Swimwear is loosely defined as a category of garment often worn when participating in swimming or bathing activities.Swimwear is expected to fulfil different requirements:<ul><li>Competitive swimmers need a streamlined and tight-fitting garment which reduces friction and drag in the water.</li><li>Recreational swimwear must be fashionable while protecting the wearer's modesty and withstanding water and sunlight.</li></ul> Exploring the history of female swimwear gives insight into fashion trends, and technological advancements in materials and design and explores female liberation.

Women’s swimwear has undergone an unparalleled transformation

Sea bathing became popular as a recreational activity. Bathing in the sea provided health benefits for both women and men but immersing oneself completely was not seen as sufficiently feminine. Women would wear loose, open gowns similar to the chemise which were more comfortable to wear in the water when compared to more restrictive day clothes. The gown was made from linen with small lead weights sewn into each quarter of the dress to ensure the dress did not float up.

18th Century Swimwear

During the Victorian era, women wore bathing dresses with high necks, long sleeves, and knee-length skirts. Linen and wool fabrics were used with belts at the waist. Women would wear bloomer-like trousers under the bathing dress to maintain their modesty. Towards the end of the Victorian era, a one-piece garment became popular, where the blouse was attached to the trousers. Women wore a mid-calf-length skirt on top to divert attention from the wearer's figure.

19th Century Swimwear

Material advancements allowed for significant transformations in twentieth-century women’s swimwear. Swimming became a competitive sport, and women started to compete in the Olympics in 1912. Australian swimmer Anette Kellerman is credited with the modernization of female swimwear. She was invited to perform in front of the British Royal Family in 1905, but her swimsuit was prohibited as it was tight-fitting and showed the lower half of her legs. So she sewed black stockings onto her swimsuit.

1900-1910

In the 1910s, Jantzen was the leading producer of bathing suits. Jantzen first produced 'woollen suits' for rowing clubs, but its popularity cause Jantzen to market it to a wider audience. In 1921, Jantzen referred to the garment as a swimsuit. After the First World War, women’s swimwear trends began to differ across continents. American and European women wore knitted swimwear, but it tended to become misshapen when wet, jeopardising the modesty of the swimsuits.

The start of technological advancements in swimwear material

The 1930s gave way to the health and fitness movement, favouring fit and healthy female physiques. <ul><li>Women were encouraged to participate in exercises deemed lady-like, such as swimming.</li><li>Women also started experimenting with tanning, which became fashionable and conveyed that one holidayed and was therefore affluent.</li><li>In 1932, Elsa Schiaparelli patented a backless swimsuit with a built-in brassiere to avoid tan lines from swimsuit straps whilst sunbathing.</li></ul>

1930s Swimsuits

Lastex yarn was invented in 1931 and became a game-changer for swimwear. Lastex would often be combined with artificial fibres such as rayon resulting in a stretchy and shiny fabric that would hold its form in and out of the water. Swimsuits could now be produced in a much larger range of colours and prints. At the end of the 1940s, Christian Dior launched his New Look, which consisted of nipped-in waists and full skirts, which shifted the trend to feminine and hourglass figures for women.

The invention of Lastex yarn

The design of the bikini is credited to two separate designers who introduced the revolutionary garment at the same time. <ul><li>French fashion designer Jacques Heim created a minimalist two-piece swimming garment in May 1946. called the Atome.</li><li>In July 1946, Louis Réard created what he called the bikini, which consisted of only four triangles of material that were held together with string. </li></ul>

The creation of the bikini

In 1956, Speedo first introduced nylon into swimwear, and in the 1970s, Speedo added elastane into their swimwear. The combination of elastane and nylon significantly reduced water drag and improved the durability of swimwear. During the 1960s, designers started selling ready-to-wear swimwear.<ul><li>In 1964, the designer Rudi Gernreich launched his iconic monokini.</li><li>Towards the end of the twentieth century, bikinis and swimsuits were still the go-to swimwear, which now featured high-cut legs, strapless bandeau bikini tops, and even matching sarongs.</li></ul>

Experimenting with swimwear

In 2008 Speedo launched a body-length swimsuit made from elastane-nylon and polyurethane, which gave these swimsuits an unfair advantage due to their hydrodynamic properties. Following their use in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the regulations for swimwear were revised. Women's swimwear could only be shoulder to knee-length.

