Not sure if “trending” words dressed up as something that demolishes the point of their dictionary definition should be treated as laudatory cultural vehicles.
Actually, that’s a lie.
I am quite sure about how I feel about this.
Viciously sure.
And I’m viciously sure that this very strange, very unpleasant mass adoption of words-made-uninspiring-paste is reflective of something deeper.
I can already feel the ruffled feathers. The gritting teeth.
Understand that if you’re sensitive about this in the opposite way, and you have no desire to feel “attacked,” you might not want to read this.
I don’t believe in personally attacking anyone, or anything, as I believe everyone—especially, in fact, the people I deeply and heavily and personally disagree with on spiritual, political and whatever-al levels—should be allowed to say whatever the hell they want. Now, for some reason, countless people hate the idea of listening to opposing views so much that they feel the insatiable desire to brand themselves a victim; so much so, that when it has nothing to do with them as individuals, they’ll feel personally victimized, and they would rather throw a tantrum on social media, or send a spicy email, or something else that people with actual influence have experienced (and not me, heh)… though I imagine it’s a very sour thing to come across.
If this made you giggle, good… this is serious but also not serious at all, but perhaps in that veil of unseriousness you can find your own brand of seriousness; that’s basically what the show Succession does masterfully and I you haven’t watched that twisted satirical masterpiece, I highly recommend you do.
Okay. All silliness—or was it silliness?—aside…
I have a bitter relationship with trends.
It’s a dynamic as toxic as Carrie Bradshaw strolling through New York City, spectacularly dressed, but woefully delusional about her role as the undeniable common denominator in all her stories of misery. Thing is, I choose to be this strange Bradshaw level of toxicity, because I would rather give trends the cold shoulder than engage with them. I make a conscious effort to pull away from trends, hype, and viral topics. They’re not only irritating, but they’re not helpful. While everyone sees these as race cars of opportunity—and would rather hop on that harsh rubber track without even thinking of putting on a helmet—it’s blisteringly sad how quickly they’ll divorce their Spouse of Creative Integrity without even consulting them. Leaving their respective husband or wife or whatever works in this metaphor in a nasty fit of tears, wondering why they were abandoned in all their jewels and frills and timeless idealisms for the sake of a quick fuck.
I guess that is what it is, isn’t it? If your creativity, identity, story, personality, and all the things in which you devote yourself from the heart, soul, mind, flesh, and beyond is your Spouse in this scenario, than trends are the Mistress. They’re sweet, they’re gallivanting everywhere dripping with honey and syrup and sugary delight, but once they suck you in, the temptation transforms into consequence, and soon your left with a broken marriage, remorse, and a whole lot of regrets.
Niche commentators in multiple industries are harping constantly in your orbit. 50% are parading these mistresses around themselves, and the other 50% are complaining about them. I’ve seen people across all categories you can think of, passing through my social feeds like strangers in a fictitious rolodex.
And every single one presents a hopeful kind of spirit, with an image that might look casual enough to convince their viewers that they’re doing something more “real” compared to the person you saw five seconds before, featuring a splash of large, center-aligned text—most of which are leaning towards a bright, pale, gross yellow color, for some reason—while posing in a way that pretends to not be posing.
At first, maybe, you felt something. When trends begin, there’s something exciting about them. That’s why they become trends. Their short-lived lifespan is a testament to only one good thing about their reason to be: the fact that, at the beginning of their inception, they inspire someone enough to start creating something.
But, that’s where the positives end.
Before I start gutting the enormous, complicated fish that is the complete wreckage of words-turned-into-trends….
Something you should know about me is I consider myself to be an Honorary Hater. I feel things very strongly, and have opinions forged in iron and stone. They’re brutal and unforgiving. However, I try to be critical in a way that’s nuanced, no matter how white-hot I might get about a subject. I’m human, so I fail often. What I’m about to discuss with you is one of those topics where trying to measure myself against my own emotional and logical reasoning leads to a strange feeling of peacocking that I don’t want to subject you to. So… what you’ll receive instead is the variant of me that I wish everyone would do in their newsletters, social posts, and day-to-day coffee chats: the Truth.
This Truth that you may or may not be ready to hear is this:
It doesn’t matter if it momentarily brings you “joy” or “happiness” or a rush of beautiful golden dopamine that tricks you into believing you’ve created something you like… you have been persuaded to move further away from the language that feels right to you, and you’re adopting someone else’s voice.
