Tired of being pegged as a slacker who never put genuine effort into anything, Monty Woods of Nashville, Tennessee, decided to reinvent himself as someone who has adopted a laissez faire approach to life.
“Tt’s funny how saying things in a foreign language lends them a certain cache,” said Woods. “People have all kinds of opinions about slacking, but who can argue with laissez faire? Probably because a lot of people don’t exactly know what it means.”
In fact, that category of people who are not quite clear on the definition of “laissez faire” includes Woods himself, but he does not feel like looking it up. “I’m not totally sure if it has to do with Marie Antoinnette and ‘let them eat cake,’ but I get the general concept, which is yo, dude, just chill and let things take their course. In other words, slacking but with intention.”
The self-reinvention has worked marvels in Woods’s dating life, which he says has kicked into high gear since he threw “laissez faire” and several other French phrases into his profile on one of the online dating apps. “The best part about getting the laissez fair thing in there is setting that expectation of zero action, but doing so with class. The chicks dig that.”
The class point, noted Woods, is also precisely why he opted not to include the French phrase “manage a tois” in his profile. “The threesome thing comes off a little trashy. Plus it also seems like a lot of work.”
He grinned and shrugged. “Between you and me, I’m still a slacker at heart. C’est la vie, right?”
