'Fitting in' has always seemed like a strange subject to me, mainly because what exactly are we trying to fit into? The path of life has become far too narrow, and it seems as if we're often being encouraged to change the way we are in order to fall into the same ways as everyone else.

As someone who has always liked to do things a little bit differently, I typically do things my way, in order for me to be happy doing them. Despite this, I more often than not feel an influence towards that fact that I should like this, or watch that, to not be singled out, or be the one that isn't familiar with that subject. But I kid you not, it is a million times better being friends with people that you can be yourself around. Those times when there's no mask or filter are far more enjoyable than pretending to be someone you're not in situations just to belong. 

Think about those days where you didn't have to wear uniform to school. From my experience, there are very few people not in jeans and  a jumper. And that's because we often feel compelled to go for similar things to others around us, and create this sea of dark blue denim dotted with black and white trainers. By doing this though, we are missing the ultimate opportunities to express ourselves, without having to worry about 'fitting in'.

The media play a huge part in what we now see as the 'ideals' for mankind. With almost every teenager having social media accounts nowadays, I think it is extremely important that we drive away from the 'perfect image' and towards being ourselves, rather than who we believe we should be. There's no need for us to all rush out and buy that style of top, because everyone else has it, if it doesn't make us comfortable in our own body. We're all built differently, so why try to pretend that we've all come from the same mould?

If you think about it, the reasons behind it are actually quite sad. Our generation have grown up fearing the opinions of others and craving their acceptance over any form of rejection. We're forced to question every choice we make, wondering if it works with the rest of the world. As a society, we choose the ordinary over the extraordinary- this is so wrong.

Constantly, we're devoting ourselves to sticking to the expectations and standards of those around us, rather than being our true, authentic selves. Don't act a certain way to please others at all, there's always people that will love you for who you are, and it may just be that you haven't found them yet. Show the real you, with the extreme love for ABBA, obsession with cats, continuous high anxiety levels and all. Lets go astray from the crowd: just because you're different, doesn't mean you're wrong. If we can make it normal to be more creative with what we do, then more will follow and our world will be filled with a beautiful variety of individuals.

So wear those shoes, like that band, and choose those friends, because why on earth not?

~ Hannah x