59 Unhinged But True Takes On Life From The “Delusions Of Adequacy” Group Online (New Pics)

We’ve all come across our fair share of delusional people, whether it’s an out-of-touch politician, a boss who expects a month’s work in a week, or a gym bro who insists he doesn’t need to train legs because he stands on them all day. But not all delusion is created equal. There’s the full-blown, main-character kind, the quiet, everyday kind, and the kind Gen Z has practically turned into a lifestyle. And there are names for these different flavors, too: delusions of grandeur, delusions of adequacy, and more recently, being delulu.

Let’s start with the big one. In psychiatry, delusions of grandeur, also known as grandiose delusions, are more than just an inflated ego. As Alyson Powell Key, writing for WebMD, explains, they involve believing you have far more power, wealth, intelligence, or other remarkable traits than you actually do. Someone might genuinely believe they’re a multimillionaire, have discovered a cure for cancer, or share a secret connection with a celebrity.

Plenty of healthy people have a high opinion of themselves, of course. The difference, Powell Key notes, is that someone with grandiose delusions is “unshakably convinced that their delusions are true.” These delusions, she says, can also be a symptom of conditions like bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. That puts them in a very different category from the overconfidence of the guy at the bar who’s sure he could land a plane in an emergency, or the crypto investor who insists he’s just one trade away from being set for life.

Whether it’s clinical or simply a case of a big ego talking, delusions of grandeur tend to be, well, grand and loud (but still wrong). Delusions of adequacy, on the other hand, are far quieter. Though not a medical term, the phrase describes the tendency to believe you’re doing a perfectly good job when, honestly, you’re not. There are no grand visions of greatness, just the misplaced belief that everything is A-okay.

American theater critic Walter F. Kerr is generally credited with coining the phrase as an ironic twist on delusions of grandeur. In a scathing 1951 review of the play Buy Me Blue Ribbons, he wrote that actor Jay Robinson was “suffering from delusions of adequacy.” And, with apologies to Robinson, it seems the put-down stuck.

It’s worth pointing out, though, that delusions of adequacy aren’t the same as mediocrity. Being mediocre simply means being average at something, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Many of us are pretty mediocre when it comes to our cooking, driving, or karaoke solos. The difference is that most of us know this. The whole “delusion” part comes into play when we don’t: when there’s a gap between how well we think we’re doing and how well we’re actually doing.

Then there’s the internet’s favorite: delulu. Short for “delusional,” the slang term has even made its way into Merriam-Webster, which defines it as “delusional; audaciously self-confident.” It first gained traction in K-pop fandoms in the early 2010s, where it was used as a “mild rebuke,” usually aimed at fans whose obsessions with their idols, or hopes of one day dating them, seemed a little “irrational, obsessive, or otherwise ridiculous.”

From there, it spread across social media, eventually getting a glow-up. As Merriam-Webster explains, “Especially among young women on TikTok starting in 2023, delulu shifted to characterize confidence in achieving one’s aspirations in life—no matter how delusional it may be to think so.” Hence the catchphrases “delulu is the solulu” and “may all your delulu come trululu.”

But delulu isn’t just a question of self-belief. As the Guardian put it, self-belief means trusting your abilities, whereas being delulu means having “confidence beyond all ability.” That might sound a lot like delusions of adequacy, but here’s where the two part ways. Sure, both involve confidence that outstrips reality, but being delulu is often framed as a choice. It’s like a knowing wink at your own wishful thinking. Delusions of adequacy, however, come with no such self-awareness.

And that brings us back to this list. Because sometimes it isn’t just individuals who are a little delusional; it’s society as a whole. Many of these posts point out the gap between how well the world thinks it’s doing and how well it’s actually doing. And really, pointing out the absurdity is often the most adequate response there is.