Impressive

You know what really grinds my gears? People that make asses of themselves in an attempt to impress the general populous. This rant is somewhat of a continuation of my previous blog "You Get What You Pay For...". In that rant, I talked about people that are obsessed with buying things simply because it has a logo on it, that will get them noticed.
I heard about a study that was done, while I was listening to the radio. In this study, they took two groups of women, (I'm sure this type of study could be applied to men as well) both groups were given some very expensive clothing accessories, like purses, shoes and sunglasses. The thing was, the accessories were well made, knock offs. One group of women were told they were not the real thing, and the other group of women were left to believe that they did had been given very expensive shoes, glasses and purses. The women were left to go about their daily lives for a few weeks and then answer some questions. The women who were not told that the very expensive items they had, were not the real thing, claimed higher confidence, and self esteem. They even claimed to be happier. The women that knew the items were knock offs claimed they felt cheap, and somewhat embarrassed. So even though both groups were given the same items, the women that thought the items were far more expensive than they were, seemed to like their items more. Why? Simple, we don't care about what we wear, or what we drive, or how we look, or where we eat, we only care about what other people think of us.
We spend so much of our lives trying to convince our piers that we are smarter, richer, more sophisticated, or somehow better than the people around us. We want to be at the top of the social latter, even if we have to pretend that we belong there. The problem is, the things that most people do, to try to impress strangers, are working against them, more than for them.
I was driving along a busy highway a few weeks ago, and had a motorcycle pull in front of me. It was a Harley Davidson, a brand of motorcycle known to be very expensive, and unreliable with poor performance, but also know as the bad boy motorcycle. It had no mufflers, so it was extremely loud. Even though the bike had turn signals, the rider insisted on using his hand signals any chance he could, flailing his arm around vigorously. The bike also had "suicide shift" which means instead of the shifting being done safely, and easily with his left foot, he needed to take his left hand, off the handlebars, reach behind his left leg, and shift gears manually with a lever. It's a dangerous and impractical setup, with no benefits. So as I watched him ride, revving the very loud engine, swinging his arm around to indicate a lane change, and constantly reaching behind himself to change gears, I realized something. He's not doing all these things because it's comfortable, or enjoyable, or practical, he is doing it because it's attracting a lot of attention. It's just a desperate "look at me!" He wanted everyone to look at what he was doing, and to be impressed by it. But what he didn't realize was, no one was impressed. Most people looked at him, and thought, there is something broken on his bike. Or they listened to the obnoxiously loud exhaust and thought, "what an inconsiderate prick". Instead of impressing people, he was irritating, distracting, and even making people feel sorry for him and his clearly, low tech, broken bike, that he can't afford to fix. Maybe other Harley owners would have been impressed, but what percent of the population owns a Harley?
Every day I see people trying their hardest to look important, and 95% of them are failing. I hear people driving around in their cars, with music that they think is cool, blaring out of their stereos, with the clear intention, that the people they pass on the street with be convinced of their coolness, but most people don't share the same music interests, so instead of impressing, they are irritating people. Or I see people driving huge, expensive SUVS convinced that the more money their vehicle is worth, the higher they must be on the social latter. But a large percentage of the population view vehicles like that as environmentally disastrous, penis extensions. A $5000 Rolex, cool, or just a far too expensive way to tell time? Everyone knows what their view of cool, or trendy, or important is. So they act in a manner to fit that image. But everyones image of cool, is different. Do you drink fancy wines, and read complicated books, because cool people are smart and sophisticated in your eyes? Do you drive an Escalade, and eat in expensive restaurants because you think cool people are rich? Do you eat granola and own a Mac because you think cool people are hippies that think outside the box?
The money and effort that is put forward by people, to convince others of their popularity, is not only a lost cause, but it's more than likely hurting their image, more than helping. Driving an Escalade might impress 25% of the population, but the other 75% think you are a pretentious, arrogant, douche bag, with an undeserving sense of accomplishment. If you just buy a Honda Accord, you might not impress anyone, but at least, you wont have 75% of the people that see you, loath you.
There are two messages to this rant:
1: Stop buying stuff, wearing stuff, listening to stuff, eating stuff and doing stuff to impress people. No one cares what you think is cool. Do what you enjoy. Who cares if it's something you don't view as cool. Doing something, just because it's cool, makes it not cool. Stop caring what people think. If you want to listen to Britney Spears, eat at Burger King, drink cheap beer, and drive a Ford Pinto, do it. Isn't enjoying your life, more important than trying to convince people you are someone you're not? The social latter is in your head. You are where ever you think you are on it.
2: If you really want to impress people, and have people think you are cool. Just be nice. It's free, or at least cheap. Open a door for someone. Give someone 25 cents if they come up short in line at the grocery store. Volunteer to help, the old, the mentally challenged, the needy or the helpless. Lend a hand to anyone that needs it, whether they ask for it or not. I think you'll find 95% of the population thinks those things are cool.