Mark Zuckerberg, the Sisters of Mercy, and the Simple Life

Back in the days when religious sisters wore habits, it was commonly understood that there were several reasons why religious orders embraced the veil.  Long robes to the floor and wimples that hid the neck were modest, to be sure, obscuring the body’s soft curves.

What’s more, their long habits freed religious sisters from fashion needs which consumed the time and energy of other women:  things like hair rollers and bobby pins, earrings and necklaces, lacy slips and blouses, nylon stockings held in place by garter belts.

But there was another reason, too–and it seems that Facebook head Mark Zuckerberg has discovered it:  Simplicity.

On Thursday, the Facebook CEO held his first-ever Townhall Q&A.  Facebook users had submitted more than 9,000 questions; and for more than an hour, Zuckerberg answered many of those questions on a wide range of topics.

One question which came up:  Why does Zuckerberg always wear the same grey t-shirt?  (OK, he adds a grey hoodie when the weather’s cool; but most days, it’s the same bland grey shirt.)

And here’s where Zuckerberg channels the good Sisters–taking a cue from their playbook and favoring simplicity.

“I really want to clear my life,” Zuckerberg explained, “so that I have to make as few decisions as possible, other than how to best serve this community.”  He cited psychological theories which demonstrate that even making small decisions–such as what to eat for breakfast, or what to wear–can take up a lot of energy.  “I feel that I’m not doing my job if I spend any of my energy on things that are silly or frivolous about my life….”

So that’s why Mark Zuckerberg wears a grey t-shirt.  It’s also a part of the reason why Sisters–once all of them, today some of them–dressed in their characteristic habits.