Are You Following The Crowd?

 Are You Following The Crowd?

It's so damn hard to stand out from the CROWD right now BUT understanding WHY will and should help us be our own boss.  Question now, Are You Following The Crowd?  Anyone here WHO used to go to school wearing the same sneakers as his/her friends?  OR those school days WHEN we brought to school our packed meal.  And WHEN one person brings a certain food, it catches on, and suddenly everyone is bringing it.  Sounds familiar???

Psychologists have long studied HOW being part of a group, WHETHER that's your closest crew OR a crowd of strangers, influences your behavior.  Psychologists term these scenarios as that HERD MENTALITY.  And WHILE the way it guides your preferences for shoes and snacks may be harmless, understanding its roll in big decisions can be lifesaving📗📙📘

WHY?  Because a body of research shows that teens take more dangerous risks, like driving recklessly, trying drugs, WHEN they're part of a group.  We have to admit that through the years, it seems we have been conditioned to think of PEER PRESSURE as taunting, like "DO IT!' or 'YOU'RE A LOSER IF YOU DON'T'.  BUT psychologists warn us that the most dangerous kind of PEER PRESSURE is the influence you DON'T really notice.  Psychologists highlight PRIMAL INSTINCTS wherein humans are social animals and much like sheep, we are driven to travel in packs😌😌😌

To do a lookup with our history, apparently in ancient times, being part of the group gave us that 'EVOLUTIONARY ADVANTAGE', that is, if you're a straggler, you might NOT survive the onslaught of an enemy's attack.  Substitute it to a clique of mean upperclassmen in the cafeteria for giant cave lions in the wild, and you will get that idea, surely.  It's still safer, even in our present day, civilized society, to surround yourself with serious backup.  BUT things DON'T stop there though.  As a teen, we have to admit that we were susceptible [I'll rather call it VULNERABLE] to that HERD MENTALITY.  From an expert's perspective, the section of our brain involved in decision-making is still developing WHILE the part linked to social activity is 'super active'💧💧💧

Our takeaway:  A bit perplexing about PEER PRESSURE because we can defend it and say, like, NO ONE IS PRESSURING, which is almost always true BUT the thing is, when everyone's just doing it because everyone else is.  And I have NOT doubt that if the majority of people WEREN'T drinking, that WOULD catch on too.  WHICH brings me to an important self-test:  If you're feeling a strong drive to copy the crowd at a party, pause for five seconds, step outside, run to the bathroom, whatever, and get in touch with your inner instincts.  WOULD you still be doing this if NO one else was?  Thing is, much as it makes sense to follow our inner instincts, we are NOT handicapped to stand out in the crowd if need to, standing for WHAT we personally advocate and NOT because of the crowd💥💥💥