The Search and Obsession for FAME: The most OVERRATED Human Desire – Part Two.

Fame is A bad judgment of skill. This is especially true for fame that is fairly recent in fields that are not contingent on skill but more on manipulation, politics and sheer luck and randomness. In these fields recent fame has almost no correlation with real value.

A multiple time Olympic Gold Medallist probably has tremendous skill in his/her domain, compared to most humans walking around, but the average media celebrity almost certainly does not.

Let me repeat an example that I have given in my previous book, Unlearn: A Practical Guide to Business & Life, just to show the inherent randomness in our lives that we fail to spot.

The analogy was called: Grains of Sand in a bucket

 If you pour sand into a bucket, statistically, there will be some grains on the top, most in the middle and some on the bottom.

All grains can’t be at the top.

So, does it mean the grains of sands at the top special/better than the ones at the bottom? Or is it just blind randomness at play?

The celebrities you are worshipping are no different than those grains of sands at the top. Someone had to win the lottery while someone had to lose. They happened to “win”, FOR NOW.

In no other field is this truer than in the field of entertainment, and yet it also holds significant weight in almost all other fields including business, politics, art etc. and to some extent even science, since there are far more factors that decide the worth of a scientist in the public eye, apart from their actual contributions and skills.

For every famous inventor, one could name a hundred other scientists/inventors who deserved similar if not more accolades in their lifetime.

Moreover, you will see the following, In the fields of entertainment, politics, business etc. just being a child of an already powerful figure in those fields significantly raises your chances of “success” in that field, because “gaming” those is much easier than manipulating fields where actual skill is required.

This is less true in the other arts or sciences and the correlation generally breaks down in sports.

However, this doesn’t mean sports is free of randomness. First, one could argue that being extraordinarily talented itself involves a high element of randomness, not something you can choose to be born with. Similarly, your looks, your personality and your intelligence levels are some of the other traits that you largely do not choose.

And secondly, even in sports, there may be many ELITE, skilled people competing at the top, but who actually manages to win on that particular day often has more to do with chance than anything else, especially if their competitors are equally skilled.

However, still, if a sportsman is consistently performing at the top, you can rest assured that he/she is at least significantly more skilled than the average person (in that domain).

This is not necessarily true in a significant chunk of the other fields I have mentioned.

Fame as a Distraction and Distortion of True Self

Too much Public recognition can divert an individual from their true purposes, passions, and potentially even from their own sense of self.

This diversion is not just a matter of time management but also involves emotional and intellectual energy—dealing with criticism, managing a public image, and sometimes contending with misrepresentations or superficial engagements.

Ernest Hemingway, one of the most celebrated writers of the 20th century, provides an illustration of how fame can distract and even destabilize.

Hemingway’s literary success began in the 1920s and exploded after the publication of “The Sun Also Rises” and “A Farewell to Arms.” With fame, Hemingway became known not just for his terse, powerful prose, but also for his adventurous and tumultuous personal life, which often overshadowed his literary contributions.

Hemingway’s early career was marked by a vigorous dedication to his craft. However, as his fame grew, so did the public fascination with his persona—the rugged, often brash man who hunted big game, fished for giant marlins, and reported from war zones.

This public persona began to eclipse his literary output in the eyes of the public. Hemingway found himself playing into and even amplifying this persona, which often distracted him from his writing. His later works, while still significant, were often critiqued for lacking the depth and power of his earlier works. Critics and biographers suggest that the pressures of maintaining his fame, his image, and his public life took a toll on his creative energies and focus.

Hemingway’s personal life was tumultuous, with four marriages, bouts of depression, and eventually, a decline in his mental health. His need to live up to a macho image and the relentless public scrutiny contributed to personal and professional decisions that strayed from his initial focus on writing as an art.

His life tragically ended with his suicide in 1961, a reflection of his internal struggles with fame, identity, and creative expression.

Fame can distort one’s true self addresses a profound psychological and social phenomenon. The essence of this concept is that fame often requires individuals to present a persona that aligns with public expectations or the image that has contributed to their fame.

Over time, this persona can become dominant, obscuring or altering the individual’s authentic identity.

The distortion occurs because public figures are often celebrated not just for their achievements but also for the characteristics that the public and media ascribe to them. This external perception can pressure individuals to conform to an idealized image, leading them to suppress or modify aspects of their true selves.

The process can be gradual and not entirely conscious, leading to a situation where one’s public persona and private identity become misaligned.

The media often amplifies certain traits or moments that may not fully represent the individual’s complex personality. Over time, this selective representation can become the dominant narrative about who they are.

To maintain their status and popularity, famous individuals might start modifying their behavior, choices, and even beliefs to better align with what earns them approval and applause, even if starts destroying them from the inside.

The Pointless Quest of Maintaining Fame.

Fame is often perceived as a pinnacle achievement, a marker of success that once attained, will secure one’s legacy and influence indefinitely. However, I want you to recognize the TRUE, fleeting nature of public attention and approval.