21st Century swimwear

history

History

fashion

Fashion & Beauty

A History of Women’s Swimwear

Trust should be increased on Twitter as a public platform.
<ul>
<li>Twitter should be an inclusive arena for free speech. Free speech should only abide by the law.</li>
<li>We should be reluctant to delete tweets, “If in doubt, let the speech exist.”</li>
<li>There should be no behind the scenes manipulation. Not algorithmically nor manually.</li>
<li>Timeouts are better than permanent bans.</li>
<li>The Twitter algorithm should be open source and available online for people to inspect and highlight issues and suggest changes freely.</li>
</ul>

Elon Musk’s views on free speech on Twitter

The edit button could have a timeout to avoid people changing tweets after getting interaction. But, Elon Musk is "open to ideas."
Elon's most urgent priority with Twitter is eliminating scam and spam bot armies.

Twitter edit button

On the question is funding was really secured, Elon Musk stated that “the funding was indeed secured”. However, the SEC San Francisco office still pursued an active public investigation.
The banks then warned Elon that if he didn’t settle with the SEC, they would cease to provide working capital and Tesla would go bankrupt immediately. The result was that Elon was forced to admit that he lied, even though it was false, to save Tesla's life. “I was forced to concede to the SEC, unlawfully, those bastards.”

Tesla going private. Funding secured

The worst business decision ever was not to start Tesla with just JB Straubel, the visionary co-founder.
Before Elon invested, Tesla was just a shell company with no employees and no intellectual property. Martin Everhard created a false narrative that he created the company.

Elon Musks worst business decision ever

Tesla almost went bankrupt in its pursuit to automate manufacturing and achieve volume production. The problem wasn't that they overestimated how much they could automate. Instead, they had issues with almost every aspect of the Model 3 production line, from cells to packs to motors to final assembly.
Tesla is the first car startup since the 1920s that reached production without going bankrupt. Elon lived in the factories for three years. He slept on the floor so that the team who was going through a hard time could see that he didn't just sit in his ivory tower. He was in it with them.

The Tesla Model 3 challenges

Elon states that to accelerate the advent of sustainable energy, there must be scale. "We've got to transition a vast economy that is currently overly dependent on fossil fuels to a sustainable energy economy."
Energy must be sustainably generated with wind, solar, hydro, geothermal and nuclear. Then stationary storage batteries are needed since solar and wind are intermittent. This is a task for humanity, not just for Tesla, and sooner is better for the environment.

Scale is at the heart of Elon's master plan

Social cues for Elon that he has Asperger's syndrome were not so intuitive. He was very bookish. He took everything literally. As a result, he was frequently bullied and had a difficult childhood.
Elon consumed many books and movies, which helped him in time to understand things that most people intuitively understand.

Elon and Asperger's syndrome

Elon states that “we should be optimistic about the future and fight to make that optimistic future happen.” The future cannot just be about one miserable thing after another, solving one sad problem after another. There have to be things that get you excited and want to make you live. These things are important, and we should have more of them.

Looking forward to the future 

In this unedited conversation, Elon Musk -- the head of Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink and The Boring Company -- digs into the recent news around his bid to purchase Twitter and gets honest about the biggest regret of his career, how his brain works, the future he envisions for the world and a lot more. (This conversation with head of TED Chris Anderson was recorded live at TED2022 on April 14, 2022. If you want to hear even more, head over to "The TED Interview" podcast, where Musk and Anderson sat down at the new Tesla Gigafactory in Texas to discuss some of the radical innovations he's working on -- including an intelligent humanoid robot, SpaceX's Starship and Neuralink's brain-machine interfaces.)

technologyandthefuture

Technology & The Future

business

Business

leadershipandmanagement

Leadership & Management

artsandculture

Society, Arts & Culture

Elon Musk talks Twitter, Tesla and how his brain works — live at TED2022

For business owners and leaders tasked with driving digital strategy, it is their perception of risk that is more impactful on success than anything else. Deciding to incorporate digital tools or infrastructure can be daunting because of the unknown it represents, but shying away from the process can be a far riskier path. 
By understanding the psychological barriers behind digital decision-making, industry stakeholders can and should encourage technology adoption in small and medium-sized businesses — in doing so, they will strengthen the backbone of the global economy.

The Psychological Barriers

Given the near-constant state of flux, it would be fair to assume that they might be more willing to embrace new processes or tools to get themselves back on track, adapt and thrive in an expanding digital economy.Instead, many still opt to maintain the status quo. A great number of businesses still grapple with the “hassle factor” — a key behavioural barrier that sees them struggle to convince themselves that investment is worth the effort or potential risk, particularly if they don’t boast unlimited budgets.

