One of those things They say (Who are “They” anyway. What makes them the authority and who do they actually deliver their pronouncements to? Me, I just hear the "you know what They Say" that follows. And while I'm at it, how can you tell the real They, the They to be believed, from They-wannabes to be shunned? Special T shirt? Secret handshake? Amulet of doom?), anyway, reportedly one of the things They say is that you don't get style points.
Sounds good, especially when you're trying to convince a kid to work hard rather than just put on a show. But let's face it, we all know it's just not true.
After all, what do They Say are the keys to getting that new job or big sale? Presentation and making yourself stand out. Stylin'. We've all seen the Peter Principle in action, and except for that rare case of nepotism, the initial fast rise usually involves style. In writing, how often does prose judged to be somehow more literary (which often means harder to read) get the accolades over effective storytelling, even when the more literary prose is, to paraphrase the late great Dick Francis, puff pastry—tasty, rich, with a nice crispy crust, but all hot air inside. Part of what made Francis great, by the way, was the nice balancing job he did between the two. He was never "literary" except in his writing being Hemingwayesque lean, but most of his books included neat little unique metaphors and turns of phrase like the puff pastry comment (it referred to a TV commentator), which made you grin appreciatively just to read them.
Even in sports, where you hear the phrase the most and there are more definitive measures of winners and losers, style points matter. Who earns the big bucks and who gets the big recognition? Even on a losing team? With all due respect to The Blind Side, the quarterback with the shotgun arm or the left tackle who lets him and his backup stay upright long enough to shoot? The point guard with the ball on a string or the offense-challenged center setting the monster pick that frees someone else up to score, which also gives that PG another assist.
That's not wholly a bad thing, by the way. Given how much interest in some sports is based in gambling, style points are a big part of what separates them from mindless pulls at the slot machine. But they're also just fun. The game I was at the other night had some incredible styling, mostly from a point guard who is as deadly serious about his game as it gets, but whose ability, creativity and personality mean that styling is also part of what he's about. He may not have gotten extra points on the scoreboard for it, and you probably had to know what you were watching to catch how incredible it was live, but this bit of styling of the highest order earned him some 18,500 people gasping in unison at what they saw. Style points.
