Beware of Dupes
Through grade school I was legitimately afraid of dogs. Big dogs, small dogs, all dogs!
I didn’t care how domesticated a dog appeared, or how friendly their owner said they were. I was going to keep my distance and avoid eye contact.
So naturally, when I was out roaming the neighborhoods I paid attention to the “Beware of Dog” signs. At 7 years old, my knowledge of the houses with Beware of Dog signs rivaled that of a Black Cab driver's knowledge of the streets of London.
As my knowledge grew I became much more efficient in my ability to get from point A to B while avoiding any and all potential encounters with the dogs associated with these signs.
Looking back I was probably a little extreme, but this was my strategic approach for heeding the signs advice.
If the signs had merely said “Be Aware” of Dog I might’ve moved a little differently, but they didn’t. They said Beware!
“Be Aware” just means to have knowledge of something. Someone might tell you to “be aware that there is a no open toed shoe policy when touring the facility” or “be aware that kids eat free on Tuesdays”. They’re indicating that this is information they think you should know.
Beware, on the other hand specifically means to be alert to danger. They’re indicating that you should be cautious about a potential threat.
I provide this context, because when I say “Beware of Dupes” I mean just that.
In my opinion, Dupe Culture is a serious threat to human flourishing.
Just in case you aren’t familiar with the term “Dupe”, I’m going to define a dupe as,
“anything that was done or created with the intent to appear to be something that it is not.”
It’s never been easier to fake it.
With AI at our disposal we can appear to be almost anything we want to.
What to appear to be a futuristic artist? AI can help with that
What to appear to be a technically detailed writer? AI can help with that
What to appear to be a pithy thought leader? AI can help with that
What to appear to be a savvy coder? AI can help with that
I’m not here to bash AI, I’m all for it. I just want to make a point of how easy it is to appear to be someone or something you’re not.
And therein lies the danger.
The moment we start directing any of our energy towards appearing to be anything other than ourselves we are no longer flourishing.
Flourishing is a deeply personal phenomenon that can only be experienced while one is authentically existing in that state.
You can’t fake flourishing and you certainly can’t fake your way towards it.
True flourishing can only be experienced within a life lived authentically.
Which is why, I beg you to “Beware of Dupes”.
Ditch the fakeness.
Stop trying to be impressive.
Be you.
