Nineteen years ago I was on a bus to university. Somewhere in sunny California, Steve Jobs was introducing the iPhone. I remember thinking: so that's the future, and that's where it gets built. Just very far from my life, on the other side of the world.
This week I was at the Apple event, there by invitation. I took a selfie with Apple's CEO John Ternus, and I was one of the first people to hold the new products and show them to my audience.
A dream really did come true.
John Ternus became Apple's CEO on September 1. This was his first September keynote in the job.
iPhone Duo. Well, I had never owned a foldable phone. It felt weird for about a minute, and then I didn't want to hand it back.
It opens like a small book into a 7.6-inch screen with no visible crease down the middle. How exciting!
I started thinking about where it would actually fit into my life.
I travel constantly, and folded on a nightstand it turns into a clock. With my kids' photos on it, a hotel room stops feeling like a hotel room. In the kitchen it stands up by itself: recipe on the screen, podcast playing, Siri answering me while my hands are busy. At work, right now I fly with two phones and an iPad. The Duo could replace all three: interview notes on one half, video editing on the other.
Then I picked up the new iPhone 18 Pro in burgundy. How did they know it's my favorite color? Lighter than the Duo, and it has a better camera with variable aperture. Which means evening photos will finally stop looking grainy.
It's going to be a tough choice between these two.
I have a problem, because I want them both.
The most useful thing I took home from the event had nothing to do with the products.
This is me earlier in the day, casually dressed in a simple white outfit. I ran into a couple of friends, but in a room full of new faces, I didn't end up talking to a single one.
Zero compliments, zero new connections, and a heat wave that made white the sensible choice.
This is me that evening, same crowd. I changed into a bright red dress.
People started telling me they liked it. Every one of those compliments turned into a conversation I didn't start. I left the event with six new connections.
I wasn't running an experiment that day, but I ended up with a rule.
Six connections that night, all because of the red dress. Who would have thought!
In a room of hundreds, faces don't stick. A bright outfit may give a stranger a reason to say the first sentence. And a compliment is always a great conversation starter.
Wear something bright if making new friends is your goal.
Marina ❤️
P.S. If someone in your circle has a conference coming up, forward them this newsletter. Tell them to go look at what they packed.
