10 Ways to Give a Damn

Lately, at Improper, we have noticed some worrying feelings. Feelings that go beyond the January blues – feelings of apathy. Often these feelings creep up on you, especially if you spend a lot of time reading the news. These last few years, the headlines have been relentlessly bleak: Brexit, populism, pandemics, wars, the cost-of-living, the energy crises, worker strikes – they all continue to rage on. Do you know what the Collins word of 2022 was? ‘Permacrisis.’ Basically, we are all living in a permanent crisis. Furthermore, there is the rather terrifying fact that our planet is marching toward its own destruction. It’s a lot to take in. 

As the issues seem too mighty, too ingrained and too complicated, it often feels easier to just switch off altogether and stop caring. Plus, in the face of all this, what possible difference could little old us make? As a majority queer creative agency, we have often created campaigns on the issues of diversity, equality and inclusion. This is our field of expertise. But in what has often been described as the ‘age of indifference’, we’re not immune to shutting things out. In the words of Jane Goddall, apathy poses the ‘greatest danger to our future.’ Being apathetic means accepting things you should never accept. It means you no longer give a damn about anything.

So, if like us, you and your company are desperately trying to avoid the apathy trap, here are 10 top tips to avoid falling into it…

1. Embrace the novelty factor. Shake things up and try something new. You could start small, like talking to someone you don’t normally talk to, or sitting somewhere you don’t normally sit. Then scale it up: book a team-building exercise that gets people thinking, such as volunteering for a local charity, attending a literary festival or going on a protest that people care about. Finally, design a hard-hitting campaign that you would have previously shied away from. It will help wake everyone up from their apathy slumber.

2. Stop feeling #sosad. It’s true that by refusing to turn down the volume on important issues, you can feel rather despondent about the state of the world. This can lead to that cycle of doom scrolling followed by sadness, followed by anger, followed by… apathy. But there is a middle ground. Instead of indifference, choose non-attachment. This is a tricky balance because you don’t want to turn off your empathy (never turn off your empathy). But it does mean not taking things so personally; acknowledge the issue and work out what is yours to pick up, and what is yours to let go of. Rome wasn’t built in a day, etc.

3. On that note - get over yourself. Banging that social justice drum can often lead to coming across as a little too perfect. You’re not. You will make mistakes, say the wrong thing and you might even be a little hypocritical at times. It’s ok, we are all guilty of the same thing. In the face of it all, what you’re doing is just a drop in the ocean. But, that doesn’t mean you stop trying. Because lots of drops make a ripple and lots of ripples make a wave and… you get the idea.

4. Listen to the experts. Not sure how you feel about something? That’s ok too. Find people who know what they’re talking about. Listen. Read up about it. But don’t sit on that fence for too long, once you have the facts, make a stand. Brands that ignite more loyalty with their customers. It also makes you more authentic, because if there is one thing that modern consumers really want - it’s for brands to #bereal.

5. Woke is me. ‘Woke’ means being awake to injustice, it means paying attention to societal issues. It’s the opposite of apathy which we have already established is a danger to the planet and every living thing on it. So being ‘woke’ should be celebrated. It’s something to strive for. If someone calls you woke - thank them. After all, we have slept-walked into this climate crisis, and we all need to wake the hell up.

6. Connect. Connect. Connect. Faceless encounters and endless screens have spread the apathy curse. Find ways for your company to connect with each other and with their customers. Look for opportunities for local community building, it’s those bonds that help us feel we are part of something bigger than just ourselves. In the war against apathy – this is the most powerful weapon there is. Use it.

7. Beware of the Dunning-Kruger effect. For those of you who have not heard of this, it refers to the gap between what someone thinks they know, and what they actually know. This doesn’t just include ability, but also experience and expertise. While mansplainers tend to be particularly affected by this cognitive impairment, this can happen to anybody. As an agency, we have the authority to talk about some lived experiences. Many at Improper know how sexism feels, how homophobia feels. But many of us have not experienced racism, or transphobia. We have not been humiliated with the question ‘but where are you actually from?!’ There are many identities that are not represented in our company. Check the diversity in your company, is it representative? What are the gaps? Marketing and advertising needs to appeal to everybody, so everybody needs to be included in the process. This sounds impossible, but there are many creative ways to work towards this. Our company has an advisory board, which helps us learn and navigate our way through issues we do not know about or understand.

8. Resist the burn. If someone is going down the wrong path, rebutting their opinion with some hard-hitting facts and brutal condemnation can feel pretty satisfying. But research shows this only makes it worse. People often become more entrenched in their ignorance, and divisions simply deepen. We need to treat people as the solution, not the problem. Try to meet people where they’re at and understand how they got there. After all, we are all learning. That said, if their views are radicalised and hateful, they should be robustly challenged and reported as long as it is safe to do so. 

9. Don’t just check your privilege, own your privilege. You may feel a tad uncomfortable when you realise how privileged you are. We at Improper do, and we are privileged. We have white, economic and geographical privilege. What’s more, being apathetic is a privilege in itself. If we were being persecuted, we would not have the luxury of apathy. All this makes us feel, well, pretty guilty. Guilt is uncomfortable, it can lead to ignoring important issues or worse – finding someone to blame. We need to stop being so fragile and own our privilege. Checking it is not enough. ‘Checking’ means you are merely looking at something. Well, we know what privilege looks like, we have the stats, so let’s move on. Owning your privilege allows you to talk about it freely, which leads to better understanding and empathy. It’s an active process, as opposed to a passive one. Furthermore, once you’ve fully owned your privilege, you’re ready to use it to help restructure and rebalance systems that oppress marginalised groups. In turn, this has the added bonus of you feeling less guilty about it. 

10. For goodness sake, just do something. We’ve all been guilty of giving something lip service. But consumers are wising up to this, and it doesn’t help our general malaise. So think of ways to actively support the communities you claim to support. Look at what you have done in the past and double, or even triple it. And countries/ suppliers/ customers that don’t support these communities? Cut. Them. Off. Keeping those ties will only turn off your consumers and feed the apathy beast. It’s not worth it.

Now, this list is by no means perfect, nor do we perfectly follow it all of the time. But if you’re serious about kicking apathy to the curb, it’s not a bad place to start. Good luck, and may the wokeness be with you.