Understanding Resistance to Change: The Hassle Factor

Along with death and taxes, change is one of life’s constants. And just like those other two examples, it is something many humans fear. 
Theoretical models suggest this is due to the absence of control and a lack of understanding of what lies ahead. It’s simple, really. We are afraid of the unknown, which can cause us to make bad choices.

Why Leaders Resist Change

This uncertainty is common in the business world. Whether it’s a new tool, a new colleague, or shifts in the wider market, it’s natural to feel trepidation about the upcoming impact. 
It therefore stands to reason that no matter how much change someone has experienced, an unknown outcome is often the biggest barrier to action.

Uncertainty: The Main Barrier

There are several psychological factors — or mind traps — that business leaders fall into when making decisions about a digital strategy. These can vary depending on the size of the organization.“Group think” is one such trap and has the potential to be damaging. It can take hold when a leadership team remains introspective, without seeking insight from elsewhere in the company. Often it is the most cohesive teams that fall victim to this because there is no friction or difference of opinion to force new ideas.

Avoiding Mind Traps and Other Decision-Making Flaws

In smaller, agile organizations, the decision-making burden may rest on one employee or a very small group of them, making it easy to fall victim to cognitive errors. “All or nothing thinking”  means small business owners may view things in more binary terms – thinking something is either completely good or bad. This means that change from the original choice can be perceived as a negative.

Psychological Barriers: All Or Nothing Thinking

With so many hurdles to effective decision-making, it’s no wonder digital transformation is hard to get right. In addition, convincing budget holders to increase technology adoption is no easy task. 
But it can be done. Sometimes, rational explanations aren’t enough to get through to business leaders. Humans take time to change and so it takes a much longer-term approach to shift their mindset.

Overcoming Your Company’s Psychological Barriers

By applying the principles of nudge theory, it’s possible to persuade them. Many of these techniques play on core facets of human programming, such as the human fear of missing out. For example, comparing commercial progress or digital strategy with competitors can be an effective method to highlight the cost of inertia. It’s also important to make it clear that tech-driven strategy is the new standard. Instead of asking, “Do you want to adopt technology?” the question should be, “Which technology do you want to adopt?”

Thinking Past The Sale

Otherwise, we can prime business owners and leaders by sending them reminders (advertisements fall into this category) or asking them to imagine a scenario in which technology is or isn’t adopted. 
Appealing to the imagination in this way can be very effective — and can include prompting them to consider how decisions may impact loved ones or colleagues.

The Power Of Imagination

Of course, affecting change in business should be carried out entirely without manipulation. 
Whether you’re a government, tech vendor, or an industry body, there is a moral imperative that should govern efforts to influence tech adoption.

The Moral Angle

For business owners and leaders tasked with driving digital strategy, it is their perception of risk that is more impactful on success than anything else. Deciding to incorporate digital tools or infrastructure can be daunting because of the unknown it represents, but shying away from the process can be a far riskier path. 
By understanding the psychological barriers behind digital decision-making, industry stakeholders can and should encourage technology adoption in small and medium-sized businesses — in doing so, they will strengthen the backbone of the global economy.

The Bottom Line

Overcoming resistance starts with understanding the psychological barriers at play.

Convincing Your Company Leaders to Invest in New Technology

Good leaders can build you up or drag you down. At work, leaders can make the difference between a good job or a lousy job. That is why leadership is considered an art form. Leadership is not something everyone can do well, and it takes practice to create an atmosphere where people are inspired to do their best work.

Leadership is an art form

<ul><li>Practice "radical transparency". Include your employees in the decisions that directly affect them. Ask them for feedback on proposals or share essential news with them before it becomes public.</li><li>Study how your team works as a whole. The success of one person influences the success of others.</li><li>Seek mentorship and ask for guidance.</li><li>"Manage up". Don't wait for your boss to create a plan for you based on what they think you can do. Instead, position yourself for your next role. Ask yourself how you are innovating your current role.</li></ul>

Tips to become a great leader

Career development expert Kimberly B. Cummings went from studying her bosses to becoming one, and that process shaped how she approaches being a leader at work. Whether you're managing employees or shaping your relationship with your boss by managing up, Cummings shares tips on how to do both.The audio portion of this episode was produced by Clare Marie Schneider, with audio engineering support from Neal Rauch.We'd love to hear from you. Leave us a voicemail at 202-216-9823, or email us at LifeKit@npr.org. For more Life Kit, subscribe to our newsletter.

career

Career

personaldevelopment

Personal Development

corporateculture

Corporate Culture

teamwork

Teamwork

Leadership At Work Is An Art Form. Here's How To Practice It. : Life Kit

Results-driven meetings help both the company and the employer in the long run.
It may seem like a shaky strategy from the get-go but having separated time slots to discuss every single detail of the project with your employees will result in better outputs, inclusivity of facts and opinions, and feedback is always open for discussion.

