Normlessness
Recently in a class the term normlessness which was coined by Émile Durkheim, is a statement that tries to explain how as a society develops people may experience anomie or normlessness when social norms erode and people begin to lose the intuition that helps them distinguish right from wrong. Source
My thoughts have been fixated on this concept for some time now. As I've been looking deep within myself in hopes to explain some of the emotions and feelings I've encountered of late. My personal sense of normlessness doesn't quite fit Émile Durkheim's theory, not to discredit it as such in a wider scale I definitely feel it applies to broader society. For myself however . . .
There seems to be a recurring pattern where I wake up day-in-day-out feeling exhausted and tired of the usual routine. This is my own observation of self. I'm not expert in sociology or psychology and can't speak for any of you that may be reading this.
Talking about my personal feelings on the matter seems important to me. I see it a lot in my friends and the people I interact with on a daily basis. People do the day-in-day-out thing, some unaware and completely content, others stuck in perpetual misery. I always try to remain in the positive about my outlook of the near future, as such, so should you!
Combating Normlessness
Quick disclaimer if it wasn't clear earlier, I'm not a professional in psychology or sociology. What I do to help myself may not work for you. I'll give the basis for what I do in hopes that maybe you guys will get something out of it.
- Optimism
Being optimistic is so central to how I try to be in every scenario. At the end of the day there will always be circumstances completely out of your control. Worrying and being frustrated about the outcomes which you cannot control always lead to disappointment. Why not spend your time and energy focusing on what you can do, what you can change, what you should be doing.
- Positivity
Being optimistic is perhaps a fault that I have, sometimes it can lead to unintended outcomes, so proceed with caution. Optimism alone is not enough. Positivity is also key in shaping your daily life. Have you ever had that moment where you wake up and you tell yourself that despite what may happen proceeding the morning. You'll remain happy and unaffected? If that's you then you know what I'm talking about.
This is classic example of what I might do. I get up in the morning with the mindset that it's going to be a great day no matter the circumstance. Then the minute I step out the door off too whatever might await me, BOOM, the sky begins to swell as heavy rain falls (it rains a lot here) my mood goes south.
Well that isn't a good example of what I try to be. But it plays into my point. There are constantly momentary feelings we experience on a daily basis, sometimes all throughout the day. This shouldn't discourage you to shape your own narrative. For instance, I'm now stuck in rain which undoubtedly will leave me with that icky wet cold sensation no one likes. I have my moment of solidarity as I sit on the bus headed towards my classes and then I transition from that mental state to something more palatable.
Who will I be engaging with later in discussions, what are the types of goals and or things I want to learn as a result of going to class? You take a momentary negative feeling and you choose to make a conscious decision to focus on something else.
- Persevere
This is perhaps the biggest challenge, perseverance. I would be lying to myself and anyone reading this that I didn't struggle with this. I do struggle with it. There are times where you're beaten down to the point where you don't want to get up. My personal take on this is hard to talk about because I don't have the answers to make everything better. Sometimes there are moments where I need to step back from a situation and come back at it later from a different angle.
Other times it's as simple as accepting defeat in one area and putting more time and energy into something that I know I can succeed in. I'm not driven by illusions that I can be anything. This may come off as weird, but I truly don't believe I'm capable of everything. There will always be distinct characteristics I have that others might not have and vice versa. That doesn't make me any better then the person next to me. But it does help ground myself in reality.
Know what you're capable of, set a realistic goal, and work on it. If you fail come back at it in a later date. Move on when you've exhausted every possible resource within and around you. It is okay to admit defeat in one area, learn from it and let that shape new experiences.
Closing Thoughts
It wouldn't be appropriate without trying to tie this all together. I have this theory I'd like to put forth and encourage anyone who might be more knowledgeable than I am in the subject to engage with me in conversation. What if our collective consciousness of reality, the norms of society, and everything that is expected of us plays into our individual normlessness? I see this consistently, people sharing similar feelings of frustration, exhaustion, tired of the mundane, and really life as a blanketed statement. What can we do together to break this cycle, is it breakable?