Why we never talk enough about ourselves — and brands should know it
Alexa, play Me Myself and I by Beyonce; or whatever she sings — in her supremacy I trust.
Have you ever wondered why we as humans are so self-centered? It’s like we can’t get enough of ourselves. Living like you’re the main character is not — and will never be — a thing of the past. “You are the center of the universe, you are a magnet and you are the master of your destiny” — this girl telling her audience to repeat those words while doing her TikTok make-up tutorial. Apparently, everything will fall into place if you treat yourself like you are meant to be in this vast universe. That might be my FYP — amongst The White Lotus, Fleabag and Normal People Tiktok; and yes there’s nothing to be apologetic about. I’m not criticising the new age world of manifesting and the “law of attraction” culture (which might be a topic for another day); all I’m saying is we’ll never talk enough about ourselves and the best brands in the world know how to leverage human truths and connect with their audience at a human level.
According to legend, and several Ancient Greek authors including Plato, two words of wisdom were carved into the stone at the entrance to Apollo’s temple at Delphi in Greece. Those words are “Gnothi Seauton” which literally means “know yourself”. Some people might say that the Ancient Greek aphorism is the key to a meaningful life; others might argue “know thyself” is not just silly advice, but actively dangerous.
But you can’t deny that we constantly look for self-knowledge and acknowledgment. We are defined by cultural, political, economic and ideological surroundings. We constantly seek the definition of ourselves. Who am I? What am I into? If you don’t believe me, go on Grindr and try conversing with someone, the first question might be “What u into?”. People in general are just curious if you ask me.
And they are curious about themselves. Sometimes we’re in extreme need to make sense of ourselves. Binary labels, personality types, horoscopes and astrology, such and such, we need to be unique whilst wanting to belong to a group. Ironic isn’t it? When you step out of those label circles for ten seconds, the world seems to be crashing down. We want to feel recognised and understood. We want to feel figured out so much so that everything else becomes easier. Imagine one minute you feel so joyful and depressed the next. Welcome to living in the 21st century — there’s a literal war.
At one point, there were 8 billion people in the world and imagine having no idea how to cope. Humans. We love ‘wisdom” handed to us free of charge to make life easier. So when we have a tool at hand, we’ll use it like the most crucial invention in humankind’s history. ENFP, Gemini, Introvert, Red/Blue/Yellow/Green, we peel the layers of outer self like peeling an onion to seek the meaning of self, to delve into who we are, according to personality tests, horoscopes and BuzzFeed questions. Adam Levine cheating on his wife and texting “that body of yours is absurd” makes sense because he’s a Pisces man. Kanye West going feral with his statements and actions makes sense because he’s a Gemini man. Julia Fox makes sense because she’s an Aquarius with a Taurus moon. After all, which Disney character are you?
In these times of uncertainty, some reassurance doesn’t hurt, does it?
You are no longer Jessica next door, you are Jessica and an Aries. These begin to shape who are. We suddenly feel so reassured and feel a sense of belonging. We want to be unique but don’t want to be weirdos that people stay away from us. Not everyone can be Wednesday Addams. That’s complicated and I gave up on Maths a few years ago. So there it is, the answer you’ve been longing for. Who am I to argue with Fortune 500 companies? Psychology Today reports that about 80% of Fortune 500 companies use personality tests to vet for upper-level positions, and the personality testing industry is estimated to be worth $6.5 billion industry by 2027.
But it’s science. The Nobel Prize in Physics 2022 goes to Alain Aspect, John F. Clauser and Anton Zeilinger who conducted groundbreaking experiments using entangled quantum states, where two particles behave like a single unit even when they are separated. “One key factor in this development is how quantum mechanics allows two or more particles to exist in what is called an entangled state. What happens to one of the particles in an entangled pair determines what happens to the other particle, even if they are far apart”, The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences states in its press release. That means that entanglement’s “spookiness” implies about the fundamental nature of reality. Two entangled particles can “reflect each other’s state without information traveling between them faster than the speed of light.” Our thoughts shape our realities. I might or might not be watching too much TikTok on this and have done some research. Wouldn’t it be so bad to be that main character and be at one with the universe? Just because. Scientifically approved.
Each year we wait with bated breath to see what Spotify unwraps. Anxiety hits. Gonna feel so called out. But isn’t it what we’ve known already? We just need someone to put a stamp on it. You have spent 256,737 minutes on “Anti-Hero”, more than 96% of listeners in the UK. And yes, the next 10 IG stories from 10 different accounts are people sharing their Spotify Wrapped. Spotify has done a great job to leverage its internal data and tap into human truths to succeed in a viral campaign. This year, you can see if you are The Adventurer, The Specialist, The Early Adopter, The Deep Diver, The Devotee or The Time Traveler. By tapping into the desire of people wanting reassurance and wanting to find a tribe they belong to, Spotify makes us feel seen, heard and part of a collective.
But “did you hear my covert narcissism I disguise as altruism like some kind of congressman”? It’s not like I’m quoting Swift et al (2022) again, but sometimes everybody is a sexy baby, and everybody loves talking about themselves. This is not going to be one of those self-help articles, to tell you to love yourselves and ground yourselves in strong beliefs, then the universe will answer. Brands often talk about vision, mission, manifesto and all the wonderful things in the world, but sometimes find it hard to grasp what makes us human. Have you got a bespoke strategy to reach out to your audience yet, because you might need to find out what personality they are? Also, you might just be wondering why we are obsessed with MBTI — the one that was invented by two people with no academic qualifications, just vibes. We just can’t help ourselves.
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