Have Results-Driven Meetings

When we take care of our employees, meet their needs such as providing them incentives, bonuses, increments, and allowances, their morale goes sky-high. Employees with high morales end to be more productive and produce better quality work.
However, if we don't, it can lead the company to the verge of collapse because it shows that they are dissatisfied with their environment and will not produce the desired results we ask for.

Production and Work Quality Comes With High Morale

Companies that thrive are those who practice and value transparency, truth, and honesty. Employees respect their management and administration thus having a sense of comfort because there are justice and equality in the workplace.
In addition to this, businesses must merit the employees who deserve it rather than exhibiting favoritism - this practice runs businesses to fail.

Be Transparent and Reward Those Who Deserve It

Employees appreciate having one-on-one meetings because it makes them feel special. When they've done a good job, they'd get a pat on the shoulder and when they didn't, they'd get a chance to overcome their weaknesses.
Some other ways to show appreciation to your employees include: 
<ol>
<li>Making the environment lively and being involved in their work;</li>
<li>Prioritizing their projects and help and guide them to their goals; and</li>
<li>Hold them accountable for their performance and what they do.</li>
</ol>

Hold One-on-One Meetings

Workplace Complacency: 4 Tips to Overcome Adversity as a Project Manager - nTask

“The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.”

“What is now proved was once only imagined.”

“I want to put a ding in the universe.”

“Anything’s possible if you’ve got enough nerve.”

“You can’t solve a problem on the same level that it was created. You have to rise above it to the next level.”

“If you want something new, you have to stop doing something old.”

“If you have always done it that way, it is probably wrong.”

“Innovation is seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought.”

“There’s a way to do it better – find it.”

“Learning and innovation go hand in hand. The arrogance of success is to think that what you did yesterday will be sufficient for tomorrow.”

The world needs positive change. It needs new ideas. It needs progress. And so do you. Read these quotes on innovation to inspire your next big idea.

motivationandinspiration

Motivation & Inspiration

problemsolving

Problem Solving

Inspiring Quotes on Innovation

Research has shown that innovators and entrepreneurs don't take more risk than the average person. However, they are more comfortable making decisions in uncertainty. 
They have a set of skills that allows them to navigate in uncertainty. These skills can be learned and practised by anyone to improve their innovation skills.

Innovators don't take more risk

<ul>
<li>Risk is when the factors that determine success or failure are out of your control, but the odds of success are known. </li>
<li>Uncertainty is when the factors that determine success or failure are not out of your control but are simply unknown. It is playing a game that you do not entirely know the rules of.</li>
</ul>
Risk analysis is a rational and calculation-driven process, while uncertainty triggers the fight-or-flight response. Innovators don't ignore risk. They are able to maintain their analytical capabilities in the face of uncertainty.

Risk and uncertainty

<ul>
<li>Delivery skills. Skills include quantitative analysis, planning, detail-oriented implementation, disciplined execution. </li>
<li>Discovery skills. Theses skills are more involved in developing ideas and managing uncertain situations. It includes the ability to draw connections between ideas, questioning assumptions and the status quo, understanding a problem before trying to solve it, systematic experimentation, the ability to network and broaden a set of relationships. For innovation, discovery must come before delivery. </li>
</ul>
These skills can be learned through a combination of guidance, practice, and experience.

The two categories of innovation

<ul>
<li>P - assion: Successful innovators are passionate about the problem they are trying to solve and will share the passion with everyone.</li>
<li>E - xperience: Innovators have experience with the problem they are solving, yielding valuable insight and knowledge.</li>
<li>P - ersistence: Growing a business takes persistence. It takes someone willing to push uphill to make it happen.</li>
</ul>

The PEP model of successful entrepreneurs and innovators

Uncertainty and change can create opportunity and a need for innovation. 
The pandemic has revealed many problems that are ripe for innovative solutions. Practices that were until recently on the fringe of acceptance are now accepted by mainstream society, such as telehealth, food delivery, e-sports, and online education.

