I am really surprised when people give me that look when they see the content I post. They genuinely think that I do something that is beyond normal. So today I want to write about the so-called "New Normal".
INTRODUCTION
The greatest challenge for this generation is to find out what's normal and what is not. The majority of the world is living on instant gratification at this point. Or like said in the book "deep work", high stimuli/less impact work is done more than low stimuli/high impact work. Our previous generation, who did not have access to social media or super-fast internet, got most of their values from their surroundings. From their parents, close friends (who got values from their parents). This might seem like a small thing but this change of value transfer has made our generation more prone to a lack of discipline and hard work.
It's really funny when people point out the exceptional people who are doing well even though they are of this generation with social media at their disposal. Today, I am here to talk to you. Forget those exceptions and think about yourself.
Remember when you were in school and your parents told you not to be a part of a certain group because they could be a bad influence? But some part of you always wanted to see what was all that about. You wanted to know what that group of kids talk about and what they do. After all, those were the cool kids in the school! You wanted to be cool as well.
They got a lot of attention, especially from the opposite gender.
But, that time you did not go with them. You were a part of a group where they valued meaningful friendship. You had good values and habits. You were probably even good at studies because you had such friends (because I was).
Your group of friends is what defines your character. Or as said by Dan Pena,
Show me your friends and I will show you your future.
Cut to 5 years in the future, You are on social media. Guess what, the people that your parents warned you about being a bad influence, they are back! This time they are not just getting the attention of your crush but the whole world. The people who in school were mischievous because they were always looking at instant fun! They are getting the most attention these days.
But what's the problem with that? It's pretty simple. The notion of something being normal or okay is decided when the majority is in its favor. The problem arises when these people who seek instant gratification have the most influence. It's not that they are purposely changing the norms, they are just living their way. It's their choice and they know the consequences of their choices. It's the general public I am talking about. Even the most basic of values are being changed these days. Rather than positivity, hate spreads faster.
The change is not visible because it is slow, like climate change. Many see the future being full of consequences and regret still no one is doing anything because everything is under control for now.
What shall be done?
Blaming social media would be really counter-productive at this point. As I said earlier, think about yourself for now! What can you do at a personal level to make sure you spend your time in a more meaningful way? I myself am on social media and I also use it on a regular basis. So what exactly did I do to tell you all this today?
Well, there are always going to be people who are bad influences. It's you who chooses to go to them or not! I follow these steps to avoid as much negative and harmful content as possible.
Following only relevant pages. Accounts that help me get better at my work, people that I can look up to as my role models. Artist from whom I can take inspiration.
On the contrary, Unfollow all the accounts that share content that is either of no use to me, or I feel that they are a bad influence on me. (I literally don't follow any meme pages, I really hope all the positivity accounts were as active and passionate as the meme page handlers!)
Avoiding going on the explore page or the Reels section on Instagram. These are the ways of the algorithm to get you hooked on something new.
Regulated time usage of social media. (My goal is 1hr Max in a day, but most of my interactions with my friends are through Instagram so it always crosses the given time.)
CONCLUSION
Why am I writing about this? Well, When people are surprised with the amount of content I post they just accept that they can't do that much. People have created a strong notion about themselves. They feel anything outside that realm is just going to be bad or they won't be able to handle it. Nobody is willing to get out of their comfort zone. This new midset is changing even the meaning of normal words.
This happened to me recently with a conversation with a person that led me to write this blog today. We were talking about discipline and consistency. I was really surprised when the other person said, "I can't be disciplined because I don't want to force myself to do things." I was speechless. I felt people have forgotten the meaning of discipline. The feeling that the person is addressing is right, it takes efforts to be disciplined, it's not an easy task. It's about the way you perceive that feeling which makes all the difference.
But, I will definitely write more in-depth about this perception of discipline because I feel my perception of discipline has made all the difference in my life.
Be more conscious about the content you consume because now that quote by Dan Pen has turned into,
Show me the content you consume and I will show you your future!
This was a big one! This topic is really close to my heart. I see a lot of people going through it. I have solutions, I just don't have enough credibility so that they will hear me. Until then, I thank you for reading my blog! I really appreciate the support you give. You guys are the reason I look forward to spreading some positivity from my side.
I will see you all next week!
Cheers!
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