Being yourself has never been a trend

What if that was precisely why it was so difficult?

It only takes a few minutes on social media to see trends come and go.

Styles follow one another.

Colors change.

Trends appear, disappear... then return a few years later under a new name.

"Be yourself."

This idea seems simple.

But it hides a deeply human paradox.

We all want to be unique.

And, at the same time, we want to belong to a group.

We seek to stand out without being excluded.

To express our personality without feeling alone.

Who hasn't found themselves liking an item of clothing, a piece of music, or an idea...

...before wondering if that choice really came from them, or simply from their surroundings?

This paradox is not new.

Fashion already illustrates this paradox

As early as 1904, sociologist Georg Simmel explained that fashion precisely met two fundamental needs:

To resemble others.

While also seeking to differentiate oneself from them.

In other words, following a trend is not a flaw.

It's a natural way to find one's place among others.

But this quest can sometimes make us forget an essential question.

Do we truly choose what reflects us... or only what is expected of us?

The gaze of others

This question is more relevant than ever.

Today, social media offers us a tremendous space for expression.

They allow us to discover new ideas.

New cultures.

New styles.

But they also make comparison constant.

Every post becomes a mirror.

Every reaction becomes a signal that influences how we perceive ourselves.

And some trends eventually seem natural to us simply because we see them everywhere.

This does not mean that social media is a problem.

They simply amplify a mechanism that has always existed:

The gaze of others.

The weight of the group

Psychologist Solomon Asch's experiments in the 1950s strikingly illustrated this.

Faced with a unanimous group, some people preferred to adopt an obviously false answer rather than contradict the majority.

But these studies also show something else.

Many participants resisted this pressure.

And when just one person dared to express a different opinion, it became much easier for others to do the same.

These experiments therefore do not only tell us about our susceptibility to influence.

They also remind us that independence is never a given.

It is chosen, again and again.

Authenticity is not the absence of influence

Perhaps that's where authenticity begins.

Not when we refuse all influence.

But when we become aware of what influences us.

Being oneself does not mean living outside of trends.

It means choosing, from all the influences around us, those that truly correspond to our values, our history, and our personality.

Authenticity is not a garment you put on.

It is a constant dialogue with oneself.

Style may start here

At AMIRAL KASUAL, we don't believe that trends are the enemies of style.

They inspire.

They evolve.

They tell us something about their time.

But style may begin when one stops following a trend by reflex...

...and starts making choices that truly reflect who they are.

Trends change.

Identity is built.

That's the whole difference.

Being yourself has never been a trend

Perhaps because authenticity is not about escaping all influences.

It's about recognizing those that shape us...

...and then consciously choosing which ones we decide to make our own.

Ultimately, being yourself is not an end destination.

It's a choice we renew every day.

 

BE WHO YOU ARE

— AMIRAL KASUAL Magazine

References

This article draws on major works in social psychology and the sociology of fashion. The references below are provided for readers who wish to delve deeper into the subject.

• Asch, S. E. (1956). Studies of Independence and Conformity: A Minority of One Against a Unanimous Majority. Psychological Monographs, 70(9).
• Deutsch, M., & Gerard, H. B. (1955). A Study of Normative and Informational Social Influences upon Individual Judgment. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 51(3), 629–636.
• Simmel, G. (1904). Fashion (La Mode). International Quarterly, 10, 130–155.
• Capuano, C., & Chekroun, P. (2024). A Systematic Review of Research on Conformity. International Review of Social Psychology.