Today, the term popularity is a very unhealthy phenomenon in society. Because popularity is viewed in a distorted way a large proportion of people want to be popular. That desire starts back in kindergarten where children bombarded by the media feel that they can only get everything in life if they are popular. They start overdoing it and demanding things that can make them popular, and they’ve seen it on television, laptops, or cell phones. One part of such an unhealthy attitude towards life is emphasized by parents approving and satisfying the wishes of children in excessive amounts. Children at that age absorb such a way of interpreting life and since they do not know how to think rationally they accept such states as the truth about life. Later, the children go to school looking for the same and even more attention, looking for things that will keep them popular. If they are not satisfied, the children become aggressive, angry and hurt. Thus parents create emotionally immature persons governed by their ego (the need for material goods) rather than the need for compassion and understanding.
All children are born with compassion, understanding and love. The media as well as parents distort this natural model and turn children into what is not acceptable to children or them or society. Besides, when that happens they never admit guilt for their actions. Therefore, it is necessary not only to direct the media to present the product correctly and teach children the right values, but it is necessary for parents to talk to their children and explain what they get with this product, whether this product is really necessary in their child’s life or just a toy he would look at all at once and throw in the trash. It is the parent who must be reasonable.
In the upper grades of primary school, and especially in secondary school, this way of expression is quite pronounced, especially among girls. It is more pronounced in girls than in boys. Popular girls think they deserve the best, the most popular guys, the latest cell phone model, the most popular clothes and shoes since they are leaders and all “normal” girls will look up to them and follow their way of expressing themselves since they are popular. They start putting on makeup and dressing in a challenging way that is not appropriate for their age. Popular children are usually the children of parents of middle or better property status. Such children begin to allow themselves not acceptable and inappropriate behavior, because they think they can do anything that comes to their mind without consequences. Apart from the fact that most of them treat teachers rudely and aggressively, they also treat their school colleagues who suffer daily humiliation, insults, threats, verbal and physical abuse, humiliation. These children are looking for a smaller circle of people who are willing to accept them as they present themselves under the guise of being popular. Such behavior leads to an even stronger expression of the ego and even less realization of the real truth about oneself and life.
In college, they begin to use their body in an unacceptable way, and more and more often in the upper grades of high school. These kids want to stay popular, and they don’t know what price it carries. The reason for this is their misdirection by parents during their childhood. The price of this is the constant need to prove to others (not yourself), a constant need for money that everything can afford, separation from self given that the ego is strong, a large number of acquaintances, but a questionable number of sincere friends, the need for company given without it they feel abandoned and worthless.
Today there are two types of people who are popular. One type is the one I described earlier, those who seek in an unrealistic way to be popular, so they want to gain their popularity in a way that separates the person from himself or encourages the ego. Today, it is a normal phenomenon for popular people to put their pictures of travel, with make up or how they dressed, what kind of aesthetic correction they have made on their body, on social networks. Then they expect a lot of “likes”, because they are convinced that in this way they will attract sponsors who will ensure a comfortable life for them. This way of popularity is very shallow, because it forces a person to constantly publish something and constantly be something else. There are few eccentric people who find it natural to change constantly. With people like this, as soon as they lose the idea, they fall into oblivion.
Another type of popular person is one who has gained popularity slowly with his knowledge and commitment. These people strive to be who they are, to be their own without overdoing it. Such people behave naturally. They are usually honest and wise. Sometimes they know how to give very smart advice on how to set up in life, and that life consists of defeats and victories from happy and sad events. In addition, they respect true values and advise that you need to know how to deal with the daily changes of a raised head and thus become wiser and smarter, because they are an integral part of life, an integral part of learning in which we all participate. That is why we must always be honest with ourselves, compassionate, full of understanding and that we are guided by love in life.