Fame is dependent on the collective memory and interest of society, which are both notoriously fickle. As new figures emerge and narratives shift, yesterday’s icons can quickly become today’s footnotes.

The ephemeral nature of fame can lead to psychological strife. Individuals who achieve fame often experience an “identity trap” where their self-worth becomes deeply entangled with their public persona and the continued validation that fame provides.

As fame wanes, which it invariably does, it can create a personal crisis or identity loss. This is well-documented in celebrities who have experienced rapid rises to fame followed by periods of public indifference or scrutiny.

Fame’s transience is also worsened by the rapid pace of cultural and technological changes. In today’s digital age, the lifecycle of fame can be extraordinarily brief—often termed as “going viral” and fading just as quickly. The speed at which information travels and interests shift makes sustaining public attention increasingly challenging.

Fame is not a static achievement but a dynamic state that requires continual effort to maintain. This maintenance involves consistently meeting or exceeding the public’s expectations, which can be demanding, stressful and even financially draining.

 The effort to stay relevant can divert attention from personal growth, relationships, and other pursuits that contribute to a well-rounded and fulfilling life.

Staying famous often requires continuous interaction with the media and the public, including regular appearances, interviews, and participation in high-profile events. This constant visibility can be exhausting and leaves little room for privacy.

For athletes, entertainers, and other public figures, there is an immense pressure to perform at peak levels consistently. Any perceived slip or failure can lead to public criticism, affecting their marketability and status ALMOST OVERNIGHT.

Thus, the obsession for fame is the most pointless of quests because fame itself is the most unstable of qualities. In general, it is far more unstable than health, wealth and one’s close relationships, and certainly infinitely more unstable compared to a person’s real skills developed overtime that can rarely be taken away.

 With fame, today one person is in the news, tomorrow the world will be obsessed with someone else, the day after, with someone else. Fame can disappear almost instantly, skills with solid foundations almost never do.

If fame happens as a side effect of GENUINE contributions that you make, that’s another thing, as long as you don’t attach so much importance to it that you go into a depression when that fame goes away.

The True Rewards of Anonymity: A Philosophical Insight

What if I told you limited fame, or even anonymity might be better than extreme fame?

It allows for a purer, more authentic engagement with life and one’s pursuits, free from the distortions and pressures of public recognition.

It is far more likely for a famous person to turn infamous than it is for a private person to become infamous, and when that happens, you may regret why you tried so hard to be famous in the first place

Because fame is the fire that can give you the illusion of warmth, when you are lonely, but it is also the fire that can burn you alive (at least mentally) if that fame turns to infamy and ridicule and you are not prepared to handle it.

The Benefits of Anonymity or at least “Limited Fame”

Freedom from Judgment: Without the constant scrutiny of the public eye, individuals can explore and express themselves more freely, experimenting without fear of criticism or failure.

Authentic Relationships: Interactions and relationships formed without the influence of fame are more likely to be based on genuine mutual respect and interest rather than on status or prestige.

Inner Peace: Living without the constant pressure to maintain a public image can lead to greater mental and emotional well-being.

 Better focus on work: Anonymity allows individuals to focus on the quality of their work and personal satisfaction rather than on how it is perceived by others.

Actionable Advice for Understanding the Realities of Fame

Create a sense of self that is independent of public acclaim. Invest in self-awareness and activities that affirm your values and abilities regardless of external validation.

Accept the transient nature of fame as part of life’s natural experiences. This acceptance can reduce the disappointment or disorientation that might follow from fading fame. Understanding its potential fleetingness can help temper expectations and create a healthier relationship with public recognition.

Focus on work and relationships that have depth and meaning beyond public recognition. Engagements that impact others positively can offer a more lasting sense of fulfilment than fame.

Build relationships with people who recognize and appreciate your intrinsic qualities, rather than relationships primarily influenced by fame or status.

Engage in work that you find personally fulfilling and that you believe contributes positively to the world, rather than work that is aimed primarily at gaining recognition.

Again, in case I am misunderstood, I am NOT saying fame is bad. I am just saying pursuing fame SOLELY for the sake of fame is worthless.

Obsession for fame is toxic.

 Fame, if it happens as a natural byproduct of value that you contribute is welcome, as long as it makes your overall life better, not worse.

If fame happens as a side effect of GENUINE contributions that you make (or need to promote) that’s another thing, as long as you don’t attach so much importance to it that you go into a depression when that fame goes away.

What I want you to remember is this: The real contributors to humanity and history won’t be 99 percent of the present-day celebrities you follow on social media. The real contributors will be the one of the random people you probably passed by on the street without even glancing at them.

And finally, here are the words of the Buddha, on such frivolous searches.

“There are two kinds of search: the noble search and the non-noble search. And what is the non-noble search? Here someone being himself subject to birth seeks what is also subject to birth; being himself subject to aging, he seeks what is also subject to aging; being himself subject to death, he seeks what is also subject to death; being himself subject to defilement, he seeks what is also subject to defilement!”