When you're walking down the street, just doing your normal people-watching, there are a few little accessories that you can notice on individuals to clue you in on what type of person is wearing them. These are not scientific methods, but just rather ways that you can make a few general observations about the characters in your surroundings.

You may use these observations to find a style of your own, or you could potentially use them as conversation starters, for example. That said, a quick analysis of the following categories will give you a broad range of mental ammo - the watch, the shoes, the belt, piercings, and activewear.

Watch for the Watch

Seeing what type of watch someone is wearing is a huge cultural indicator of wealth, status, occupation, attitude, and a number of other characteristics. If you can spot luxury watches on sight, then you can learn to understand what they all mean. At the very least, they'll give the approximate socio-economic status of the mark in question, or at least the impression he or she is trying to give off.

Shoes Give You Clues

After you check out the wrist area, the next place for your eyes to wander will be the feet. What kind of shoes are folks wearing? There's the initial question of comfort vs. style. And then business vs. casual. Are you looking at designer shoes, or are they wearing something practical, cost effective, and purposeful? The answers to those questions will give you basic answers about that person's character, or at least their function when you pass them by.

The Belt Can Adjust Your Attitude

Men's and women's belts can also give you clues to their general attitudes. For instance, think of all of the teenagers that wear leather belts with fake metal spikes. That gives you a pretty good idea how they feel about life. With adults, it's the same concept, but more subtle. Style, color, texture, and width all have certain pretenses about what that person thinks about daily life. At fashion shows, belts can even be fashion centerpieces.

Piercings Give You Some History

Looking for piercings is another key into personal history. Especially in adults, when teen reasons for having piercings have long gone, there are still people who have nose rings, eyebrow rings, lip rings, etc. When you find these indicators, think to yourself what they might mean about prior and current thoughts on modern culture and beauty standards.

The Activewear Phenomenon

A final observation to take in while giving the general review to folks on the street is whether or not they're wearing active gear. Running shorts, sneakers, yoga pants, tank tops, the muscle shirt, etc., all indicate a more active lifestyle. Then there's just the matter of whether or not they're actually active, or just wearing the threads!