I recently had coffee with a friend who is a few years younger than me. He had returned from a vacation abroad with mixed emotions. Alas, the experience had not been all he’d hoped for. Yes, he had seen memorable monuments and enjoyed some exotic cuisine. He’d slept late at a luxury hotel, a much-needed … More Not The Demographic
We all have people in our lives who have the admirable and sometimes irritable ability to dissect, analyze, compliment, and condemn with uncanny accuracy. Some are close friends or colleagues. Some are strangers to us and remain at a distance in the public sphere. Critics of art, literature, or film, fashion editors and media publishers, … More The Role of the Snob
David, our steadfast foreign correspondent, recently brought this article to my attention. While I follow a vegetarian diet (vegan if it weren’t for croissants and pastries), I believe the suggestions presented below have merit. Enjoy, and thank you, David. No snacking and plain food: Why an upper-class diet is better for your health Do you … More The Upper Class Diet
One of the most exhausting and sometimes confusing situations we can find ourselves in is when we have mixed emotions or conflicting agendas in our lives. We want to do one thing, but we find ourselves being obligated to do another. Or old habits prove too hard to break, and we sabotage our own plans … More The Importance of Alignment
One of the bigger challenges for those of us not raised by wolves is interacting with people who were. Like many of you, I was raised to be polite. To have an awareness of others and to be courteous whenever possible. I habitually open doors for people, usually ladies, but sometimes elderly men or people … More Being Polite in a Rude World
We are often told about the importance of making a good first impression. It is wise advice because it is timeless and often accurate: make a good first impression, and odds are you have a good chance to experience a productive social, personal, or professional relationship with the other party. Make a bad first impression … More The Last Impression
Part of Old Money culture is the preservation of certain traditions: dressing appropriately, reading voraciously, working diligently, and spending carefully. Etiquette and manners of course fall into this group of top-shelf priorities. Within this category, I have to mention the dying art of sending the Thank You note. To be clear: emails do not cut … More A Tradition Worth Preserving
Many of us are attentive to the food we consume. We try to eat fresh, watch the carbs, moderate the fast food, avoid soft drinks, and not overdo it with the portion sizes. However, we might be less attentive to what we allow into our brain. The digital landscape being what it is, we are … More The Brain Diet
As we go through life, we learn things. Sometimes we learn in school, sometimes by experience. We accumulate facts, process feelings, and make judgments. We behave and make choices, for the most part, consistent with the worldview we’ve constructed from these various elements. Our opinions are formed. We may affix labels to ourselves in order … More The Value of New Information
I had an enjoyable conversation with a dear friend recently. She is quite a character: formerly a hard-nosed entrepreneur and sparkling Monaco socialite, she began life as the youngest daughter in a prominent French family. After a rigorous and no nonsense education at a Swiss boarding school, circumstances abruptly dropped the centuries-old family estate in … More The Dangers of Comfort