If you hear someone say, “I’m not scared of that,” or, “I didn’t want that promotion anyway,” it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re mentally strong. In fact, there’s a good chance it’s just a facade.
To illustrate this, let’s look at the subreddit which we at We call “I Am Very Bad”. From gun nuts to overly-protective boyfriends, this online community has plenty of examples to prove that overcompensation can be very, very obvious.
Here are the posts that got the most upvotes from the sub’s 1.2 million members.
#1 The F**king Sun
To learn more about “I Am Very Bad” we contacted its moderators and one of them, u/ergoegthatis, agreed to have a little chat.
“Some of the most popular [‘tough’ people on the subreddit are the ones who see] injustice in the news (e.g. someone being insulted or bear up), and say, ‘If that happened to me I’d so and so and so and so!’ With everyone on social media having a platform to air any opinion they have, this is incredibly common,” u/ergoegthatis told We.
“Also in the US, there are many intense political/social statements related to politics and guns. For some reason, Americans are religiously addicted to expressing their opinions on everything, in every possible way (including car decals).”
#2 And Murdered By Words Of Another Vet
#3 Vaping In Front Of A Water Service Vehicle Thinking It’s A Cop Car
According to the moderator, the subreddit’s ‘characters’ usually overcompensate due to their fear of a scary, unpredictable, and hostile world.
“It depends on society too: we rarely see these … expressions coming from Europe, the Arab world, Southern and Central America, Russia, China, Japan, etc. America is witnessing social, political, and economic implosions, so this seems to be a way for them to cope with that,” they added.
The subreddit’s community, on the other hand, is way more diverse. “It’s heterogeneous, [and has] got all sorts of people,” u/ergoegthatis said. “I don’t think there’s any common factor in our userbase, except the desire to have fun and laugh at people who take their purported [toughness] to comical levels in public.”
#4 A Birthday Well Wish Escalates To “there Will Be Consequences”
#5 Even My Local Police Department Had To Call Out This Guy’s Bulls**t
While acting tough may meet a person’s needs in the short term by artificially boosting their ego or by getting others to back off, it’s not a good long-term strategy. In fact, one study conducted by psychologists at Rutgers University found that guys who act tough may suffer serious consequences.
The paper, published in The Journal of Health Psychology, found that these men visit doctors less often. They’re also less forthcoming about their medical symptoms when they see a male physician (interestingly, these same men were more likely to choose a male doctor because they believe male doctors are more competent than females).
#6 My Friend And His Wife Are Going Through A Mutual Divorce, Her New Boyfriend Is Wasting No Time Asserting Dominance
#7 If You Have To Advertise It, It’s Probably Not True
#8 She Always Told Me He Was Jealous But Dang
Researchers suspect that delaying medical appointments and minimizing symptoms could be one of the reasons why men in the US die, on average, five years earlier than women.
If you want to see whether or not you have a tendency to act this way, this article by Inc. provides a 7-point checklist that could help in evaluating yourself.
If you’re also putting up a fake exterior that helps you feel superior, consider the toll it may take on your life. Instead, try to invest in building mental strength, so the way you feel on the inside matches how others see you on the outside. As your mental strength increases, your need to act tough decreases.
#9 Comment On A Post About An Old Couple Having To Slowly Put Back Potatoes One At A Time At A Grocery Store Until The Price Was Low Enough Because They Are Poor
#10 If A Cop Is A D*ck You Are Legally Allowed To Beat Him Up Apparently
#11 You Never Know What Will Go Down At A Subway Sandwich Shop
#12 Bad**s Boomer Responds To Being Ok’ed By A Journalist He Yelled At About Climate Change
#13 High School Is A Hell Of A Drug
#14 His Daughter Took A Laptop Home From School To Message A Boy. So He Decides To Shoot The Laptop That Wasn’t Even His Property
#15 A Challenge From A Bad**s
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#16 From A Live Stream Of Hurricane Florence
#17 Oh Man… Stay Away From This Guy!
