We symbolize a generation that has fallen head over heels for the ‘externalism’ in every individual….we live a lie from dawn to dusk and bask in that external silhouette of ourselves...and perhaps over a period of time, we start to believe that lie we live, eat, drink and speak!
We are defined by the company of brands we keep….within each of us, we believe that’s who we are! The culmination of all our efforts and dreams are no longer states such as ‘happiness’ and ‘peace’…rather we quantify every milestone by the brands that we acquire at those important junctures... the keys to your branded elite apartment stamps your entry into the ‘next phase of life’, the transition from a small car to the dream SUV catapults you to a ‘high achiever’ tag, the acquisition of the exclusive club membership determines your social ‘strata’. There is a price and a tag to everything and everyone in our lives….We judge people by the cut and tag of their clothes….we choose friends who belong to our circle of branded existence….we ‘sniff’ out the best in a crowd from their fragrance…we admire not the virtuous from the lot but perhaps the one mouthing the best sounding accent!
Our actions are restricted to what is ‘deemed uber cool’ and not necessarily what we love doing the best! It’s not important if we truly relish the taste of the obscenely priced wine in an upbeat restaurant.. but what is important is if we have been caught with that glass for a precious ‘page 3’ moment! We go on exotic holidays where we experience less of the place and think more of the snaps that we need to share with our circle on our return…It all boils down to dropping those words that matter in our corridor, wedding, workplace conversations…a European holiday here, a golf weekend there …..effortless words that change perspectives magically….the onlookers’ eyes transition from disgust to admiration as we spell out the words that matter! I was amazed to hear of a website which gives you enough information to ‘appear’ to have read the books that broke into the best selling category..Imagine a world where it’s not about enjoying the experience of reading a book, but it’s about telling people about a book that you ‘appear’ to have read!
This externalism follows us faithfully from family gatherings to our private 8*8 area called workspaces. The package we create of ourselves and the blitzkrieg marketing of our strong holds create that lasting impression and may break or make our path of glory in the corporate snakes and ladders. Words like packaging and branding no longer associate with objects but relate much better to people… The sum total of your net worth of sincerity and brilliance is measured in the onlookers’ eyes..the word ‘seem’ never had a field day like in this day and age!
The charade that we display to others slowly and steadily becomes our character and before you and I know it………the thin line between what we are and what we appear blurs into oblivion!
No comments:
Post a Comment