When You Know You’re (T)winning

They say three of the most important ingredients for a successful relationship are time, love and a good heap of fun. They also say, that once a couple has been together for a significant amount of time certain elements of their personalities start to blend, attributes start to be assimilated and at times, partners even start to look alike.

Well, to be honest, I am not sure who 'they' are, but the Petri dishes of the Angama worldwide offices (Nairobi, Johannesburg, Cape Town, Houston and Surrey, UK) would make a fascinating case study, as after eight long years, an occurrence more common than not is colleagues arriving at work dressed the same way on the same day.

This phenomenon started back in early 2022 when Nicky Fitzgerald and I arrived at work in scarily the same outfit – right down to the shoes. Now while this was surprising, the fact that we are mother and daughter simply meant that the apple didn’t even fall off the tree, never mind far from it. But then it started happening again and again and again. We all seemed to drink the Angama cool-aid!

There is no rhyme or reason to this fashion fiasco; no creed, colour, gender or age is impervious to its power, and the airwaves of our WhatsApp chat are commonly spattered with 'Who wore it best?' and '#twining'. The whoops of laughter can be heard around the globe, most especially by the twins themselves.

The finance 'boys' in Nairobi are becoming known for cutting a sharp look, while the Jozi girls keep it somewhat casual (much to the chic Nairobi girls’ dismay!). Even our visiting teammates from the Cape and abroad seem to know that when in Jozi it is time to twin. There have even been moments on Zoom when the leadership team has been on the same fashion page.

Now I am no scientist, but I am fortunate to have existed in the Angama Petri dish for almost a decade and my extensive research has corroborated that what 'they' say is true: when you spend long enough with someone, love them, are united behind a common purpose that is wonderful, fun and loving, you do start to see pieces of yourself mirrored by those looking back at you. That’s how I know we are (t)winning.