When high school came, I was bitter at and angry at mainstream society for making me feel so rejected, so I rebelled out of spite-Something I now regret and I wish I could do my high school years all over again. I certainly wouldn’t be the trendy type person if I could(and I’m certainly not now), but I would be more true to myself even if some of my interests and fashion sense are in fact a little bit trendy.

Currently, I’ve put down my non comformist “mask” and while I’m still not quite mainstream, I’ve quit trying to be something I’m not and worrying about whether what I like is mainstream or not. I’ve also put away my bias and bitterness toward people who choose to follow the mainstream and mainstream society in general; and I am the most happy and free I’ve ever been in my life. Not caring anymore. Looking back, I feel so silly about the person I used to be as a teenager.

Your blog described me to a T and hit quite close to home. I hope any teen or adult who is “rebelling” reads this blog and rethinks why they’re “rebelling” in the first place and take a good look at themselves.

Moreover, philosophizing on whether being non conformist is in fact being conformist is in my opinion a very inconsequential question to be spending time on. Either way, its going to make no difference. I don’t think it sheds light on anything or that it gives us a deeper insight about anything at all.

Btw, my initial reaction was to post exactly what I’ve posted so far, I then read the very good and positive comments you’ve received. I then went back and read it! So this criticism is not exactly another of my “attempts” at being non conformist. I tried but simply could not agree about the need or the utility of this line of philosophizing.

(just like everyone else)

This goes along with being nonconformist just because it goes against the traditional grain, or the mainstream. Through my various permutations over the years I have done my best to be “different” as much as I could through find others being different in the same way, or in a way that I admired.

True nonconformity is being honest and true to yourself.
By being against what is held up as “right” and “proper” one is still letting others outside of themselves define them and their actions.

Pro-actively, consciously, and constantly fine tune yourself, who you are, and what it means to be you.

It really is true that there is nothing new, just new ways of presentation.

Seriously. Thanks for the reminder!

For me the best way of knowing if something is for me is experimenting with it. Just pick it up, see if it works for you and if not put it down again. This is the only way to be pro-active in your way of living, otherwise you are always dependent on what other people are telling you, or what you kind of understand intellectually. My two cents to what you write above would be: experience things before you judge them and you will be able to make choices based on how something really works, or doesn’t work, for YOU.

As a final point, I think your unconventional style, for many people, helps to get a point across. Which is why I read your blog, you are good at making a well thought out point in little writing and you are not afraid to experiment with different ideas and later throw them away when you find something better (see my point above).