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Glamour Magazine - Wants comment from two psychologists on mediocrity

ended 06. February 2023

The beauty editor on Glamour - who also writes for Vogue, so a great contact - has contacted Newspage directly. She is writing about why it's OK to be mediocre and she'd love to include quotes from two of our psychologists. This a great opportunity for guaranteed coverage (as she's approached us directly) in a magazine read by 500,000, plus journalists will often return to great commentators again and again! 

Ok, we need two experts to answer the following questions. Feel free to answer all the questions or just answer ‘first’ or ‘second’ expert questions:

The first expert:

- where do our negative associations with mediocrity come from?

- how does comparison culture in social media fuel these ideas?

The second expert:

- how can accepting the beauty of mediocrity be the key to happiness and good health?

- what are the benefits of accepting the areas in your life where "good enough" is actually good enough?

Need responses back today ideally, tomorrow morning at the latest

5 responses from the Newspage community

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Lee Chambers
Founder / Psychologist at Male Allies UK
Our negative associations with mediocrity are complex and there are a variety of influences at play. Society places a premium on success being related to accomplishment and excellence, and this can make mediocrity feel far from the ideal. This polarity can make mediocrity feel like failure, amplifying our associations if we fear failure and highlighting our own deficits. We compare ourselves socially, and this can make us feel inadequate compared to social and cultural standards, and we spend time in education being measured and compared from a young age, with the cleverest, the most athletic and those who fit modern beauty standards the most championed. And sometimes, it's our own big vision, and not feeling like we are getting near it, that can fuel feelings of negative mediocrity, as we look at the gap and ruminate rather than (tbc)
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Dr Marianne Trent
Clinical Psychologist at Good Thinking Psychology
2) Perfection is an impossibly high standard and when we strive for it can lead to burnout. Instead, when we learn to tolerate mediocrity and regard it as good enough it can be life-changing. Suddenly 'done is better than perfect' and you have more time in your day to soak up life and all of its pleasures. Relentlessly striving causes us to release stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline. This more relaxed approach can have a knock-on impact on our health and well-being with better gut health, reduced tension and more of a spring in our step.

The benefits of accepting 'good enough' as your benchmark are that you're no longer a slave to comparison, which as we all know, is the thief of joy! All areas of our lives from friends, family, work and leisure can benefit from a more accepting, mindful approach.
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Linda Doe
Chartered Psychologist at Linda Doe
1Whenwe accept our outward allure as a reflection of our humanity,we start to feel peace&relief.This revelation relaxes our faces &soothes our outlook.Our expression becomes beguiling,soft&our posture opens&warms to the world.These are outward signs of a beautiful soul&the inner path to wellbeing.When we listen to our inner guru,not compare ourselves to others,we see contentment reflected in our mirrors.2There is somethingliberating about being good enough.Being our own version of beautiful liberates us from mediocrity.There's nothing wrong with making up our faces/enjoying the latest gorgeous skin products.When we are awake to our inner beauty,we will not be creating a mask/painting a persona.We will be expressing our joy&celebrating who we are to the world. This is beautiful.&we can enjoyhow others lookwithout seeking to be someone else
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Dr Frances Greenstreet
Founder & Lead Psychologist at Female Founders Wellbeing Academy
The pursuit of happiness often lures us into believing that happiness comes IF… if only I had a nicer wardrobe, a higher salary, or a bigger home. We are constantly striving for more but as soon as we get there, you guessed it – we want the next Chanel bag! Yet science tells us that while these things can make you happy, the happiness it brings is only short-lived. The joy you get from wearing *those* new shoes isn’t as big on the tenth outing compared to the first. Lasting happiness and well-being come from finding meaning and purpose in life and sometimes this arrives by noticing what you have is “good enough.” By letting go of the constant push for more we take back our freedom to live our lives at a pace we set, savouring the good parts, feeling thankful for what we already have and creating upward spirals of positive emotion.
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Kamalyn Kaur
Psychotherapist at Kamalyn Kaur
Our negative associations with mediocrity come from childhood and our upbringing. Education; reward systems at school; media; and social media compound it further.

Thanks to social media, we can instantly access information about people’s lifestyles that are not even part of our immediate connections. We see what these people want us to see, not necessarily an accurate depiction. We take this snapshot of their life, then compare ourselves negatively to it.

Accepting the beauty of mediocrity is just another way to love, accept, and approve of yourself as you are right now. This the key to happiness and good health on every level - mental, emotional, psychological, and physical.

Self acceptance provides peace of mind. Once you accept that you ARE enough, you stop judging yourself; self criticisim; and people pleasing.