What is peer pressure and how can we deal with it? - Tenzin Nyesel

Generally, everyone has a circle of peers with whom they are comfortable talking and sharing things. But sometimes the circle you are in might not have the people with whom you are meant.

Sometimes, the people in our circle pressure us to do the work they demand, which might need to be corrected. When our peers give orders instead of advice, it leads us on the wrong path and makes us do bad things; that’s when we go through peer pressure. 

Peer pressure affects us not only physically but also mentally. Due to this, many people of young age get spoiled physically and mentally. They lose their concentration power. It decreases self-confidence and self-worth. Also, distances us from our family members and friends.

Tenzin Nyesel
Pestalozzi Children's Village India

Quaint Little Bookshop - AI Chatbot

A short story
This is fiction, and any resemblance to any character or persona is just by chance; we did this to test an AI Chatbot and see how we could draft a story for a book. Shmooz AI is a WhatsApp bot based on GPT 3 model from OpenAI. 

Once upon a time, a quaint little bookshop was tucked away in the heart of Dehradun called The English Book Depot. It was owned by a young woman named Millie, who was passionate about books and deeply loved the English language.

The shop was small, with shelves of books overflowing onto the floor. It was a cosy place, with a warm ambience and the scent of freshly brewed coffee filling the air. Millie would often host readings and discussions at the shop, inviting people to come and share their thoughts on literature.

One day, a young writer named Rohan stumbled upon The English Book Depot. He had been struggling with writer's block for months and desperately needed some literary inspiration. He wandered through the shelves and soon found himself lost in the pages of a novel.

As he sat reading, sipping on a cup of coffee, Millie started conversing with him about the book he was reading. That conversation led to a friendship and eventually blossomed into something more. Rohan and Millie bonded over their love of literature and spent hours discussing their favourite books at the shop.

Over time, Rohan began to write again, finding the inspiration he needed within the walls of The English Book Depot. He even published his first novel, which Millie proudly displayed on a shelf in the shop. People would come from all over the city to visit the little bookshop, drawn in by Millie's welcoming vibe and passion for literature.

Years passed, and though the shop remained small, it had become a beloved fixture in the community. Millie continued to inspire people with her love of books, and The English Book Depot remained a haven for writers, readers, and literary enthusiasts alike.

Fun exercise, Shmooz AI and Grammarly work in tandem to put together this story!

Disclaimer: This post is purely for fun and a chatbot experiment. Please read as a piece of fiction, and the blogger and the authors take no responsibility for the content or the language generated via the AI Chatbot.

What is peer pressure and how can we deal with it? - Rishona Chopra

Peer pressure is the pressure we face from our peers to do something. It indirectly or directly affects us. Often we find ourselves pretending to fit in the crowd, so we start doing things and becoming people we are not. We lose our own identity just to make 'friends'. But friends who force you to do something or friends who you cannot be yourself around aren't really friends, are they?

Each of us has our own identity, which we are given for a reason because we all are unique, we put on a different persona, and it affects no one but us.  

Being with the right company matters a lot. One ripe apple kept with ten other rotten apples will soon rot too. It is better to be alone than with bad friends. 

Dealing with peer pressure, though, is quite a challenge. Often people try to bully us by telling us that we are 'not cool' and 'boring'. But we must remember that the right path is often alone, but being alone doesn't mean we must be lonely. Ignoring people like that is the best way. We need to have a calm and composed mind that knows what is right and wrong. We do what we do, and pressuring someone needs to be corrected. 

When we start ignoring all of this, people start bothering us because peer pressure that makes you do bad things is just to trouble you or force you towards the wrong path. 

While dealing with peer pressure, we might think, "everyone is doing this", or "what could be wrong with this?" but something correct is not what the majority does. People around us may TRY to have a strong influence on us but we have to be that one person who stands on the right path, whether alone or not. Their TRY must be a left a try only and be in vain. 

Because of peer pressure, we start feeling insecure about our own selves and doubting ourselves. All our choices and decisions seem to be made by others and their opinions, but it is OUR life, OUR choices, and they cannot be changed. People may give us good advice that we should always lend an ear to, but then again, there has to be a straight line between right and wrong, people you trust and don't. 

We may need friends at this age, even if that means pretending to do things they don't. It feels terrible when you have no one to sit with you, talk to you and a person you can share your thoughts with, but it's hard to find someone like that, with who you can be yourself ( apart from your parents, of course)!

Sometimes, I am in the impact of my peers. I know what they might be doing is wrong, but I just pretend to do what they do just so I can get along with them, but then you have to remember that you have higher goals in life. You have higher aspirations than pretending or changing yourself to make friends. 

Instead of finding company outside, we can be our own friends! No one knows us better than we do, and no one ever can! 

Rishona Chopra
Grade VII
Gyanshree School