Male, and more precisely, zoomer male intrasexual competition is shaming every act of taking oneself seriously, shaming performativeness, etc. It’s very subtle, being nonchalant and effortless is sort of the peak virtue of our gen, but unfortunately the things it takes to get what you want are often not effortless Being “performative”, “larping”, whatever you may call it has many benefits and one of the biggest is buy-in. You play the character of the type of person you want to be, you can mould your life and self into that vision. Even if it’s just for show at the start, it becomes real after some time There is certainly a reverse slightly narcissistic self serving ego driven aspect of showing off with these sorts of things, but a young man’s nature is to show off to the world and seek recognition, be someone triumphant, create a story of himself In the modern day there aren’t many ways to do this, but physical fitness and financial achievement are certainly a way to do so. It may pail in comparison to the war heroism of our ancestors, but it’s kind of all we have And I think it’s a lot better than not trying. I am tired of this gen’s bitterness towards trying