Sigma Signal for Society

Caption: A more reflective male emerging , blinking into the sunlight

It's quite something when a new social phenomena bursts onto the scene which also awakens you to some of your own essential characteristics as well.

A double revelation of sorts, revealing societal and personal truths all at the same time.

Uncovering elements which society needs to learn about and appreciate, and which you as an individual also need to recognise as hidden truths about yourself finally coming to the surface.

Buried, suppressed,ignored and invalidated....until now, and until this particular opportunity at this particular time.

As a society, we've been aware, all too aware about the Alpha Male presence in life for far too long- a loud, brash, entitled and presuming presence, bulldozing aside everyone and everything in it's path.

A presence which has not really covered itself in glory when one considers its manifestation in politics, the economy, society, popular culture, the workplace, and male-female relations in general over so many years.

From sexual scandals in the church,to reckless speculation in financial markets, sociopathic behaviour and endemic coruption in political circles, inappropriate behaviour in the workplace, typically alpha male behaviour really has led everyone down, from top to bottom in our society.

But it's still held up as a role-model for men to aspire to and emulate both in work and life to a large degree.

We also know about the Beta Male- who are followers of such men, and who seek to share in some of what is perceived to be their power, their authority and their dominance.

Despite the compliance and submissiveness involved with this, and the associated unwillingness to call out bad behaviour amongst their alpha leaders- it is again deemed to be an acceptable pattern for men to settle for in life.

But it's only now, at long last that we are becoming aware of another male type , which neither seeks to be that presumptive leader or that passive follower but who seeks to carve out a different path altogether.

Welcome to the world of the sigma male today, which can perhaps redefine masculinity in a healthier way for society itself, and for individuals of both sexes as well.

Sigma males are defined as being non-conformist, dominant introverts, comfortable with solitude and not at all dependent on other people's approval.

In general, they could be described as individuals who place more worth on freedom, independence of mind and solitude above money, status and power as their defining values in life.

A frame of mind which I had internally perceived for many years to be a limiting personal quirk, at odds with the people around me and the society in which I existed and therefore not as acceptable, not as meritous and not as fulfilling as the prevailing model of behaviour.

But with a societal awakening to sigma, there has also been a personal awakening for me to see how my own hidden characteristics now align with this new emergent energy.

Perhaps it could be argued that the ultimate sigma male in history was Jesus Christ, and how his injunction to "Be IN this world, but not OF this world" now resonates so mightily with the sigma mentality.

His unwillingness to conform with the world, his struggles with the religious authorities of his day and his emphasis on the glory of the sovereign individual and the power of the world within, appeals very strongly to those of us who aspire to live as Sigmas today.

One instructive exercise for males considering adopting a sigma mentality is how it can be used to negotiate the modern term "toxic masculinity". which has now morphed beyond alpha male behaviour to cover the whole of masculinity itself.

As mentioned above, there's certainly enough evidence from all kinds of different settings showing that problematic male behaviour has been deeply damaging to individuals,both male and female and for society alike over many years.

But, there's also emerging evidence that branding all males with the term "toxic masculinity" is also damaging and polarizing on several levels as well.

The MGTOW movement( Men Going their Own Way) is one extreme manifestation of a counter-reaction to this, with its members rejecting women completely and seeking solace elsewhere in life.

For all their high-blown rhetoric about the movement, there's an underlying bitterness and victimhood mentality at work amongst their members which will just serve to poison the well between men and women yet further.

Perhaps Sigma Mentality offers a way out of this impasse, creating a new pattern of male behaviour which can reconstruct what being male means today on an individual level and feeding that back to wider society.

A willingness to look at oneself differently, to call out things out honestly, to challenge existing paradigms, and to navigate a different way to deal with life and with others in different ways.

The sigma signal is now starting to come over loud and clear.

Music to my ears as a Listener, A Watcher, An Observer, A Reflector and a Writer.