“Hey! All of them are taking part in this event. How can you expect me to miss it?”
“Look at those guys in the software industry. Even though there are too many of them, they are enjoying their lives. I also want to join it. That would at least assure me of a guaranteed job and income. Once I join, I can keep searching for a better job, what say?”
“If all those guys can get a girl, why can’t I? Is there something which they have and I don’t?”
“These days, guys around us are developing six packs left, right and center. Look at us. We are good for nothing”
PS: This post deals with examples related to the effects of joining the bandwagon in our daily lives. It doesn’t deal with joining national or the Indian independent movements and examples of that kind.
I am sure there are many of us who must have come up with at least one of the above statements at some point in time. Is it really necessary that we must do the same what everyone has done for years? What is so special about joining the bandwagon? Is it a fad? Does it really give us a high when we just do the same thing what millions do? Lets check it out.
From what I have seen around me, people love to play it safe. If so many would be doing something, then it can’t go wrong, can it? Whether it is joining the software industry or buying a Pulsar bike, who cares if there are so many doing the same thing. If one joins the herd, he / she wouldn’t be at a disadvantage at any cost. Or that’s what people think. No one wants to take a risk and face failure when he / she can be safe and happy.
While doing the same thing as the rest, many of us feel that there is a better chance of success. Obviously, if so many of us have done it, how can we fail? Yes, success can’t be guaranteed at any time. But since there are millions doing the same thing, there surely must be a better probability here than ever, ain’t it? Or so we think. So if everyone is successful in playing cricket, is it necessary that we would be successful as well? If everyone gets a girl by developing a six pack, what is the chance that you would encounter a girl who prefers a simple, sober and laidback guy? I am sure its NIL according to so many of us.
There are so many of us who are scared to do something different. If someone is doing something in a set pattern, why take the tension and pressure of doing something different, isn’t it? Moreover, who knows what its result will be. So instead of taking all the pressure and the trouble, a lot many of us end up following the world and forgetting what we really want to do in our lives. Even in a software industry we are happy to go with what the rest are doing. Why take the pressure of attempting a new way of doing things or trying to take the lead in making a change when there maybe disaster at the end of the tunnel?
I am sure people would argue that one of the most important factors in shaping our minds is what we see our family, friends, relatives etc. do. Taking no risks at all, playing it safe and doing what others do is taught from the beginning. Immediately when a child is born, parents proclaim him / her to be an engineer or a doctor. Obviously who cares whether there are careers in art, science, music, writing etc worth pursuing. The living conditions of a person may also shape his minds towards trying to do what the rest have done. In his / her case aspiring to become a doctor / engineer or entering the software industry would be a big achievement in itself. But even among these, there are so many cases of personalities who have risen from the depths of poverty to take the entrepreneurial world by storm. Either we can just sit back and accept whatever happens or decide to change the status quo.
Ahh! So the feeling of joining the bandwagon makes one feel contented, happy, satisfied and doesn’t increase one’s blood pressure at all. What a feeling that must be! But is that all one needs in life?
As they say losers follow losers. But winners build their own paths and let others follow them. Joining a bandwagon blindly isn’t a very good idea. One should open his / her eyes and ears before jumping on it. Otherwise it may lead on a path to nowhere.
Food for thought – There’s a chance to be called a failure while doing something different or a chance to be one among the herd where no one would remember you. Take your pick!
For those interested you can also check out the below posts which have touched on similar topics!
http://aseemrastogi2.wordpress.com/2012/04/30/do-we-ever-live-for-ourselves/
Achintya Jain
nice
aseemrastogi2
Thanks Achintya :). But would expect some more comments more from you bad or good rather than just nice ;).
Abhishek Chatterji
interesting… true for the most part.. but sometimes carving a niche for yourself even one you are within the System and with a crowd..that would certainly make a good read.
I would love to see an article from you which actually supports joining the bandwagon on some level… something like view and counter view..
aseemrastogi2
Yeah that’s what I mentioned, a lot of people don’t even want to carve a niche for themselves even among the crowd. But yeah I shall come up with something like a view and counter-view in my next article whenever it comes :).