The mind must have its work and play; all of one and not any of the other is just as harmful for the mind as it is for the body. Most forms of recreation or play that serve for the body serve also for the mind. However, for a person who uses the brain steadily during business hours it is best to choose a kind of recreation that will allow the brain to rest. For example, under the circumstances, a game of chess, which calls for close application, would not be so desirable a change as bowling, basket ball or tennis.
The everlasting grouch is the man whose mind is running in a rut. He hasn’t exercised it enough or given it sufficient variety of work to do. We hear of musical comedies that are recommended especially for the “tired business man,” and that means a man who has been thinking along one line so long that he begins to grow stale. What the musical show does is to give him a couple hours of absolute change, as a result of which his mind goes through a series of gymnastics; it gets limbered-up and the man becomes normal again. Everything is good in its proper proportion, but too much work and not enough play, or too much play and not enough work, make a lop-sided man.
NERVES
Since the war we have seen all too much of “nerve” cases. What we have come to know as “shell shock” is illness of the nerves, caused, generally, by an over-strain they have had. Mild cases of “nerves” we all know. They are the people who cannot stand to hear someone tapping on the counter with a pencil, or who must insist that little Jimmie stop his whistling because it upsets their nerves. If these signs begin to show themselves it is time that we should begin to get more exercise, fresh air, and perhaps more sleep.
PERSONAL APPEARANCE
Everyone who has had occasion to come in contact with numbers of people of different classes, as have all shoe salesmen, has been impressed with the fact that men of affairs, those who are successful and those who are most highly regarded, are invariably well groomed. They have hands that are well-kept; not necessarily dainty, soft hands that look as though they had never been used, but regular man’s hands capable of doing an honest day’s work. The nails are clipped and they are clean, but if they shine too much we might get the impression that he spends too much time in the manicurist’s chair.
The successful man always has clean shoes, and of course, a clean collar. He makes a special point, as part of his daily program, to watch these things carefully. He knows that they are important because they are noticed by everyone he meets, and he cannot afford to run the risk of losing a point because of a false impression given by slovenly appearance. We give more credit to a person of good personal appearance, because we naturally associate the quality of their work with the kind of care they give themselves.
A successful business man from the West recently attended a play in New York in which one of the leading parts was that of a young, aggressive business man not yet thirty years of age. The part was played well; the man was well groomed but not overdressed. He looked every inch the American man of affairs. The business man, who happened at the time to be in New York to engage a sales manager for his company, later remarked that the part played was the exact type of man needed in his business. In other words, he had in his mind the picture of the man needed and, relying on his past experience, he associated ability with the man’s own respect for himself as shown by his appearance.
THE KNACK OF BEING WELL DRESSED
To be well dressed does not necessarily mean that a person must be expensively dressed. Indeed, it is by no means rare to see expensive clothes poorly chosen and poorly harmonized so as to give the effect of cheapness. When we see a light checked suit matched with a flaring red tie and a yellow shirt to back it up, although we might recognize the clothes to be of good quality, we could not give the wearer credit for being well dressed. Certainly we would not give him credit for being a substantial business man. Business people are not expected to be fashion models. A lot of frills and fancies are not part of a good business woman’s outfit. They are likely to become soiled or damaged during the day and will then give an impression of untidiness. The combinations of black and white and other subdued colors in clothes are always good. Furthermore these colors are serviceable and appropriate, in different combinations, for both summer and winter.