Peer pressure..., quite an interesting topic to reflect upon. Humans are social creatures by nature, so it is a thing of instinct to not want to be excluded and most of the time in order to be included you have to be doing the things others are doing. When you're doing the same thing as a large group of people it is a lot easier to fit in and to be among and that feels more comforting for some reason. Some of this is also the reason why we have trends. Someone does something, someone else does it cause they like it too, someone else does it, then someone else, and then some people join in to be a part of it just because everyone else is doing this and they don't want to be left out.
When you're just doing what everyone is doing for the sole purpose of fitting in, you lose yourself and at the end of the day, you'll find that you've sacrificed your authenticity and true identity just to be a fake. You may not even know the things you really enjoy anymore. And then as all hands are not equal there'll always be things you can't follow the crowd on no matter how hard you try. In those situations, it can lead to one feeling inadequate and lower self-esteem. Then there's also the fact that nowadays a lot of the things that are trending are negative and could have terrible consequences.
While I mostly view peer pressure as a negative thing, there are occasions where it can also be a positive. For example, when you're around people who share the same goal as you and are actively working to develop themselves peer pressure can be a good thing in that instance as you all push yourselves to do better and grow together.
When I was smaller I used to be super swayed by my peers. Anything they did I wanted to do. I was like that for quite a while, but then as I grew older I realized that following the crowd every time wasn't always the best. And that a lot of the time standing out is what really makes you special. At first, it seemed kinda weird not doing the things everyone was doing, and I must admit I suffered for it (social wise). I was a loner for a while, but as time went on I was happy I avoided some of the things that were trending and things people did to feel among. Then I also met other like minded people who didn't need to follow the crowd, and till now I am still friends with some of them (they're great people). For me, my philosophy is that if I am doing something it should be because I enjoy it, or because I benefit from it, or because it is the right thing to do, or because someone I care about benefits from it. If it doesn't fall under any of these categories then why am I doing it? To be among or to fit in with the crowd will never be a criterion for me. So I'd say peer pressure has got nothing on me. I am quite comfortable being the black sheep as long as it is beneficial. Except it's FOMO, lol.
If you're ever running out of ideas on what to write like I was earlier today, you should definitely check out the April inleo prompts. They have a lot anyone can relate to.
