Non-Conformists. We've all met them. And they all look the same. Isn't that ironic? You meet someone who tells you that they're going against the flow, bucking the mainstream. But in reality they're simply conforming to another stereotype or group.
A billboard caught my attention to this the other day. It asked, "If emos are non-conformist, why do they all dress the same?" It's a good point, and though, bafflingly, it was an ad for Sprite, it provides some food for thought. Let's think about the average non-conformist for a moment. What springs to mind? Dreadlocks, earthy-green looking clothes, a rather strong smell of something, thongs, and of course a battered-looking 1980's Datsun that probably spews out more pollution than a Toyota Landcruiser.
Therein lies the problem, by definition we should not be able to pidgeon-hole a non-conformist into a category. Yet, we can. Therefore it's safe to say that the advent of a true non-conformist is extremely rare indeed. A non-conformist wouldn't think in the same way a normal person does. They would, to make use of a tired cliché, think outside the square. The true non-conformist isn't someone who dresses differently, or looks down upon society, they're someone who tries to improve society, improve the human condition. They are Albert Einstein, Leonardo Da Vinci, Isaac Newton. People who change the world, rather than those who try to reject it.
So to those people who look down on others for "following the crowd" by listening to certain types of music or wearing certain types of clothing, take a look at yourself. Do you follow a crowd of your own? Do you ever think of improving the world rather than simply trying to dismiss it by calling them conformist sheep? I'd hazard a guess at saying you probably go for the latter more often than not. I say to you, you're a conformist too, you're simply conforming to another stream in society.
So, I say to you. Wear what you think looks good. Listen to what you think sounds good. Don't worry as to whether or not you're conforming to some sort of crowd. These are the superficial parts of society that, in the grand scheme of things, don't matter. It's your mind that you need to keep open, keep unique. It's your mind that could change the world, not your clothes.
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I think its still possible to be a non-conformist. You just don't copy someone else's external or internal ideas purposely. If you're doing it because its something you want to do(purely want, not entirely 'need') then it doesn't matter if someone else is doing it - thats just coincidence. The fact is that you're not giving in to the ways of someone else. Though by definition conformity doesn't quite mean to surrender your thoughts and beliefs, I feel its come to mean "taking suit" and resigning your identity to a trend of some kind (including "emo" and "scene kids" etc..) Thus I conclude if you attempt to purposely achieve non-conformity then you are doomed to fail, however if you focus purely on yourself and satisfying your hedonistic desires, being who you WANT to be, believing what you want to believe and sticking to the principles that you think are important you have achieved "mostly non-conformist". Some things are just so inwrought in our blood we can't remove them. Like wearing clothes. (Nudist colonies don't count - they're not counted as real people)
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