Innovation now and in the future

A researcher and entrepreneur says that innovators are much more comfortable making decisions under conditions of uncertainty than the average person. 


startup

Startups

You too can be a great innovator, if you just learn to work with this

Is there a time you tried to do something and failed? Is there a time you received negative feedback from your boss. How did that make you feel? Is there a conflict at work that made you feel frustrated? <ul><li>Emotionally intelligent people are good at understanding and managing their emotions. They are also empathetic and good at handling others' emotions </li></ul><div>Tell me about a hobby you like to do outside of work. Can you teach me about it?</div><div><ul><li>Act as you don't understand what he's saying, and observe his reaction. Emotionally intelligent people remain patient and calm when faced with a communication challenge.</li></ul>Can you tell me about a time you needed to ask for help on a project?</div><ul><li>Emotionally intelligent people know and admit when they need help.</li></ul>

Questions to Assess the Emotional Intelligence of a Candidate

Among employees who fail to meet expectations during their first 18 months on the job, 23% fail due to low emotional intelligence. That's the second most prevalent reason new hires fail, following only a general lack of coachability.

communication

Communication

How to Assess Emotional Intelligence During the Interview Process

<ul>
<li>Narcissism is a personality trait that makes a person represent an excessive, almost exclusive focus on the self, putting the social structure out of balance and leading to toxic behaviour, especially at the workplace. </li>
<li>Narcissists can appear charismatic and leader-like, but eventually come across as needy, egoistic people craving for attention and validation.</li>
<li>Showcasing drive, self-confidence and a desire to lead brings productive results, but leads to negative outcomes if it is self-centered.</li>
</ul>

The Trait Of Narcissism

Narcissism, it turns out, is not a one-dimensional personality and there are nuances in character and behaviour.
Humble narcissists, people who are egoistic but still able to admit mistakes, and leaders that are trainable, or are able to give other people credit, are a paradoxical but strong leadership package.

Narcissism With Humility

Counterbalancing the narcissistic traits with humility is something that can be taken up by managers who believe they may fall in this category. This can be done by:
<ol>
<li>Finding someone to praise everyday.</li>
<li>Admitting your limitations and mistakes.</li>
<li>Being ‘teachable’ and learn from others.</li>
<li>Trying to act humble..</li>
</ol>

Narcissism: Strike A Balancing Act

One researcher explains why a paradoxical combination of narcissism and humility can be a powerful formula for leaders to succeed.


Understand yourself and those around you.

psychology

Psychology

loveandrelationships

Love & Relationships

Tapping the surprising science of “humble narcissism”

<ul>
<li>The Nobel prize is described as the worlds’ most prestigious prize in the Oxford Dictionary of Contemporary History.</li>
<li>Sitting inside the Grand Hall at the Nobel Institute, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announces the nominations in October every year, something looked at with great interest from politicians and journalists. </li>
<li>The awards are presented on 10th December, a date coinciding with Alfred Nobel’s death anniversary.</li>
</ul>

The Nobel Prize

The nominations for the Peace Prize has gradually increased from the first year it was recorded in 1904, swelling from 22 to 376 in 2016.
Media coverage regarding the awards is also much bigger than before, resulting in an increased awareness of the prize.

The Nobel Prize and Global Recognition

When Muhammad Yunus received the prize in 2006 for his micro-credit initiative to thousands of poor people which became Grameen Bank, many people thought the name of the prize winner was the name of the bank. 
Humanitarian work by the common man was rewarded since the inception of the prize but is well-known now due to increased exposure and media coverage.

Esteemed Common Man

<ul>
<li>As global warming and climate change came in the picture, something which was criticized by many committee members, as there was no such concept during the time of Alfred Nobel. </li>
<li>His ideology for the prize had the first criterion as ‘fraternity between nations’ which can be argued as fighting together to save the planet from whatever problem threatens it.</li>
<li>This is also an example of how the prize has stayed relevant over the years.</li>
</ul>

Environmental Work and The Nobel Prize

It's sometimes said that the committee has greatly expanded Alfred Nobel’s peace concept in the last 25 years. This is only partly correct.

A History of Women’s Swimwear

Elon Musk talks Twitter, Tesla and how his brain works — live at TED2022

Convincing Your Company Leaders to Invest in New Technology

Leadership At Work Is An Art Form. Here's How To Practice It. : Life Kit

Workplace Complacency: 4 Tips to Overcome Adversity as a Project Manager - nTask

Lila H.