Be wary of imitating high-status people who can afford to countersignal
&quot;An example from Ogilvy Vice Chairman Rory Sutherland: If you’re a top executive, turning up to work on a bicycle is a high-status activity because it was a choice and not a necessity. But if you work at Pizza Hut, turning up on a bike means you can’t afford a car.&quot;<p>This tidbit reminds me of a similar anecdote (that my experience aligns with) re: the modern upper class that wearing a $2k Rolex or driving a $70k BMW is frowned upon.  But instead they have eccentric &quot;hobbies&quot; requiring $10ks of of equipment, inclusive of &quot;needing&quot; $10k viking stove&#x2F;range, and $10k subzero fridge&#x2F;freezer in your kitchen because you are a &quot;foodie&quot; and doing a $500k home Reno because you have good architectural taste and style.  They probably still own a $70k Volvo (or now Tesla) anyway :-).  In these scenarios I think it&#x27;s because the $2k watch or $70k car is too easily attained by lower classes that they are no longer considered signals by the upper classes.  However blowing $500k renovating a perfectly livable home, or $10k on an appliance you could spend as little as $1k on.. is not.<p>Another countersignal that the article points in the direction of is level of professional vs casual attire in the workplace.  My friends and I are far enough in our careers that personally I&#x27;ve worn sneakers to work for the last 10 years, no business slacks, and sporadically tuck in my collared shirt.  The last round of job searching doing zoom interviews, I wore my hoodie for half the calls.  If I had done this while job searching out of college, during my internship, or at my first job.. I would not be where I am today.