Having an Original Thought By Kayla Doria Ward

Sep 12, 2026by Team Milk Room

The trend of 2016 nostalgia and “cringe” has already skyrocketed and crashed in the trend cycle in the past months. But why do we keep reverting to decades-old trends? You may recall that a few summers ago, it was a G-Eazy “Tumblr Girls” summer.

If you had a phone or even a tablet from 2011-2018, you’ll remember the bright rainbow hair, “Songs In Real Life” YouTube videos, and #swag epidemic. Even if they were “trends” they still felt full of soul and creativity.

So, why aren’t modern trends full of soul and color. We now see monotone colors, beige palettes, or neutral tones flooding each seasons trends. Sure, whimsy has sprinkled some color into our wardrobes or surroundings. But the minimal, clean girl aestheic is still alive and well.

The past months, even years, I’ve struggled to find an original thought or idea trending. Polka dots have been recycled from the 20s through the 50s. Adidas have always had a staple in wardrobes from Superstar to Samba.

My goal by the end of this article is to help you find yourself again. Not find another trend. By describing why “unique”or niche trends are STILL trends. Most importantly, how to find things you actually enjoy or like.

You Can’t Actually Have An Original Thought

Intertextuality is the way a text's meaning is shaped, influenced, or altered by other texts. Even the oldest of texts, such as the Declaration of Independence, weren’t original. Thomas Jefferson had editors and influences on what to write into the text.

Even if you think you’ve just made a new food or color, everything is still derived from something. So instead of trying to have an original idea, we must cultivate those thoughts for a fuller, richer understanding of the current social climate.

Don’t misconstrue this as not wanting to ever have an original or unique thought again! It’s also ok if you can’t even start to think of something new. This disconnect is due to that damn phone! Constantly feeding your brain info from social media or quick clips of dopamine eliminates the patience to sit and think for yourself.

When scrolling any social media platform, you are sucked into a collective thought. Whether it be looking at comments under a video or basing an opinion off the video itself. This collective thinking shifts to a collective identity. Gym-maxxing, relax-maxxing, dance-maxxing. They all contradict each other but somehow can exist on one persons algortim/feed.

Agreeing or making comments under a video can also lead to a sense of validation. A flood of support behind your idea makes it easier for others to conform to that same viewpoint, making a collective identity bewhind that one school of thought.

But this mindset doesn’t just occur on social platforms. This can happen in your day to day life. Say you’re in line at a coffee shop with a group of friends. Everyone is ordering matcha but you’ve never had any urge to try it before. Now everyone is urging you to try it instead of getting coffee. Then you see a table near you with matcha as well. Doesn’t that sound good now? Everyones ordering it, maybe you should too! This is a very soft example of Groupthink, but harsher examples can become dangerous in group settings.

Groupthink is the enemy of critical thinking, creativity, and progress. It is crucial to find a balance between collective and individual identity. The key to doing so lies in self reflection and critical thinking. A great way to start this process is consuming physical or digital media without pressure. Instead of looking up a movie on letterboxd, go and see it! Take some hours or days after to decide if YOU liked it. Not flock to comments and reviews to validate feelings or argue against them.

Why 2016 Wasn’t Simpler

With 2016 coming back into trend, most people are yearning for how simple and free that time period felt. Through overconsmption of music and media from that year, it is easy to believe this narrative. I myself think back to how fun that time period seemed. But I realize I was only 10 at the time. Life in general seemed simple and fun!

Trends such as ombre hair, Kylie lip kits or Instagram makeup, bomber jackers, ripped jeans, and “cringe” lip-sync videos were at it’s peak. Everyone seemed to be putting themselves out there. YouTubers like LaurDIY, Wengie, PewDewPie, and Team10/Jake Paul were rising to the top of the charts.

While content back then felt more genuine and fun, did we forget about the cult like following surrounding these “og influencers”? Jake Paul and Logan Paul quite literally made money off fanbases choosing a side, Jake Paulers or Logang.

The trick of 2016 was getting in early to a niche. If you could gather enough shock factor off personality on a platform like Musical.ly or Youtube, you were grandfathered in. The start of a new wave. The same formula was used in 2020 with TikTok and The Hype House.

So instead of trying to pull from a decade or year of nostalgia, how do you truly reclaim your self identity?

What Do You Like?

