Escape the Herd
Humans are social creatures for a reason. Prehistorically, it was necessary to follow our group’s insight because it was the most efficient for survival; if everyone is running from a predator, it would benefit you to immediately start running. However, times have changed. Globalization and technology have created an unprecedented level of connection coupled with an increasing difficulty to think independently. Societal signaling (or rather, noise) is much more powerful when the signals are reinforced every hour of every day. Thus, we are tasked with searching for the truth in a world where we are bombarded by content generated for the benefit of the masses, not individuals (you). As most become susceptible to this stimuli, the human herd becomes increasingly homogenized.
According to Nassim Taleb, author of Fooled by Randomness
The world becomes more and more complicated and our minds are trained for more and more simplification
Faster (social) media distribution leverages this network of “common knowledge” to solidify the societal identity, prescribing behavior necessary to be accepted as normal. You must go to college. You must have an Instagram. You must work for a company. Above all, you must obey society (the herd). If you don’t follow, you are labeled a heretic and cast off to handle your shame. So was the fate of Nicholas Copernicus, who ended up being right all along.
What is the end result of this simplicity and herd behavior? We develop insincere desires. Rene Girard developed the concept of mimetic desire, which describes the tendency for us to desire something primarily because others desire the same thing.
We borrow our desires from others. Far from being autonomous, our desire for a certain object is always provoked by the desire of another person—the model—for this same object. This means that the relationship between the subject and the object is not direct: there is always a triangular relationship of subject, model, and object.
If you take record of all the things you desire, you’d be surprised how much external influences shaped them. Are you truly doing the things you want, or have you been fooled into thinking what society wants is necessarily the same thing?
If we are all susceptible to such mimetic desire that reinforces the herd mentality, what is the alternative? How do we escape it and make independent decisions in this world of information overload?
“Why” chaining - The moment you make a decision for anything - going out to bars, working out, calling a friend, choosing a job, etc, ask yourself why you are doing it. After you answer it, ask why you want that. And why, and why. This will train you to be realistic about why you maintain certain behaviors, and filter out genuine from mimetic desire. See what your friends say when you ask them why.
The answer is somewhere in the middle - Whenever you read an article, see an opinionated tweet, read a scientific paper, or find yourself in an argument, realize above all that almost nothing is black and white. The “answer” you are seeking is likely in the middle of two (or more) extremes. Always hold yourself back from jumping to extreme viewpoints, and be open minded about other approaches that you may have missed. Be skeptical of people who offer specific advice as the "prescription” to do anything. Whether it’s taking medication, choosing what food to eat, or investing in stocks, there is usually not a one-size-fits-all “answer” that society has conveniently developed. This way, the information overload won’t consume you and you won’t be at the whim of whatever you see on the internet.
Understand the vulnerability of groupthink - It’s normal to find discomfort in opposing a heavily supported belief, but also realize that societal thought can change rapidly. Social norms are not “set in stone” especially due to the internet. All the “paranoid” people that prepared heavily for the coronavirus pandemic are not so paranoid now are they?
To be clear, what society wants is not necessarily a negative thing. There are many instances in which we come together in tough times to do something positive. In this case, the herd would benefit from the wave of positivity. However, in most instances it is harder and harder to escape the common, simplified, prescriptive mentality. But difficult as it may be, an escape may be just what we need.