“Why should I learn that?” “Those things aren’t relevant anymore.” “I don’t need to wear a suit.” “Women don’t like that stuff.” These are some of the questions or comments we get, mainly from British men, about our courses and what we do. There are other points raised; these men seem to think that what we are teaching and writing about is outdated, not necessary or indeed misogynistic. All of these could not be farther from the truth.
We at the Perfect Gentleman are about teaching life skills to men, and in some cases women. Yes, they are wrapped up under a brand and image that says Gentleman and probably more accurately, British Gentleman. Underneath the tailored suit exterior, the core of what we teach is skills that will improve you in key areas in life.
We believe there is a “Gentleman Gap”. This is the perception gap, which is mostly British, that men have of what they perceive Gentlemanliness to be. It is also the Gap between where men’s skills are now and where they could grow to. We have written extensively over the whole of this magazine and in our Book about what we mean by a ‘Gentleman’. Part of what encapsulates a Gentleman is a set of skills that seem to be lacking or no longer taught.
The business world knows it. There has been a number of surveys, such as the one by Accountemps, which have mentioned the lack of ‘Soft Skills’ in the workplace. There have been a slew of articles from journals such as Huffington Post and Forbes, stating that Good Manners and Great Etiquette will help you climb the success ladder faster. Yet, schools, universities and indeed business schools, see fit to leave it off the curriculum.
If I had a dollar for everytime a lady had congratulated us on our mission or asked us to help their boyfriend/partner/husband to learn some of the skills we teach, I would be sitting on a yacht in the Bahamas by now. Yet, we still get questions like those in the first paragraph of this article.
However, the conversations we have with men from outside the British shores tends to be far more embracing. They understand the need to improve their life skills and the prestige of the British Gentleman is held as a great example of the epitome of these skills.
The desire for ‘Constant Never Ending Improvement’ or Kaizen, as it is called in the Business world, is about seeking to do and be better consistently. Generally by small steps and also by the attitude that there is always room for good change and we should always seek to grow. This is embraced by certain cultures and by certain people, they push themselves to grow and enhance themselves.
There are a number of other reasons men all round the world find it difficult to shrink the Gentleman Gap and to give themselves this Gentleman’s Advantage in Life. Firstly, people don’t know what they don’t know. This is very true for a great number of these skills. Secondly, men tend to be apprehensive about admitting that they do not know these things. The old joke about men never asking for directions translates very well into this situation. Thirdly, some of these skills can be intimidating for people.
We hope that The Perfect Gentleman does and will address all of these issues and provide a safe, fun and inspiring environment for men around the world to gain that advantage.
Gentleman of Britain and the world, don’t let the image British Gentleman down. I implore you to start to relearn the skills of our forefathers, increase your knowledge and skill set and bestride the globe as examples of a Great British Gentlemen.
Constantly Improving,
#1PG
