I disagree. There are many ways you can "try to be different" but not so many ways to conform. So being non-conformist doesn't make you like everyone else even if everyone is non-conformist with you since you are unlikely to all non-conform to the same things. If that makes sense =\
But more on topic:
I'm unhappy because school is getting so much harder and my parents have such high expectations. It just gets me so stressed out D:
The thing is, if you think being different from the crowd is as shallow as wearing alternate clothing, having an uncommon assortment of interests, and listening to non-mainstream music, then you (not you specifically, you get what I mean) are just like everyone else.
Being truly different is far more fundamental than that, it's more about your mindset and the way you think. I see so many people think they're so different, then all go out on a Saturday night, doing exactly what is expected of a youth. That's just one example. Also, most people who think they're different generally have beliefs and attitudes reflective of the time, usually a result of the media's influence, so they're not really that different to everyone else.
Furthermore, most people who claim/want to be different only try to do it a certain extent; to the point where they are alternate enough to be considered by teenagers as unique and/or interesting, but they don't aim to be fundamentally different enough to the point where they are disliked for being strange/odd/wierd/creepy etc.
If you actually want to be different, it's most likely you're the same as everyone else, because you're thinking is so similar to everyone else's that you don't want it to change. I imagine that the truly different people at times envy the normal people, because of how different and out of whack their thinking really is.
What's also funny is that if I ever tell someone who thinks their different that they're not, they always snap back with "well what makes you think you're so different? You're just like everyone else!". That shows just how common their thinking is, because they assume that I'm actually trying to be, or care about being different.
Edit: LT you're spot on. Conforming and deliberately rebelling against a culture are both reactions to the culture, either way you are being molded in some way by the culture. And whilst most people do get over it at 16, you do still see a lot of 20+s. I always tell my female friends that a guy wearing a top-hat and a vest is the classic sign of a guy trying to be different.
quit pointing fingers at me, this argument was less about homosexuality and more about Teran's narrow minded view of relationships.
s get banned :D Always brighten up my day.