I remember a time in my life where I thought it was "cool" to be a follower. Doing exactly what everyone else did fulfilled me in a sense, because it protected me from my fear of becoming an outcast. I craved acceptance. I didn't go to the gym because "most of my friends who have girlfriends don't do it". I gave myself a weed addiction because that's what all the cool kids and bad b*tches were doing. I binge watched Netflix series not because I truly enjoyed them, but because this girl I like watched it or all my friends watched it, and "I won't be a lame if I'm not the only one who didn't watch it all in one night".

Only in the past year have I realized that this "follower" mentality is exactly what is going to keep me from achieving any sort of fulfillment in life. Because unfortunately, people aren't unique; they all do the same things, eat the same type of food, consume the same content, and ultimately make the same excuses as to why they can't achieve a certain 'goal' of theirs. And why should they be unique? Without all these clones walking around like zombies doing the same things as each other, our capitalistic society would not be able to function. Quite frankly, I'm truly grateful that I'm able to find and be a part of communities like this one. I feel privileged because I'm in this wonderful minority, and I no longer crave acceptance from 'the rest', because now I know that 'the rest' really don't have much going for themselves: no one I grew up with shares many red pill beliefs, no one I know has been able to figure out the idea that the true key to anything you want in life is sacrifice and consistency. These ideals allow for us to escape the matrix and have an advantage over the rest.

Sacrificing validation, paired with showing up to whatever task that needs completion on a consistent basis in order to achieve your goal, even when you DON'T feel like it, is what WILL separate you from the rest. That means: saying no to the weekly night out, or to the dessert menu at a birthday dinner, or saying no to the friends who you used to smoke weed with until they stop asking.

Don't work yourself into the ground though, everyone needs the occasional night away from the grind. The day off from the gym every couple weeks for deloading and recovery purposes is necessary. But instead of going out every weekend, go out once a month. Stop trying to keep up with societal norms in the name of avoiding alienation. Fall in love with the grind and you won't ever need anyone's validation because that will automatically come once the results of your hard work arrive.