What's in a Cliché
maybe everyone likes things for a reason
As I sat down to write a post about the best wellness / beauty products and treatments I’ve tried this year, my fingers began to type something different. This is the result. I’ll publish the aforementioned post next week instead. Happy Holidays!
One of the main reasons I find it difficult to exist in the wellness industry is the sheer quantity of clichés that we’re forced to come into contact with. To give you a seasonally-appropriate metaphor, if wellness (as a category, industry, concept, etc.) was a Christmas tree, the clichéd truisms would be its ornaments, dangling limply from the branches. They’d be cheap plastic and glittery as hell, too.
Listen to your body. Self-care isn’t selfish. It’s all about balance. Everything in moderation.
Of course, clichés are industry-agnostic. Actually, they exceed any sort of economical categorization (apologies, my inner capitalist got too excited there). Clichés exist beyond the confines of language; clichés are concepts, design choices, characters, and relationships — you get it — all burdened by overuse to the point of banality. Clichés are but a few branches away on the family tree from its cousins Stereotype, Proverb, Trope, and Meme. Thanksgiving dinner must be a riot.
As I was attempting to diversify my diction, I decided to prod my trusty Thesaurus, C***GPT, for a bit more color on the term.
ChatGPT needs to spend a little more time on the internet, because it missed a major category: content.
The Seasonality of Triteness
The clichés feel louder than usual during this holiday haze, and I’ve been trying to figure out why. Is it the anxiety that underlies so many people’s holiday experiences? The obsession with self-improvement and optimization? Is it the persistent stench of “new year, new me” that continues to waft through our algorithms?
Most of the media I consume during this time of year is overdone and/or unoriginal. We could easily chalk it up to tradition and sentimentality, but easy-to-replicate and proven-to-perform feel more likely. If you’re not familiar with this particular breed of predictably trite end-of-year content, allow me to break them down into two subcategories: the industrial and the ethereal.
Industrial: trend forecasts, year-in-review analytics, goal-setting in public. Pretty much anything that has a faint stench of tech bro growth hacker.
Ethereal: Ins and Outs lists based on “vibes,” intention-setting in public, recipes for being — as
so astutely pointed out — unrecognizable in the new year.Here’s the thing: I’m not above any of these. I recognize the hyper-criticality in my tone, but it might just be the sixth love language, because I feel the complete opposite. I love these wrap-up lists. In fact, I can hear myself actively think “wow, that’s one of those stereotypical year-end posts…” and then proceed to click. Don’t forget, I’m pro-gift guide over here.
The Predictability Problem
My problem with clichés isn’t their mere existence, it’s the fact that most of them are, in fact, true. The fact that I’m supposed to acknowledge their predictability and then allow them to seep into my conscious brain at a high enough dose that they reach utility is beyond me. That would look like every time someone tells me to trust my gut, I *actually* have to internalize it?
Triteness has historically made me queasy. I used to viscerally react upon hearing the word “authentic.” In fact, I’m actually clenching my entire body while writing this. But here’s where it gets crazy — these clichés are clichés for a reason.
I firmly believe in listening to my body. That rest is productive and mindfulness is essential. Ins and Outs lists are fun to read because our brains are obsessed with trying to make sense of the world through categorizing information (and we’re nosy). We repeat the same predictable phrases, activities, words of wisdom, and pieces of advice over and over again until they lose their gravitas, but that’s only because they were worth repeating in the first place. Lattes are beautiful and I’d actually argue that more of them need to be Instagrammed. Take that, ChatGPT.
I’m not going to shout “reclaim the cliché” from the rooftops. I simply don’t have the bandwidth for that. Instead, allow me to reflect on some of my personal favorites from all four aforementioned categories.
Face masks
The pendulum swung back and forth on face masks real quick. They started as a stereotypical signifier of self-care and then became the butt of the subsequent “self-care” joke.
I get it, you have beef with the term “self-care” but leave face masks out of it. They didn’t do anything to hurt you! If anything, they make you feel rich, pampered, and hopefully exfoliated. Live a little.
“Rest is productive”
If I was to get a pillow with a corny phrase needlepointed on it, this would be it. (Side note: never, ever buy me a pillow with a phrase on it. Not even as a joke.) I’m a recovering workaholic who relapses on a monthly basis, so this one never gets old. Real talk: I have an epiphany every single time I hear it, as if it was the first time it’s come across my desk.
YOLO
Bring YOLO back in 2025! I mean it! (See if nothing matters, then nothing matters for additional reference.)
Avocado Toast
I find it so funny that Boomers weaponized avocado toast against millennials as some sort of “those kids spend their money in stupid ways” guilt trip tactic. Shut uppppp. Avocado toast on a freshly toasted slice of sourdough with olive oil, lemon, and flaky salt. I’d rather have that than a mortgage. (I’ll curse those words some day.)
Journaling, Specifically Gratitude Journaling
If you poo-poo gratitude 1) I get it but 2) you’re a brat (derogatory).
I think the biggest hurdle people have, myself included, are the obligatory inclusions. You can actually skip past Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and every family member you love and it won’t jinx them. Try something creative like the smell of cookies in the oven or the 10-second eye contact friendship you had with the stranger on the subway that day.
Getting a “Little Treat”
Apparently this is a Capital E Era we can find ourselves in. I don’t buy it. What I do buy is little treats. (Ooof, not my best.) I believe this indicates a burnt out dopamine receptor which is something I will have to address ... next year.
Some recent little treats of mine have include but are not limited to: a $10 matcha latte, putting on a record and eating my lunch without any screens, a new flavor of tea, working from a hotel lobby (instead of FH), out of season blueberries
Top Cliché Hits:
“everything happens for a reason”
meditation
retail therapy
actual therapy
sunset pics
“you are what you eat”
The Office
going for a walk
kale salad
the farmer’s market
lighting a candle
vision boards
“this too shall pass”
positive affirmations
Pilates
lo-fi beats
shelfies
“it’s about the journey, not the destination”
I welcome any and all clichés you believe are worthy of their reputation. :)
Loved this and love a cliche! But always welcome a detangling and analysis of them because words need to have *meaning*. On that note, LOATHE "authentic."
"Avocado toast on a freshly toasted slice of sourdough with olive oil, lemon, and flaky salt. I’d rather have that than a mortgage." - lol I'm sorry what do you want us to eat? Porridge? What is an option that is that much less expensive that I'll finally be able to save for a down payment? Please advise.
Love this so much and strongly agree. 🫶