Going With the Flow
Yesterday I looked the contagious trend of wearing Canada Goose winter jackets in South Korea and what the overall implications of 'hot' items are in the country. Luxury items, places, experiences, etc. are not just enviable status symbols, but rather a way to artificially inflate a thin line between those in the IN and those on the outside. In the last few years, we've seen these trends intensify in their aggressiveness and Canada Goose jackets are a perfect case study.
What is one to do in this microcosm of FOMO? How are you, or your son/daughter, supposed to navigate this ever-warping landscape of things and experiences?
Source- Soompi
It all seems heavy to handle, especially in such a homogenous and monolithic culture, but in any case of an unbearable mainstream, there is an incredible opportunity to disrupt.
Disciplinary Action
You can imagine how alienating it is for many Koreans when all of a sudden, those who could afford a $1000 jacket suddenly had one and those who didn't were implicitly seen as 'below'. Children who have to come into daily mass contact with their peers would suffer this the most. And so a group of teachers decided to do something about.
Last year, a public high school took action to combat the silly yet demeaning onslaught of this single brand. Students could understandably not afford the hefty price tag of a foreign luxury brand and as an alternative, the teachers organized a communal activity to design and produce a school uniform jacket. They were specifically designed to meet students' needs and were markedly unique from other market options.
Source: MBC
And so while the rest of the country was busy obsessing over this overpriced product, these students put their creativity to work and produced something special just for them. When you contextualize this in national mainstream culture, the benefits of a activity such as this are brilliant. This is self-actualization at its best, nurturing individual talents to bolster self-esteem and fend off an overbearing pressure form society.
SourceHideaki Hamaki
If you've been in the world of crypto for even a little while, you're probably familiar with terms such as FOMO and HODLing. Even in the face of naysayers, sour reactions, and a global society doubting your interest in blockchain, you're resilient and stick with this alternative community that you've discovered. Fending off a doubtful and conservative mainstream is an inherent part of this industry.
This is what makes the school's story so incredible to me. In a society that explicitly rewards head-down reverence and following of orders, you see a cultural revolt (no matter how small) to establish personal standing in a social current.
Source: Recruiting Daily
When I was in Korea this last month, I noticed a marked rise in school jackets for both public schools and universities. They dawned school logos, majors of study, and lots of cool little features, i.e. spanning down to the shins. Cultural revolution is more than possible in Korea. In fact, I would argue that it is more feasible in ultra-conservative countries than even most diverse nations.
So, as always, let me know what you think! What are some of the current trends where you live? How do you foresee
