[Everyone’s got a vice, a bad habit, something they know they need to change. Unfortunately, everyone also has a million excuses why they just can’t do it. Not anymore. Every month

This week was fairly boring, I will admit. It was mostly spent packing to move into my apartment, finally leaving the country and heading back to the city. Therefore, I haven’t really hung out with people nor had much time to get really involved in any sort of gossip.

Phew.

I did, however, attend a job interview this week. The interview was going well, I was wowing her with everything I had, and then she asked, “Was there ever a time you just really didn’t get along with someone and had to be courteous toward them anyway?” Obviously, a job interview was not the place to go, “ohhhh girl, let me tell you,” so I just took a moment and smiled. This challenge has come in handy, it seemed. I told them I just didn’t get along with someone in high school, but had to be courteous to them because I didn’t want to cause a disruption in the classroom. There, nothing negative said about that person.

The old me – before this challenge – wouldn’t have left it at that, trust me. I most definitely would have used that to my advantage, adding at least one negative comment about her. Instead I seemed mature and collected.

In a way, this challenge has let me see how immature gossip and judgmental statements can be. So many girls are willing to label other women they hardly know as “sluts” or “bitches.” How many times have you looked at a girl in a mini-dress at the bar and called her a whore? I have, even though I was dancing right next to her on the bar. My friends have – and still do – and now it’s starting to annoy me. The new me. I just want to ask them if they’ve even had a conversation with that girl or know anything about her to warrant such comments. Besides, you never know who you will meet down the road. That girl you were mean to in class or talked badly about could be the head of your interview some day, and your career could depend on her. Stupid, mindless gossip isn’t worth burning any potential bridges.

Not only that, but do you want to be known as the mean girl? The girl who smiled in your face and then talked about you behind your back? Now that I’m more focused on what I say (and am not wasting countless hours gossiping) I’ve really begun to realize that I sure don’t. I would rather be the girl who always had something positive to say about people. And the past three weeks have taught me that being that girl really isn’t as hard as I thought.

While there are the inevitable “mean girls” in your life, I can’t help but wonder: did these girls exist before shows like Gossip Girl, 90210 or the movie Mean Girls?

Maybe.

Do I think these caddy, petty, deceptive females existed before Hollywood decided to bank on this character flaw? Yes. Do I think they were as idolized, accepted and vicious? No.

I do believe Hollywood has aided in the level of meanness that some females like to inflict on others. Would a bunch of girls from a neighboring high school have vandalized a girl from my high school’s house before vixen Valerie from 90210 inflicted evil on Kelly and Donna? Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

I feel, as with many aspects of the media, we’re affected by the actions of those we watch, idolize, despise and just plain want to be, on television and in the movies. We are influenced by the size-0 demographic in this country; don’t tell me you haven’t looked at a celebrity on television and wanted to look like her. So, what is any different from wanting to act like her?

I think we definitely have become meaner from the shows we see on television, just like we strive to be thinner and wear designer clothes like the actresses we see on television. While the latter is not a better alternative, we need to remember to be individuals. We must remind ourselves that TV and movies are not real and that actors and actresses do not face the realistic repercussions of writing a Burn Book, or keying someone’s car when they steal our boyfriend, i.e., losing your friends.

Have you become a Mean Girl? Have you been affected by a Mean Girl?