I am sick of people not having their own personalities and not possessing the ability to stand up for themselves and make their own choices.

This is a recurring issue throughout our school and throughout society as a whole. In my grade, this particularly stands out as a problem in groups of girls. The sad truth is that these girls have no true friends because all they do is talk about each other when they are not around.

I pity them because they don’t have anybody that they can trust and talk to in times of need. These people are so dependent on each other for acceptance and how to dress, act, and exist. Independence is so crucial in high school because soon we will all be going our separate ways. But what are these people going to do when they don’t have someone to follow and worship? How will they act when they don’t have anyone to copy?  How will they know their true personalities if they’ve based them off of other people for their entire lives?

Followers blame all of their issues on other people. They will do anything to make themselves look better to the person that they “feed” off of. Personally, I do not believe in peer pressure. Throughout my school career, I’ve always been taught about peer pressure and the dangers of it. But it wasn’t until recently that I realized that some people just use peer pressure as an excuse to escape their responsibilities and consequences. If you say “I was being peer pressured!” people will automatically pity you and most likely let you off the hook.

I believe that if you don’t want to do something, no one can make you do it. If you don’t want to drink, you don’t have to. If you don’t want to do drugs, don’t. Unless somebody is threatening you or putting your life in danger, you can make your own decision to walk away.

Followers are too dependent on others to make up aspects of their personalities. If you’re a follower, you run the risk of never being your own individual person, which is crucial. You don’t need to know exactly who you’re going to be for the rest of your life when you’re young, but don’t spend your young adult years trying to be someone that you’re not.