I usually scroll on TikTok to unwind, which is ironic considering I almost always leave the app frustrated by a stranger I’ll never come across again. The most recent cause of my frustration came from the words, “I heard ‘2016 makeup’ is back and I’m so happy because I’m so sick of the clean girl makeup look.” Now, my frustration didn’t particularly come from those words, but it more so stemmed from what I knew I’d see next on the app. The same girl who was “sick of the ‘clean girl’ look,” had just posted a TikTok on her page partaking in the ‘clean girl’ trend. This situation has me thinking: why do we feel so compelled to follow a trend, even when we know we don’t particularly like it?
My answer is simple: we don’t know who we are. Self-identity is a concept that in theory might seem straightforward, but how many of us can really answer the question of “who are you?” without stumbling on our words? Your self-identity can consist of physical factors, personality traits, and personal values. Not knowing who you are can make you feel the need to depend on strangers online to tell you how to look, act, and feel. When it comes to beauty trends on TikTok, one might feel the need to follow the ‘clean girl’ trend because they are not secure with themselves. As a result, they may turn towards following the crowd of social media users to find belonging in the face of uncertainty of who they are. If ‘2016 makeup’ is what you like, have the confidence to stick to it even when everyone on TikTok seems to be doing something else.
Following every beauty trend that gets its monthly spotlight takes away from your own individualism. Who are you really if you try on someone else’s identity every month? Don’t get me wrong, feeling inspired or adventurous to try something new is perfectly normal. However, going from one beauty aesthetic to the next to follow what others are doing can be harmful and leaves no room to find your own sense of style. This is especially true when the change in beauty trends can be so drastically different going from the ‘clean girl’ to the ‘mob wife’ look. The minimalist and maximalist vibes clash dramatically and add to the confusion of what your sense of style really is.
At this point, you’re probably wondering what you can do to find your own personal style and feel secure in your self-identity. Your personal sense of style comes from all the styles you have tried. It’s the one style—or the combination of many styles—that makes you feel the most confident. On the other hand, self-identity is a more abstract concept as it involves evaluating yourself the best you can. If you value individualism and autonomy, or recognize your personality traits to be authentic and assertive, you won’t feel compelled to follow meaningless trends to try to emulate someone else’s identity. At the end of the day, it’s important to know who you are and find confidence in being yourself, even when others are doing something different.