Good morning, Thursday. I do believe this government shutdown has me shut down. I'm having a hard time finding inspiration right now and hoping putting it down for all of you to see will spark something within.
It's true that I've been WFH quite a bit lately, leading to a self imposed hibernation as winter takes hold. I've literally been waking up, working out, and then coming back home to work all day, not leaving the house unless I need to walk the dog. And inevitably, I have CNN blasting all day long while I do this. A very bad idea. For obvious reasons. Depressing.
Like so many, I re-found my voice when social media was born. I was a lifelong writer, then stopped for many years to pursue other things, then found my way back to writing leading to this blog and gratefully, professional writing assignments. We know that the playing field has been crowded for a minute in terms of bloggers/vloggers/tweeters. But I think we've reached absolute fever pitch and it's causing me to want to just be quiet. And I wish more people would be to. As in, please shut up.
I'm tired of brands taking a stand. Truly. I'm tired of tweets and retweets and hashtags. I'm tired of joining the conversation. I'm tired of being told what to buy, what to wear, and how to wear it. Look- I'm guilty of doing all of these things, and I love sharing my ideas and inspirations and thoughts with all of you. But I feel like this sea of dissent is starting to reach tsunami status. And it's taking me down. Or trying to anyway.
The Gillette commercial is a perfect example. People hate it. People love it. But why on Earth do we care about it? We're in pretty bad shape if we are looking for brands like Gillette to change the way men behave. I'm so so tired of this trend. Of brands trying to connect with new audiences by taking a stand. I like brands that take a stand, mind you. But I have always felt they should do so only when it makes sense for them to do so. Like Nike. Like Patagonia. And I loved what Dove did. But this? Meh. If they had real men talking honestly about men that would have been better. Or put your money where your (supposed) heart is and host discussions about how to create change in the world. Or better yet, just sell razors. And worry more that men are not shaving as much as they used to. Because that should be your cause. These truly are desperate times- I get it. But do they call for desperate measures? It sure seems like it. What is a brand's true intention when doing something like this?
I think my Gen X cynicism is really coming through lately. We hated brands that were so obviously trying to market to us. We didn't care if they took a stand. And as millennials become full fledged adults, maybe they'll become cynics too. I can only hope the generation behind them is as cynical as everyone says they are. Because maybe all of this grand "standing" will stop. And I've worked in advertising my whole life so I'm aware these are dicey waters. Advertising at its best is of course a reflection of the times, but these times are completely unprecedented and not sure words should speak louder than action. It's action time. That's my thought. Don't wait for a brand to tell you how to act. Be the change. Enough said. And before you jump down my throat- I support positive change in the world. From the way men behave to the way women behave to the way people behave. I'm just not a big fan of how it's playing on prime time. Thing is, we've been told our voices need to be heard. But now it's all just screaming. Nonstop screaming.
The collective anger is palpable and as an empathic kind of person, I'm feeling depleted. Because sometimes you just want to buy a razor without a big old message. And you expect your government to make you feel safe and protected and not shut down for weeks on end. Today I'm having lunch with a friend and hopefully having a laugh or two. I really need to step away from my apartment and my television. Hopefully I'll get some much needed respite from all the doom and gloom and gather some inspiration to help bring back Maven's regularly scheduled programming. Also when did it become super ok to be a sheep? To be told what to eat, what to wear, who to be? Rinse. Repeat. Enough.
They say silence is deadly. But a little quiet wouldn't hurt would it? Maybe all this noise is deadlier than silence. It's all just a bit too much.
Cause that's what's up this what's going on kind of Thursday in the 718. Yours, in shut downs, break downs, and meltdowns. XO