Surfing's the Source, It'll Change Your Life. Swear to God.

Upstairs, I have a wardrobe full of clothes and shoes and other paraphernalia that I stare at and still think about. There is money in there too. The ties weren't cheap, and neither were the suits. As for the shoes? I walk past pairs of hugely expensive boots, work shoes, brogues, loafers, trainers....all sat there asleep in their boxes, waiting like patient puppies to go for a walk.

I also have a chest of drawers full of t-shirts, shorts, boardies and some sweatshirts that don't just get looked at, they get worn! They are the attire of the New Normal, no longer just the battle dress of surfers and beach dudes, those who spend their lives with their toes in the sand looking for the perfect wave. I can't say I am too unhappy if I am honest but it has made me look at why I have spent all that money on gear and garb in the past. It was all about where my head was at and has been for 25 years.

Across these two-and-a-half decades, a good suit, a decent spread-collar shirt, knitted tie and a pair of shiny Churches all came together beautifully to build my brand. Brand JC. My own personal Jermyn Street, a walking representation of who I thought I should be and wanted to be. The clothes screamed, 'Look at me! I'm in business, I mean business and I am very good at what I do!' and this was my brand, my man-about-the-City shop window, the irresistible force that helped me to many a target and Chairman's Club extravaganza.

Interestingly, though, if you thought about it, we were all clones, Magritte's Son of Man in the flesh; suits (grey or blue, sometimes pinstriped), calm yet well-thought-out shirt and tie combos, suitable shoes and decent socks (well, some of us - bad socks ruin an outfit - and there lies in an interesting parallel which I will touch on later). We were all vying for our clients' and peers' attention wearing the same uniform! Looking back today from my home office, wearing flip-flops and a baseball cap, yet still being pretty successful and still 100% professional, you have to question what on earth we were all thinking. Where were our minds at? Why did none of us wear brown in town? Who decided one day that we should all look the same? This only happens in business or the armed forces. Unless you are Branson of course, or in charge of a booming tec company, bouncing around on stage like Gordon Ramsay, talking about your new HD smartwatch.

You could argue that surfers too have a look, a brand, a uniform - however, it allows you far more freedom of expression, and it is designed to cope with changes in the wind, the rain, the heat, the freezing Arctic cold (yes, look up surfing in Iceland) and anything else that gets thrown at these beach creatures. Our old suits? crumpled by the end of the day, dreadful in heat/cold/wet, needing to be dry-cleaned every time the needle left about 18 degrees Celsius. And as for the extras? A raincoat (never 100% waterproof), a brolly (old school and functional but always left on the train after a Guinness in the Jamaica Wine House), a brief case (heavy, especially when wet, again oft left in a pub or two). The uniform we were all wearing was simply not fit for purpose! Yet day after day we put them on, looking for that magic that was going to transport us to global IT sales Nirvana.

So, what of all this? Why is this even relevant? This week, as part of Vodafone's push to give us all the finest remote worker experience in the industry, we are testing out all of our new sales and unified comms tools and channels, eating our own dog food and demonstrating across the business that we can be functional, professional and successful in the New Normal. It is a truly excellent experiment and has highlighted how powerful these things can really be when used with planning, forethought and a bit of good ol' City nous - that old salesman's gene, indelibly tattooed in us like a stick of Brighton rock.

And this is when it dawned on me - the social media channels, those virtual streets full of people and prospects, are now our City, our new glass offices, watering holes and alleyway pubs, those places where we used to host 'strategic meetings' and move on to wine and dine, all the while looking quite the part in our uniforms, entertaining customers with grand stories of transformation and digital readiness, of a shiny new future where everything is connected, whilst supping pints of the black stuff and deciding whether to go on to another joint. It is the very same thing - just different. It is all about where your mind is at.

I have used this week to reach out and connect to people, new and existing alike, polishing my 'brand' and wearing my new virtual online suit. I have to say I look the part according to my (slightly Big Brother and sinister) SSI score! This is our new shop window, our new Jermyn Street, and this is how we have to think all the time now - rather than taking far too long working out which tie hadn't been worn that week, and which suit looked right for the particular meeting in hand, we will now be planning our daily social media and virtual lives. Who are we speaking to and when? Who are they? Do they play golf? Would they be open to meet for a virtual beer with some colleagues? How often can I get to connect with them - not too much but not too little, the age-old juggling act for anyone in our line of work. Don't be too pushy but just pushy enough....the questions are the same, it is just that the City is now in your own home office.

And quickly back to good socks. Detail is still paramount, possibly more so. Watches, cuff links, socks and Mont Blancs have been totally replaced by the attention to detail one needs to exhibit to build your online presence. The posts, the shares, the InMails, the Microsoft Teams backgrounds (too much? Too gaudy? Where is my camera aiming? Is my Mic working OK and how do I sound?), the ability to add a succinct yet powerful comment to a seemingly uninteresting or uninspired post. This is where the art of social selling is - it's all in the detail.

The suits and shirts are gone now, replaced by the carefully crafted uniform of the digital professional. The rules of the game, however, remain the same. Be seen, be who you think you want to be, success will come in exactly the same way, minus the Norman Foster building and wine bar afterwards. If we realise this now, there isn't much to adapt for the ageing sales professional. We can do this. We can wear these new virtual clothes and wear them with the same aplomb, style and professionalism that we always have.

It is simply about where your mind is at.