You need to sit in a silent room and declutter your brain, then ask yourself a very important question. One posed by the supreme leader Brittany Broski “My question for all of you today is, what do you like, and if you don't know how to answer that question, I recommend you take a break from social media. I want you to sit with yourself and I want you to think who am I and what do I like. Who am I might be too daunting of a question. Throw that one out. What did I like when I was little? What did I gravitate towards? What did I play with? What were some of my favorite toys, movies, TV shows?”

Use your answers to start rebuilding your habits and daily routine. Did you watch cartoons in the mornings before going to school? Why not get up early and watch some before university or work? You don’t need to grow out of things your inner child looked forward to each day.

This pressure of perfection and progress has been put into young creatives minds recently. A hobby can’t be for fun anymore, it must become monetized and showcased for the world. But why? The mindset of overworking and always being productive is extremely harmful. Allow yourself to sit and doodle stupid shapes with silly faces. Who cares if you still have to make dinner? Allow yourself unproductive joy each day.

I digress, but building yourself up with interests and style that is uniquely yours is a beautiful thing. This won’t just draw people to you but it also pushes you to stand out. I’ve tried to pick a handful of helpful media I’ve consumed in the past months to help me build my true self. With minimal influence and creators who actually care.

Language

Mina Le is an incredible speaker and researcher when it comes to thoughtful, meaningful video essays. One that is so important in escaping the maxxing and incel bubble is language. The way you carry yourself in a conversation or interaction is very much reflective of your inner self.

In Le’s “can we all stop speaking like incels” video essay, she highlights Poe’s Law, which suggests that any sarcastic expression of extreme views could be mistaken for a sincere expression of those views, and vice versa. When communicating it is important to have a vast vocabulary and not rely on trending slang. When picking up specific words for actions, feelings, or situations you suddenly find completing a thought takes little to no energy.

Style

Personally, style can say so much about a person. If someone is wearing a piece I can’t take my eyes off of, nine times out of ten I will go up and make conversation about that piece. This is not to say you need to wear a crazy statement piece everytime you go out. But by playing with things such as color, patterns, size, or even hair style, you can elevate the simplest of outfits.

Maiazine’s discusses a step by step formula on how to effortlessly achieve this in her “finding your style isn’t hard. I made a formula for you”. There is no effective way to sum up her 11 step formula, so I urge you to watch the video in its entirety.

Habits

My goat, Chon Digital, has so many fun video essays crtiticing modern culture. But in his “don’t be a consumerist, be an old man” he gives the top 10 of the best boomer advice. Simple habits from a “simplier time”. To get into the nitty-gritty you can watch his video in its entirety as well, but here are top 10 at face value.

Dress to impress
Phone bad
Talk to strangers
Read a book
Play outside
Be wary of technology
Respect your elders (recognize that they are flawed but have valuable life lessons to share)
Protect your hearing
Have weird hobbies
Keep having fun

Closing Thoughts

Recounting trends of the past are always enjoyable because nostalgia is a powerful tool. Look at Freaky Friday 2 and every other useless remake in the past decade. But a long lasting tool is to self reflect and find what makes you feel full. Being yourself shouldn’t feel scary or daunting. Taking little steps to reclaim your thoughts and ideas will help you break free of scroll-maxxing twin! But seriously, go read a book and learn a new word so you can stop hearing “kinda chic” in every marketing ad.

Sources

Anderson,M. (2022, February). Is it possible to have an original thought? The Asbury Collegian. https://www.theasburycollegian.com/2022/02/is-it-possible-to-have-an-original-thought/

Creativity Club. 2024,October 26th. The death of individuality: Is the world moving towards collective identity? Medium. https://medium.com/@creativityclub/the-death-of-individuality-is-the-world-moving-towards-collective-identity-596b14f22b19

BroskiReport. 2024, September 17th. Love Island & Michelangelo. YouTube.

https://youtu.be/7q5-cVt6w7o?si=LjPr87ptOD1XnKwy

Mina Le. 2026, August 26th. can we all stop speaking like incels? YouTube.

https://youtu.be/h8gTjDXbItQ?si=21pJdG4zsxclbz0r

Maiazine. 2025, February 16th. "finding your style" isn't hard. i made a formula for you. YouTube.

https://youtu.be/9xyNfhEfJKs?si=GlkfD_7Gc71iJzs2

Chon Digital. 2026, July 25th. don’t be a consumerist, be an old man. YouTube.

https://youtu.be/fushXlMJKFg?si=1UqiWGsUHeykjGb-