Sure, trends are cool, but what is the point? Being blinded by the color of popularity is not special. It has taken me nearly sixteen years to stop trying to conform to those around me. I honestly find it to not be worth the time and energy. I am not trying to discourage things that are popular, but if I do not care then why should I pretend like I do?

When I am making a music playlist, I do not include songs just because they are popular; I include the songs I actually enjoy listening to. I used to pretend that I liked popular music, but a great deal of it was music I truly disliked. Through small things like this, like music, I have learned to like things that I actually enjoy.

I am certain that just about everyone has heard the cliché phrase “be you.” That line has been engraved into everyone’s memories. Whether it was a poster in elementary school or an educational cartoon, we have all heard the phrase. I will often find myself forgetting this phrase the same way I might forget to tie my shoes after a summer of wearing sandals. The forgettable use and redundancy of the phrase may be why it feels so cliché to me and so many others. 

I think I finally found what the message behind “be you” means to me. My meaning is that conformity is not necessary if I do not feel that it is. I found that my answer lies in small things like music or what I wear. Although someday I may find it in bigger events.

I did not learn how to tie my shoes until the 3rd grade; that is something I do not like to admit. If I would not have been so resistant to my parents when they tried to teach me, I would have never learned the “easy way.” What makes the “easy way” the second option? It is just because the traditional way is considered normal by most people, but the “easy way” is much faster and efficient; there is no reason why I should not do it. 

Socrates said one must “know thyself,” and I agree. Saying “know thyself” is really just a glorified way of saying “be you.” Socrates is probably one of the most intelligent humans to ever walk this Earth in my opinion, but if I did not agree with him, it would not make a difference to me. If I were to tell Socrates that I did not care about his beliefs, he would congratulate me. I say this because Socrates knew that someone would have to “know thyself” to be able to disagree with someone so profound as himself. 

He knew conformity wasn’t the answer.