look around your living space. do you surround yourself with things you really like or things you like only because they are absurd? listen to your own speech. ask yourself: do i communicate primarily through inside jokes and pop culture references? what percentage of my speech is meaningful? how much hyperbolic language do i use? do i feign indifference? look at your clothes. what parts of your wardrobe could be described as costume-like, derivative or reminiscent of some specific style archetype (the secretary, the hobo, the flapper, yourself as a child)? in other words, do your clothes refer to something else or only to themselves? do you attempt to look intentionally nerdy, awkward or ugly? in other words, is your style an anti-style? the most important question: how would it feel to change yourself quietly, offline, without public display, from within?

- how to live without irony | via peterfeld: courtenaybird [emphasis mine]