What Truly Defines 'Cool?'

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‘Cool’ is a word that has stood the test of time. People have been saying it for decades, arguably since the beginning of the 20th century. It is the one word that has persisted to mean ‘relevant, capable, impressive and competent.’ Those four words previously listed are still only attempts at listing the word ‘cool.’ This word takes up its entire category. There have been many trends which have come to refer to cool, such as ‘sick, fresh, funky,’ but all of these often live and die in the presence of ‘cool.’ 

The word ‘cool’ is universal. Even those who are lacking in English capabilities are able to identify what it means, because it’s such a pinnacle of our speech. This article is dedicated to analyzing ‘cool,’ what it means, and how to emulate it.

Cool Is Present

Cool always stays with the times. It never dies, and is spanned the world over. Surfers in Australia use the word cool, as do miners in Scotland. It’s an ever-present, ever utilized word, and it often refers to something being wholesome and present. ‘Present’ is perhaps one of the best ways to describe the word, because it’s always relevant. Someone who dresses shabbily in and and it dated clothing would be considered less cool than someone who shops for Billabong clothing online. Cool isn’t simply dictated by the quality of the threads you wear, although that can certainly help. Cool is more of a present, ever updating attitude, which is why it never goes out of fashion. It’s always here, and it’s always important.

Cool Doesn’t Care About Being Cool

Caring about being cool is the least cool thing you can do. This sounds quite funny, but it makes sense. We all know when someone is trying to be the focal point of the party, or we know when someone is playing disingenuous social moves in order to impress us. This idea of cool is faulty. Cool is really being down to earth, honest and filled with integrity. If cool was a person, they’d feel fully embarrassed by being labelled as ‘cool.’ This is how it preserves itself, and how the word continually stays relevant in common parlance.

To further back up this point, consider the actual real definition of the word. To be cool is to be chilled, as in temperature wise. This could be likened to emotion such as neglected to get ‘heated’ about something, but instead seeing things from a level, relaxed, patient perspective. Cool is not averse to passion, but only in the right instances.

This is why dressing in an understated way is so important. Highlighting the main focal points of your outfit such as a great watch or a nice piece of jewellery is tasteful and cool, because it’s not TRYING to show you how impressive it is. Someone wearing too much Jewellery or wacky colors can be seen as a little too complex. It looks as if you’re trying to hard. We’re not making any judgements on how people dress here, but simply how the word cool operates. That being said:

Cool Is Highly Personal

What is cool to you might not be cool to another person. The intricacies of a complex classical fugue might be considered the height of excellence to one person, while another might simply feel that the swift lyricism and strong beats of some modern hip-hop to be the coolest expression on the planet. ‘Cool’ switches in importance from culture to culture, and from person to person. This is what keeps ‘cool’ varied, and justified in its coolness. 

That’s why it’s important to pay cool no mind. Simply work on yourself, your appearance, your health, your career and you’ll find that cool comes to you. Think of it like a butterfly. If you try to catch it, it will get further away from you than ever. However, if you focus on other things and pursue them, cool will float and rest on your shoulder.

In Conclusion

The word ‘cool’ is many things to many people. It’s likely that after reading this article, the word ‘cool’ seems strange to read, hear and say. We’d like to take the opportunity to say that if you treat your family well, you earn your living and you’re happy meeting the challenges of life (even if it’s very hard,) then you are cool even if you don’t feel it. Now go out into this world with this knowledge, and achieve everything you’ve hoped to!