Virtual Social Identity and The “Blase attitude” post #5

Virtual social identity is the category we place people when we meet them based on appearances.    Our actions with strangers are so driven by our perception on people that we tend to forget that at the end of the day we are all equal.  In big cities such as NY and many others around the world, we adopt the “blasé attitude” in order to protect our emotions and avoid becoming overwhelmed by the fast paste life around us.  But when is this “blasé attitude” not so “blasé”?  Let’s suppose you are rushing to school or work and on your way you encounter, what looks like an “ordinary” person, perhaps with worn down clothes, lying on the sidewalk asking for help. Would you automatically assume this is a homeless person and ignore him/her and go on about your day? I would guess most of us would probably adopt this “blasé attitude” and ignore this person who we have already categorized or labeled as “homeless”.

Consider the same scenario, this time however, with a suited up man who looks like he could very well be a CEO or some top executive, would you pass him by and ignore him? My guess would be perhaps not.  How much of our actions are driven by appearances?  Are we willing to help strangers on the street based on what they look like and who we think they are?  Unfortunately, most of the time and most of us do.   Is it fair? What if this happened to you? Would you want help from others even if you didn’t look like a CEO of a top company?

I came across this very interesting video that shows the scenario I just described only that I don’t agree on that one simple action will change the world, it’s not enough.  We need to start by educating ourselves and children on equality, only when we learn this concept will the world be a better place.

Post #4 Racism

Came across this video on “Up worthy” and found it very interesting.  It pretty much sums up today’s class discussion about race.  It is so amazing to realize that even among minorities, we have internalized racism and to certain extend, some of us are racist and don’t even realize it.   We assume certain ethnic groups belong in certain fields and some of us even look down on people of our own race and even nationality for having a darker complexion.

Take a look at the video, not only will you enjoy it and perhaps laugh a little, but it will also make you think about the way we have internalized racism.

Blog #3 The American Dream and Social Control

 

I came across this interesting commercial that made me anxious but it also made me think a lot about my position in society and the effect of social media on the individuals perspectives.  After watching I began to question myself.  Am I working as hard as I should to reach the American Dream? But what is the American Dream? From what I saw in the commercial, a big house with a pool, a beautiful family and a dog, a nice car and obviously lots of money and status compose the “American Dream”.

Why does it sound so simple when the man on the screen talks about success?  Success should be easy to accomplish when the “formula” is given to you… “You work hard, you create your own luck and you believe everything is possible” well, I’ve been working hard since I can recall, I like to think that I create my own luck by being positive and I believe everything is possible, oh wait! No, I have my doubts about everything being possible because as hard as I work and as much as I like to think everything is possible I yet have not created the luck of achieving the American dream!!  Enjoy the video!

Post #2 Symbolic Interactionism And gender Inequality

We discussed in class today that “Symbolic interactionism” is how gender differences are reinforced and institutionalized through the process of “socialization”

When searching the word “socialization”, the definition found was as follows: “a continuing process whereby an individual acquires a personal identity and learns the norms, values, behavior, and social skills appropriate to his/her social position”.

What stands out to me in this definition is the word “appropriate”, how do we define what exactly is appropriate today? What would happen if what we accept as gender roles, switched over night?  Would it not look “normal” if women behaved like men and men like women?

In my opinion, the media plays a huge role in how we behave and what we (society) view as values and norms.

What if things were the opposite of what we know today? Attached is a video of switched gender roles.  What is your opinion on this video?

http://youtu.be/V4UWxlVvT1A

Blog #1Comparing Social Marketing To Religion

According to Durkheim, religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to say, things set apart and forbidden beliefs and practices when unite into one single moral community called, a church, all those who adhere to them.

I will borrow Durkheim’s description of religion to describe Network Marketing or “social Marketing” as it is now known by.  In this case however, the beliefs and practices can either make you or badly break you in so many levels.  Their belief is that as an individual, you can achieve all your life- long dreams and goals with one main tool, your social network.  The individual feels part of something bigger, part of a sub community that shares the same principles and objectives, which is financial freedom.   Their system is designed to ensure that each individual feels a sense of belonging, therefore creating a moral attachment to the type of work she/he will be performing.   With this strategy they believe that alienation is avoided.

The most interesting thing about social marketing is what I call “breaking you to make you”, a training system they have put in place to make sure certain facts are clear to the individuals once part of this business.   The first one is to make sure that you recognize that YOU belong to the working class, but don’t panic there is class mobility in America!  The second is to point out that YOU are a failure for not having yet been able to achieve something we call “The American Dream”.  However, as an individual you now have the power to change that, become a successful entrepreneur and achieve the life you have always dreamed of.  With the use of personal development tools, this dream is sold hard, mainly to those who are making ends meet and unfortunately it’s often bought.

Individuals with deep debts and financial struggle are the main target for these types of businesses because their vulnerability and need of additional income is recognize.  The act of joining these companies is instrumental at first for these individuals, but later becomes an affective action when they grow attached to the idea of eventually achieving financial freedom to a point of losing sleep over this dream.

The hardest part is waking up and realizing you have been living in a nightmare disguised as a dream.  When you realize that ironically, you have spent more money than you had, still trying to make ends meet.  You are only left with the certainty that you have made the rich richer and once more you are just the “working class” the “proletariat” in this chain.

In order for anyone to have success in network marketing or social marketing, a capital is needed because you will be investing in “your own business” which by the way is not yours! Also, you will need a very large network of warm market (friends and family) and cold market (strangers) and don’t forget extra time to dedicate to your business however time is very scarce in America.   Also, don’t forget that you need to commit to work your network marketing business for at least 10 years to really see some success… Good luck with that!

To have an idea of the mind set you need to establish to be able to succeed in this capitalist society take a look at this interview with Robert Kiyosaki on Oprah.  Attached is the link please share your thoughts, I would love to know what you think!!