Everyone says it doesn’t matter. “Steal from what works and make it your own.”
I understand the sentiment. I work in advertising and brand. I write for a living in many fields, for many people, in many ways. I get the methodology. To say that I’m “against” it would be untrue, but again, there’s nuance to this worth exploring.
However, don’t believe most people truly understand what this phrase means.
In fact, from what I’ve seen in the last few years, “steal from what works and make it your own” might as well be shortened to “steal what works.” Period.
Which is disgusting, by the way. And lazy. And shameful. And while we won’t get into the conversation everyone and their favorite LinkedIn influencer is having about artificial intelligence and the many ways the usage, lack of understanding, and widespread glamorization of these technological idols is directly influencing the conscious, guiltless theft of unoriginal ideas…
The responsibility is not on these tools, or the trends, or anyone. No one but yourself. You, or me, or any stranger facing these obstacles on their own have to arrive at the harsh reality that the individual has failed.
Maybe you’re not one of those people.
Maybe you’re hellbent on crafting your own things, and you’re resistant, and perhaps even more stubborn than I am.
To be honest, I don’t actually care what you do, as long as you have conviction, and real thinking and drive behind what you’re doing. (I don’t condone stealing in the name of “inspiration,” so please don’t misunderstand this sentiment)
The problem is, most people—instead of actually making something their own—usually slap on a new coat of paint, and pretend it’s something new crafted through their perspective. They lie to themselves first, then lie to the world.
This is the approach most people celebrate, and get really sensitive about, and I actually do think I understand why—humans are insecure, and they don't like being told what they’re doing isn’t fresh, or interesting, or good. Both smart and dumb people can fall into this category, so you’re not a special snowflake if you think
I genuinely don’t remember when this specific influx of butchered words started, but I know the practice won’t end anytime soon.
You know what I’m talking about.
Chic. Slop. Aura. Maxx.
Those are top of mind… but I know there are more.
They’re not interesting or intelligent or profound in any way. They’re just there to grab attention. Their definitions have warped and changed based on consumer behavior. This is nothing new, of course, but it’s something we need to keep in mind if we care about multigenerational literacy across the board.
My problem isn’t how these words are being defined. It’s the lack of power or yearning to understand why they’re used the way they are, and what they represent when you remove yourself from the Portrait of Life and take a long look at what’s unfolding in front of you.
“Chic,” for example, is a word that used to have strong cultural roots.
(It still does, I hope)
But with the glorification of the recent “It’s kinda chic to…” trend, it’s lost any and all weight.
What did it mean before? Does it matter? Does the weight or significance it held for the fashion community and culture even matter anymore? Does anyone care? Does anyone care that no one cares? Does anyone care that no one cares about anyone else caring?
The cycle continues. It drips into the folds of the future. It sucks from the innovation of the past like some disgusting little leech.
I might have too strong of an attachment to words, and our cultural vocabulary, and how we treat the definitions of words that were crafted and carved into the zeitgeist and chiseled their histories into the kind of marble we’re not meant to see.
But, I can’t imagine I’m the only one who feels like this, like the growing over-flexibility around the destruction of words, and the lazy application to trends and their slick velocity and gross rapid crash-and-burns, and the undeniable push towards thinking less and less and less about what we put out into the world should be fucking accepted.
I’m not a lemming, and neither are you.
But for some reason, our neighbors are spending all of their hard-earned energy racing to the bottom of the barrel, starting with how they speak.
And it’s affecting millions upon millions of others who take on those mantles and chant a Lie that directly opposes the Truth they’re trying to adopt.
Well-intended. Misdirected.
That being said…
Well-intended destruction is still destructive.
If you want to move away from this, and start to preserve the beauty of words, you have to ignore what everyone else is doing. Pursue your own path. Ignore the temptations. Remind yourself that those quick wins and millions upon millions of engagements and comments and potential riches are designed for someone else’s story, where they’re perfectly happy trading their diamond narrative for the burnt coal remains of a half-baked idea.
(And I use the word “idea” really fucking loosely)
Even if this reads as overdramatic… there’s a possibility you’re right.
But it doesn’t really change anything.
The world turns. People say what they want to say and do what they want to do. You have the choice to take this as something to keep in the back of your mind the next time you ready up your Substack note, Instagram post, or that article that’s been sitting in your drafts for months. That choice exists whether you even remember you read this or not.
And I guess what you do with that information is your business, isn’t it?
Good night and good luck,
— Taylor Barnes.