Ok, onto today then...
This week, I’ve been talking about being a geek. If I were to take some of the
official dictionary definition of ‘geek’ and tweek it a little bit to contextualise this article…
Definition of hypnosis geek.
noun: hypnosis geek; plural noun: hypnosis geeks (like those who listen to my podcasts, train with my college and come to my hypnosis geek
dinners)
1. A knowledgeable and obsessive enthusiast.
“a computer geek”
“a hypnosis geek”
verb: geek; 3rd person present: geeks; past tense: geeked; past participle: geeked; present participle: geeking
1. Someone who will
– engage in or discuss hypnosis-related tasks obsessively or with great attention to technical and theoretical
detail.
– be or become extremely excited or enthusiastic about a subject, typically one of specialist or minority interest.
“I am totally geeking out over this meta-analysis detailing the efficacy of hypnosis as a means of treating dyslexia.“
I like hypnosis geeks, and consider myself to be one. I am incredibly technical and derive great joy from the theoretical and academic debate of my subject. I lecture on the detailed workings of hypnosis, have written very evidence based books on the subject, I research hypnosis, I have a hypnosis podcast, I write a hypnosis blog, I read academic papers on the subject and know the research supporting this field very well indeed, but
importantly, I get excited about it, I love what can be done with hypnosis. I think that qualifies me to be a self-titled hypnosis geek.
What actually is a geek in general terms though?
Geeks are a subculture which is growing more and more prevalent in contemporary society:
previously bullied and marginalised, thanks to shows like The Big Bang Theory, Doctor Who (heck, sci-fi TV and films in general) and a change in public perception of a number of qualities that are considered desirable in an individual, being a geek is finally becoming cool. Though, they are cool also because they are not bothered about being cool. Try being a geek to be cool and you simply become a hipster, and whether you like twelve-foot-long beards, wearing wooly hats during the height of
Summer, wearing skinny jeans and lumberjack shirts or not, that is not my topic here today.
Being a geek then, according to research by Imgur, is actually cool in today’s world – especially among Millennials. In fact, 60% of the 83 million Millennials consider themselves geeks compared to just 38% of GenXers and Boomers. And, the study also shows that geeks are the trendsetters and influencers
(84% of geeks say people look to them for advice while only 60% of non-geeks say they get asked for advice).
