Lately, I’ve been reflecting on whether or not the collective is more effective than the individual in creating social change. You might be thinking “well duh, the collective; the more we are, the quicker change will come”. Initially, that’s what I thought too and I dismissed my question as being self-explanatory. However, when pondering on it, I changed my mind and decided that the individual holds more power in bringing about social change. “Well, there is strength in numbers” but how effective can that strength in numbers be if there’s a lack of direction, leadership, conviction, and overarching sense of purpose? Unless our inner compasses aren't working, there can’t be any of those. When people do the individual work on themselves, and then come together as a collective, they are unstoppable. But the root remains the individual.
Where Is This Coming From?
A few things brought on my reflection on the power that the individual holds. I always kind of held this position, and generally believed that the untapped power within every one of us is what can truly make things change for the better (very kumbaya I know). However, I came to develop and deepen my perspective and became increasingly convinced that as individuals, we are so much more capable than we think we are. What set my wheels in motion toward this way of thinking was my article Is Fighting The System The Way to Go?. In it, I introduced my concept of Empowered Realism, inspired by different schools of thought such as the Theory of Racelessness, Adlerian psychology, and New Age Spirituality. How you may ask?
Thanks to Skeptical Eliminativism, the Theory of Racelessness gave me the tools to understand how beneficial looking beyond race was. Adlerian psychology (as iterated in The Courage to Be Disliked), especially its take on trauma, helped me realize how valuable personal choice was in shaping my own happiness and destiny. Finally, New Age Spirituality has shaped my perspective on life in general, and it guided me in viewing the world as neither good nor bad but rather as a series of lessons designed for your growth.
At the centre of it all is human agency. Culture isn’t set in stone but rather moulded into whatever we want. It is an exchange; take what you want and leave what you don’t.
By and large, a lot of what informs my way of thinking is rooted in the belief that you are capable of whatever you set your mind to. This general idea is what the schools of thought mentioned above all share. No external forces can tell you what to do, think or say, that is up to you to decide. I believe the same goes for cultural and social movement forward. At the centre of it all is human agency. Culture isn’t set in stone but rather moulded into whatever we want. It is an exchange; take what you want and leave what you don’t. Sure, some social norms and values aren’t so malleable. In that case, it is up to you to adjust your relationship/reactions to them. Meaning, accepting that you may not be able to change them, and instead approach them with understanding and detaching yourself from them (in the case where that norm/value is causing you harm).
This process is self-evident I think. But it is important to highlight it because too often we hand over our power to systems, institutions, or even other people and arbitrary markers such as race/class/gender. Consequently, we believe that we are victims of these systems, institutions, and constructs because we deem them to be inescapable. But we only are victims of these said systems and constructs as long as we allow it. I’ve already iterated this previously, and I might sound like a broken record. But I cannot stress that point enough. Hence why I present to you Empowered Realism. So what is it, exactly?
Empowered Realism
As mentioned above, I introduced this concept two articles ago, in Is Fighting The System The Way to Go?. The initial definition of the Empowered Realist was built off of the concept of the Noble Victim. I won’t go into detail because my other article is dedicated to it, but essentially the Noble Victim feels trapped by historical legacies (such as systems, institutions, and constructs like race/gender/class), whereas the Empowered Realist understands them for what they are, and operates beyond them. The Noble Victim is not a new concept, people such as John McWhorter, Shelby Steele, and Jordan Peterson have very eloquently talked about this archetype. However, the Empowered Realist is something I came up with on my own, and want to take the time to properly define it.
It’s having a well-rounded understanding of the world around you, to better ascertain your role within it, and thus stepping into your power.
