Should We All Be Sociopaths?
Emotional detachment is a new life hack
Last week, I finished Sociopath by Patric Gange and I can't shut up about it. A memoir that reads like a thriller and sucks you in with the first delicious line. If you read it, you'll be obsessed (and will have to DM me so we can chat about it đđťââď¸). The biggest thing that stuck out to me? How many people in Gange's life tell her they wish they could be sociopaths. That they'd get so much more done if they were emotionless. (which fair, but also, what?!).
Then, just a few days later, New York Magazine published a piece on the lionization of Patrick Bateman. You've likely seen the videos on TikTok and Instagram â people creating their "American Psycho" morning routine. Now, does Bateman have beautiful glowy skin? Yes. Is Bateman a serial killer? Also Yes. The thing people seem to miss? The two are not mutually exclusive (but if they were, I'd kill people⌠just kidding!).
The fetishization of sociopathy/psychopathy might seem extreme but our culture has been slowly shifting away from authenticity and toward emotional detachment for a while. Emotionless? Hot. Emotional? Red Flag.
Even marketing is leaning away from the darling word "authenticity" and turning towards "surrealism." Easy, breezy, beautiful fake worlds that can fit neatly into our easy, breezy, beautiful fake lives. Expect more brands to go all in on world-buildingâcreating escapist universes that feel more seductive than real life (AAA24 is already ahead of the game with this).
In a nutshell, unreal is trendy (why else do you think filler and botox is booming?). We no longer want to exist within the bounds of reality. And in a world where everything feels possible, weâll gladly pay for the fantasy.
(P.S. Whatâs your American Psycho morning routine?)
You Didn't Hear This From Me But...
Sinners is a vampire romp where, "Michael B Jordon plays one twin hotter than the other." (IYKYK)
Brands on social are feeling very meh. Unless you're them, them, or them please do something else. Word on the street is the inbox is the next big thing. If youâre in advertising, take my advice, shift your energy there.
Stolen Focus is rewiring my brain.
I know Iâm late to the party, but Bryan Johnsonâs Donât Die documentary on Netflix? It's good. Yes, he does give a whisper of cult-leader-energy, but the core idea is worth chewing on: optimizing not just how long we live for, but the quality of those years. Believe it or not, it's actually quite a radical mindset, with doctors only just catching up.
Lena Dunham has a Substack and the world is healing. Sheâs wise, vulnerable, and deeply misunderstood â with not one, but two of the best podcasts out there. And no, you wonât change my mind on any of this.
Got any gossip? Send it my way.