On Brand

September 16th, 2021

On Brand

They’re called #trends for a reason.

They’re brief. They’re passing. They’re ephemeral.

I’m struggling to find things on the internet that give me any sense of co-evolution; that is, sites and people who feel like they’re growing alongside me, as a person, instead of chasing whatever trends will get them the most likes, shares, and follows, no matter how brief, passing, or ephemeral those responses may be.

Chasing trends tends to leave behind empty shells, posts bereft of lasting bite or worth.

So, though you may have read this before, maybe at a time when this sentiment was trending, I feel like it bears repeating now: the best brand you can be is you.

Genuine, ugly, deep, defective, reflective, beautiful, authentic you.

I’m so tired of the sameness I see and I feel and I digitally wallow in. And I’m not talking about ideas or emotions I’ve come across a million times; even those are thrilling when a person comes to them and expresses them in their own one-of-a-kind way.

I just don’t see a lot of effort to be more than two-dimensional in a world that offers infinite dimensions.

This is a weird thing to bemoan in the deafening silence of cyberspace, but maybe it’s what one person needs to hear before deciding that, instead of being one “thing” on the internet, they decide they want to be one whole ass person.

They’ll share their hopes and fears and thoughts and dreams, not when they’re trending, but when they feel them and think them.

And maybe we’ll leave something lasting for as many generations are left for this hysterically unstable planet.

The world, as we know, is burning. Let’s burn with it, equally bright and devastating.