By Bhavneet Kaur Guliani
Most of you are more talented than you give yourselves credit for. From choosing the perfect filter for a new picture, to keeping tabs on the latest fads, to going gaga over Endgame and Battle of Winterfell, to figuring out which teams are going to make the IPL playoffs, to whining about your work and/or studies.
You all have honed the art of ‘being with it’ a.k.a. moving with the times, lest you go unrecognized among billions. Kudos, millennials!
In case you’re not in sync with any of the above, please read the heading again.
Reel Doesn’t Reflect Real
Social media platforms have become your reflection of the world. Paradoxically, when you turn around this mirror, you will probably not see yourself in it.
You may see your selfie, but not yourself. The anxiety to up your social media game is so real that it seems untrue.
The urge to post regularly, not repeat your clothes, edit the picture just right, be the first to comment on the latest releases and issues, is high these days.
Along with that making sure your follower count keeps increasing while you remain selective about who you follow, are just some of the manifestations of this anxiety that you don’t even recognize but go through all the same.
The Self-Inflicted Pressure
Meeting pre-decided benchmarks while trying to catch up with the world is not a phenomenon that sprouted and bloomed overnight. It has been cultivated over the years and how.
Whether it is marks, career or even a potential boyfriend or girlfriend for that matter, your propensity to chase and compete for things that are required by norm lends itself to you succumbing to a new pressure- the pressure of perception.
In the age of short attention spans and fast judgements, you carefully construct your image and seek validation for you present yourself to be.
The fear of being left behind and not being able to match the pace at which others are moving throws you off the path that can lead you to your happy place.
Social media and even the media and entertainment industry can add to this fear. The craze of GOT’s final season, or Avengers last movie is something that we all can see around us.
Consequently, it becomes difficult and exhausting to play your perception after a point.
Keep Up With Yourself
It’s good to be aware of what’s going around the world you inhabit but it’s very different from losing yourself in this deluge of information to an extent that you end up gasping for breath while trying to stay afloat.
Keeping up with the world is important but keeping up with yourself is indispensable and non-negotiable if you wish to move forward.
Learn all the new things that the world has to offer and use it to take stock of your own growth. Question, explore and discover.
Do whatever it takes to find out how you don’t fit in the scheme of things dictated by conventions because that is what will help you unravel your potential.
And if it means not having even a lick of a clue as to what a Game of Thrones is or not choosing to watch Avengers and instead see something else, then, by all means, do that.
If you’re part of a choir and out of tune, maybe it’s time to create your own song that the world will sing.
Image Credits: Google Images
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