#18 Shooting A Target From A Mile Away? Light Work
#19 Do Not Underestimate People With Multiple Font Tattoos
#20 Coronavirus Is Scared Of Catching Me
#21 Accidentally Added The Wrong Guy On Facebook. Guess I’m A Coward Now
#22 He Doesnt Need A Bed Just Sleeps In A Holster
#23 I Love My Friend But I Get These Often
#24 Vegans Can’t Even Make A Dent
#25 A Warm Welcome Back From My “Bad**s” Roommate
#26 Dysfunctional Veteran Leave Me Alone!
#27 Covid Brings Out The Crazies
#28 School Dropouts Are Very Bad**s
#29 How To Prove You’re Older Than 14
#30 U Can Use Your Zip Ties To Make Sure Your Legs Stay Together In The New Wheelchair
#31 Walmart Patriot
#32 Shoot First, Ask Questions Later, I Guess
#33 Going To The Gym Makes You Invincible
#34 A Comment: “I Bet You Spent More On This Than Your Kids Since They Were Born”
#35 Who Would Dare After That
#36 This Kid’s Shirt
#37 When You Are In An Aviation Unit And Post A Bad**s Pic To Your Ig, Your Unit Makes It A Poster And Hangs On The Wall
#38 Disney Land Riot
#39 An Instagram Girl’s Wet Dream
#40 Tough Guy Gave Me A Glare On The Way Out. I’m Shaking
#41 Roid Rage For Jesus
#42 “Medicine Is For P**sies”
#43 Stop Your Scaring Me
#44 Don’t Wanna Get Him Mad
#45 Local Man Too Bad**s For Afterlife
#46 Do Not Test Him. He Watches Naruto
#47 Manliest Sip Of All Time
#48 Don’t Get Shot At This Local Establishment!
#49 I Am Very Bad**s And Scientifically Illiterate Too Weakling
#50 Watch Out, We Got A Bad**s Over Here
#51 “He Screamed Like A Little Girl And Ran Off!”
#52 You Can’t Look Bad**s While Lip Syncing T-Pain
#53 Found The Wolf Of Wallstreet Boys
#54 No Name Food?
#55 I Am S H O O K
#56 Left Handed, Right Handed, And Back Handed Gun
#57 Conversation Over
#58 Who Needs A Therapist When You Have Deadlifts
#59 My Friends Unnecessarily Hostile Thermometer In The Backyard Patio
#60 Stay Back 100 Meters Or You Will Be Shot
#61 The Side You Never Want To Cross
#62 Had To Catch My Breath For A Few Minutes Afterwards Because My Hands Shook Too Much
#63 Sucking Out Venom Doesn’t Even Work
#64 Look Out Massachusetts Lawmakers, You Just Got Put On A List
#65 Less Is More
#66 Literally Shaking And Crying Rn
#67 Rip Xbox
#68 I Don’t Know What Made Him Think This Shirt Was A Good Idea
#69 Ex-Cop, Current Bad**s
#70 Bad**s Spotted Watching Gordon Ramsey Eat Wings
#71 Red Thinks They Could Beat Up Gordon Ramsay
#72 Doors Are P**sys
#73 Back Home After 3 Days Of Shows Fixing To Run 5 Miles. Testosterone Levels Over 900 This Is What Libtards Fear
#74 Male Karen Thinks He Owns The Road
#75 It’s Hard Being So Strong
#76 Kid On Xbox Live Who Was Mad At Me For Saying “What A Save!” In Rocket League Thinks He Is A Psychopath
#77 This Is Why I Still Have Facebook
#78 You Merely Adopted The Dark
#79 Terrorize Everyone And Everything
#80 This Is Your First Warning Do Not F**k With Me
#81 Comment On An Article About Ps5 Preorders Not Being Fulfilled
#82 He Posts Stuff Like This Occasionally
#83 Who Wanna Square Up
#84 Oh My God The Terror
#85 I’m Guessing They Listen To The Rocky Sound Track
#86 Casually Kicked A Hole In My (Moms) Wall
#87 Sure Ya Did Bud
#88 We Get It. We Won’t Hurt Your Baby
#89 A New Organic Bad**s Appears
#90 Dude On Video About Muay Thai
