You might be surprised to learn that many public figures, from business leaders to your typical celebrities, wear eyeglasses not because the doctor prescribed them, but because the glasses make them look and feel a certain way. The eyeglasses transform these people into a persona that the public respects, admires or identifies with.
Distinguished King and Inspired Jobs
Martin Luther King Jr liked to wear glasses when he was writing his speeches. He didn’t them to see well. He wore the glasses because they reportedly made him feel distinguished. They let him inhabit an alter ego of the Nobel Peace prize-winning civil rights leader who fought for racial equality in America.
Apple legend Steve Jobs, too, changed his look after being fired from the company’s board in 1985. Among the things that he changed was the style of glasses that he wore. He started wearing circle, wire-rim glasses. Why? Because Mahatma Gandhi—who Jobs admired and respected since his early 20s—wore similar glasses.
Of course, Gandhi wasn’t the only hero Jobs had. However, Gandhi was the only one that Jobs admired and aspired to emulate throughout his life. He said, “There is no one that embodies better what I want to become other than Gandhi, he changed the world.”
As history would have it, Jobs was back at the helm of Apple in 1997. His “Think Different” campaign, which featured Gandhi, pulled the company out of bankruptcy. For the rest of his life, Jobs wore the Gandhi glasses. They were his way of channeling the visionary that Gandhi was and Jobs worked hard to be.
Express Your Aspirations
Here at Bohten, we know first hand the difference wearing the right eyewear can make, be it prescription glasses or otherwise. We constantly work on designing pairs that let you step into your preferred identity. Visit our Home Try On page and give our selection of stylish, sustainable eyeglasses a try.