, and that you must go through life to understand the value of moderation.
The Vague Person Does Not Pay Attention To Details
For someone who was a fan of fancy wrist watches, I rarely wear them anymore; there is nothing wrong with that, but the way society works is twisted, and anything out of the ordinary is considered insane. People wear and eat their worth, which is how you can tell how much money they have in their bank account. Some people even wear extremely expensive clothing and justify it with the phrase "dress how you want to be addressed."
Some people become more obsessed with spending as their income increases, while others simply achieve a diminishing return. Some people enjoy their money for the first few years; they buy whatever they want, and as time passes, they no longer see the point in buying more things. Most of the time, it takes a lot of money to get to this stage, and I am not even sure what that level of wealth is.
I have mentally checked out of being enthralled by expensive clothes and expensive living; unfortunately, it gives the impression that you are going hungry and most likely can not feed yourself. To some extent, it is amusing to observe how ordinary people behave and react. People would make assumptions based on what they saw and would not take the time to seek out additional information.
This is why deception is a visual phenomenon.
It first targets the eyes before unleashing a powerful deception that captures the mind. Selling deception, in my opinion, is expensive; it takes effort to convince others that you are who you are not, which is what most people do. People have normalized deception as a way of life, and if you do not fit in, you will be considered an outlier.
For me, I truly choose normalcy over flamboyancy, and I hope to continue meeting more people like the man I met yesterday; it would validate my thoughts that most people over here would choose to eat and wear their worth.
Interested in some more of my works
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