Alright, so I’ve been wanting to jot down some thoughts on this thing I’ve been calling, in my own head mostly, the ‘Ansel Elgort Syndrome’. Now, hold on, it’s not some official medical term or anything, so don’t go looking it up in a doctor’s book. It’s just my way of describing a little something I’ve noticed, and yeah, even tried to ‘practice’ myself a bit, with, uh, mixed results, let me tell ya.
What Kicked Off This Whole Observation
It started a while back. I was watching some movie, can’t even remember which one, probably one of those where he’s all charming and multi-talented. You know, the guy acts, he sings, he DJs, probably makes a mean sourdough starter too. And I thought, wow, how does one person just be all those things, so effortlessly? Or at least, make it look effortless. That’s the key, isn’t it? The effortless part.
So, my ‘practice’ began. I figured, hey, maybe I can cultivate that kind of vibe. Be a bit more… multifaceted. My first brilliant idea? Learn three new ‘cool’ hobbies at once. I picked up an old guitar I had lying around, decided I was going to become a whiz at photography, and, for some reason, thought learning to juggle would add to the mystique. Spoiler: it did not.
The guitar gathered more dust, my photos were mostly blurry shots of my thumb, and the juggling? Let’s just say my cat was not amused by the constant barrage of dropped oranges. It was less ‘effortlessly cool’ and more ‘effortfully chaotic’. I felt like a walking, talking Pinterest fail.
Then Life Threw a Curveball, As It Does
This whole thing reminds me of a phase I went through a few years ago, totally unrelated to Ansel Elgort, but same kind of energy. I’d just switched jobs, remember? Moved from that soul-crushing corporate gig to trying my hand at freelance writing. Thought I’d be my own boss, set my own hours, live the dream. The reality was me, in my pajamas at 2 PM, trying to figure out how to file taxes as a freelancer while simultaneously attempting to write a ‘viral’ article about, I think it was, the socio-economic impact of artisan toast. Seriously.
- I told myself I’d learn advanced SEO.
- And master video editing for ‘content diversification’.
- Plus, become a guru on five different social media platforms.
Guess how that turned out? Overwhelmed and underpaid. It’s like my brain just isn’t wired for that kind of scattered approach. I ended up just focusing on writing, the one thing I was actually decent at, and things slowly got better. Funny how that works.
Back to This “Syndrome” and My So-Called Practice
So, circling back to the ‘Ansel Elgort Syndrome’. After my initial failed attempts at becoming a renaissance man overnight, I started to just observe it more. I’d see kids, younger people mostly, trying so hard to project this image of being good at everything, always looking cool, always having the witty comeback. And often, it just felt a bit… performative. Like they were wearing a costume that didn’t quite fit.
My ‘practice’ then shifted from trying to be it, to trying to understand it. Why the pressure? Is it social media? Is it just a phase of life? I don’t have all the answers, man. But I did realize something for myself. Trying to be someone else, or some idealized version of ‘cool’, is exhausting. Authenticity actually feels a lot better. Shocker, I know.
So, What’s the Big Deal Then?
At the end of the day, this whole ‘Ansel Elgort Syndrome’ is just a label I made up for a pattern I noticed. It’s not a critique of Ansel Elgort himself, the guy’s talented, good for him. It’s more a reflection on our own tendencies, or at least mine, to sometimes chase an image instead of just, you know, being.
My ‘practice’ with it taught me that it’s okay to be good at one or two things. It’s okay to be awkward sometimes. It’s okay to not have it all figured out. Maybe the real ‘effortless cool’ comes from just being comfortable in your own skin, blurry photos, dropped oranges, and all. Just a thought I wanted to share. What do you guys think?
