In a society dominated by micro-trends and endless consumerism, we have lost the true value of originality. If we’re always blindly following the algorithm telling us what’s in and what’s out, how are we going to preserve the meaning of truly being yourself?
2025 saw the rise and fall of countless trends, each resulting in mass hyperfixation on oddly specific niches. One of the biggest trends last year was Dubai chocolate, though it became popular back in 2024, it still manages to stay relevant today. With influencers on every platform raving about the new way to eat Dubai chocolate, brands began to take advantage of this trend realizing the potential profits behind it.
Eating Dubai chocolate in its original form was no longer satisfying— brands began putting it on everything. Dubai chocolate strawberries, Dubai chocolate matcha, and even Dubai chocolate Labubus. Even now in 2026, Starbucks just released a whole line of Dubai chocolate and pistachio inspired drinks.
With constant competition from brands, every industry began to be dominated by one eccentric trend. This wasn’t a new phenomenon, but rather a pattern. The rapidly changing nature of trends forces the global industry to evolve and adapt to stay on top of the latest obsessions. Big companies realized that the key to maintain relevancy is following trends, transforming it into a common tool to boost sales and engagement.
Following trends has an underlying implication: since social media is always telling us what to like or dislike, we never have to form our own personal thoughts. We have become lazy, always going with the popular opinion rather than taking the time to be real. Trends are eliminating the hopes for sincerity.
Being yourself has become an afterthought; liking something just because you like it is no longer enough. People now crave public validation as they feel safer in large numbers. If everyone likes the same thing, then it eliminates the possibility of standing out and being weird.
Trends collapse just as quickly as they begin, making them impossible to keep up with. Once a trend dies, followers immediately jump to the next new thing. What was wanted by everyone a week ago now becomes forgotten, discarded in the mountain of dead trends that lost their popularity. This sequence is not only costly, but exhausting. People waste all their money on something that’s never going to last while spending all their time trying to guess what’s next. In the end, nothing is gained. This is an unsustainable practice— for both our wallets and our consciousness’.
Following trends is always going to be unfulfilling as the trend will change before you know it, leading to an insatiable cycle of wanting more. As we continue to allow trends to dictate our lives, we are losing the ability to be genuine to ourselves. Conforming to public ideals results in the death of authenticity, stripping our world of uniqueness.
