Unity vs. Conformity

I am going to be honest here. 

I have started, deleted and restarted this post countless times.  I have researched, read and thought about it for hours.  

And yet when I sit down to write, it all sounds... Off. Wrong. Not at all the idea I have in my head about this topic and concept.

So I’m starting again, and this time… I’m going to just… write. And try to share what’s in my head rather than reframe what other articles have said.

When we were discussing possible themes for this month, the idea of unity really spoke to all of us. It is something that the world seems to be screaming for as politics, geography, fears and ideologies are actively and viciously tearing us apart.  Despite the proliferation of technologies and platforms designed to improve connection and communication, it seems that most people tend to use them for the opposite purpose. Social media is anything but social and the plethora of misinformation that is published, shared and consumed as absolute fact has lead to more separation, confusion and polarization than ever.

In order to try to guide you through my train of thought, let’s start with a definition. The dictionary defines unity as the state of being united or joined as a whole. It is understood to mean togetherness, harmony and a coming together to form a singular unit. 

As humans, we have an innate drive for unity, and an inherent understanding that there is safety and security in groups or communities. This natural need has always driven humans to seek and find others with similar goals, ideas, needs or circumstances. Whether it’s building a fire, protecting a village, educating our children or growing a business, we all seem to realizes that we cannot do everything alone. The number of idioms and phrases that allude to this - “it takes a village…” “two heads are better than one…” “united we stand, divided we fall…” “strength in numbers…” - is proof of how intrinsic our drive for unity is.

When we dig deeper into the idea of unity, though, and how and why groups of people are drawn together, especially in this modern world, it starts to get a little bit complicated. It is no longer a simple matter of geographic proximity that indicates a group or tribe. Groups are generally brought together over a shared goal. That sounds great. But as the world expands, the number of goals increases. Sports, politics, level of education or shared educational institution, career field and countless other delineations offer infinite ways of slicing, dicing and dividing up the population into in-groups and out-groups.

Here’s the thing. I am not here to argue that unity is anything but a good thing. We need it. This world is full of people and the sooner that we all take a deep breath and realize that there is significantly more that binds us together than pulls us apart, the better off we will all be. 

Unfortunately, we seem to be in a situation where unity is being weaponized - and tilting into the territory of conformity. And that is a whole different situation.

So let’s pause here to take a quick look at what conformity is. The dictionary defines conformity as compliance with standards, rules, or laws, or behavior in accordance with socially accepted conventions or standards.  

You can see that there is a correlation between the two, and that there is a certain level of conformity that is necessary within a society - at least when it comes to adherence to laws and rules designed to keep everyone safe (say, driving on the correct side of the road, not harming others etc.). But when unity crosses over into conformity territory, it has the potential to become counterproductive.

When an in-group becomes so narrow to the point of conformity - where ANY difference in thought or idea is rejected, it begins to crumble the unity that was the initial stated goal. Conformity, particularly to that degree, indicates a level of external force - of requirements for belonging and rules of compliance.

And therein lies the difference. 

True unity is based on a common goal, and allows individuals to voluntarily come together in hopes of furthering that ideal. Conformity, on the other hand, has a punitive aspect - punishment for noncomliance. If unity is kept through fear of consequence, it has crossed a line. And when fear, avoiding punishemnt, is the motivating factor, the spirit of unity cannot be reached.

The best explanation that I have come across is that conformity seeks to define a group through negation - as what they are not. And that the similarities that are sought are for the purpose of contrast or even polarity. At it’s core, conformity is exclusive. Unity, on the other hand, seeks connection through inclusion. True unity sees a place for all, allowing for diversity and individuality.

So where does this leave us? 

For starters, it leaves me grateful for the community that we have at Vibe Vault Fit. Walking through those doors and seeing so many different faces coming together for the purpose of elevating thier joy inspires me every day.  

And that is the spirit of “Junity” - that we can continue to share our true selves with open hearts and open minds. We are excited to continue to grow and learn with love and respect for all of the unique individuals that make up this growing community.  We hope you will join us on our journey this month and beyod as we continue to explore this concept.