I remember that, as a child, I was able to imagine all sorts of magical wonders. There was this sort of brightness within me that allowed me to freely create. But, as I grow older, I realized that it’s very hard to tap into that creativity and individuality I once possessed.
There are many aspects that contribute to my loss of creativity, but the main one that affects everyone is the judgement of society. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, is afraid of being outcasted by society. Whether they realize it or not. I don’t mean outcasted like banished to another place; I just mean critically judged by other people.
We remember almost every bad thing someone has said about us, thus we try not to stand out (we conform).
With the rise of social media and trends, terms such as “niche” and “trend hopping” have begun to surface. To be niche is to be different, while to be a trend hopper is to be exactly like everyone else.
But is niche really niche? This term has become somewhat like a joke to the younger generations as you’re “trying to be different.” An example would be in music, if someone listens to a specific music artist labeled as “niche,” society judges, even if they just like the art created by the artist.
The same could be said for people labeled as “trend hoppers.” Guys and girls constantly get judged for being “too basic” when it comes to what they wear and how they act.
All of these terms are just labels, they don’t actually mean anything. Everything I described are just the ways we conform to the unrealistic standards of society. We blame everything on society, like if someone were to stray from the general and normalized ways of living, they’re weird.
However, we have to understand that we are society. Society is not some high up group of theoretical people. It’s a term used to describe the general public and what we do. The judgement contributes to how our natural creativity and brightness has disappeared.
The pressures to keep up our image prevents us from expressing ourselves freely in any part of our lives.