Let’s break down the name: Empowered Realism. First, we have “empowered” which speaks to the first central element of the concept: personal agency. As the definition suggests, having a sense of personal agency is firmly believing that you have authority over your actions and circumstances — basically what I’ve been preaching during the first have of this article. In other words, it’s having confidence in your decision-making power, and feeling empowered by it. Second, we have “realism”, which is seeing things for what they are, independently from what you may feel about them. It’s being as objective as possible, to avoid falling prey to any delusion that you can control everything. Rather, the “realism” part serves as an anchor to the “empowered” part; it’s having a well-rounded understanding of the world around you, to better ascertain your role within it, and thus stepping into your power.
So…What Does It Do?
You can think of Empowered Realism as a “budding philosophy” that encourages the development of autonomy and critical thinking. It brings about a healthy detachment from history, systems and institutions, and constructs of race/class/gender, to feel less burdened by them and instead feel empowered by knowing our identity can flourish beyond those terms. It helps breed understanding, compassion, and freedom of speech and thought, thus lessening divisiveness, and encouraging individuality.
Embodying this mindset not only releases any of the historical/institutional/racial burdens that we take on but makes us realize we were never imprisoned by them, to begin with.
For example, processing racial trauma can be quite something to unpack, and should never be dismissed by dissociating from it, in “the name of looking at things objectively”. As arduous as it is, working through that sort of thing is paramount. However, it’s by going/working through it that you realize that that kind of pain and suffering — if we are sticking to that example — doesn’t define you, it doesn’t determine your present or future. You now realize that you are way more than just the terrible injustice and suffering of the past, you now know that such obstacles are surmountable, and you can only grow and be stronger because of it. I use the example of historical grievance to demonstrate that objectivity and personal agency go hand in hand. Objectivity helps put things into perspective and encourages you to take a step back. By looking at your circumstances from a distance, you realize that you weren’t trapped in them, to begin with, and thus can step into your power. What we harp and dwell on the most creates the illusion that our condition is inescapable and inextricable from who we are.
When the fact is when you can distance yourself from it, and truly look at it for what it is, you realize that you have the choice to either fall prey to it or rise above it. This is how practicing Empowered Realism can be the key (or one of many) to change. Embodying this mindset not only releases any of the historical/institutional/racial burdens that we take on but makes us realize we were never imprisoned by them, to begin with.
Final Thoughts…
Empowered Realism is still new, so there will be some adjustments and revisions made as I go, but basically, this is it. My perspective may seem like I’m viewing things from my high horse. My insistence on objectivity and realism may also seem like I am encouraging a cold and clinical perspective of the world. But this is far from a holier-than-thou approach, void of any feeling or emotion. This view encourages and emphasizes experiencing the world around you as you naturally do; that includes all the emotions that are mustered up in the process. However, it implies an additional (forgotten) step; after observing your environment, and before internalizing the feelings and emotions that come with it, engage with it. Pick it apart and decide for yourself what about it is acceptable or not. Take from it what you please and make it your own. It’s about remembering that you don’t need to assume the veracity of what you are told/taught. Most of all, it’s about knowing that there’s always room for questioning, and always there’s space for choice.
FYI
Kishimi, Ichiro & Koga, Fumitake. The Courage to Be Disliked. Simon & Schuster, 2019.
Coelho, Paulo. The Alchemist. HarperCollins, 2014 (Originally published in 1988).
Ruiz, Don Miguel & Mills, Janet. The Four Agreements. Amber-Allen Publishing, 1997.
That would be part of someone’s self-love journey, to (un)learn that someone’s hurtful comments are not in fact true and to discover their own beauty and confidence and tap into that.
That process is very personal, and my theory doesn’t seek to necessarily give a step-by-step, but rather serve as a reminder that we all have a certain light within us. And once we tap into it, a whole new world of possibility opens up.
Thanks for your questions Anand, always love hearing from you :)
How would someone process the trauma of being told they are not beautiful, generally by other females?
Or the trauma of not being able to find a good boyfriend or husband or wife?
How can we increase our physical health, mental health and intelligence to exponetially surge our universe of possibilities (or "efficient frontier of possibilities" as the concept is described in economics)?