Have you heard of a vibe check?
If not, don’t feel bad. Although it has inspired countless memes over the last few years, no one seems to have a solid handle on what it actually means. Urban Dictionary contains several conflicting definitions of the term “vibe check“—most of which read like satire—while news outlets like BuzzFeed and Mashable have offered largely nonspecific attempts at explaining the term.
Basically, “vibe check” is one of those great idiopathic creations of the internet hive mind. The term seems to have something to do with expressing one’s current frame of mind or emotional state. (Your vibe, get it?) And now there’s an online tool that helps you do just that.
ShindanMaker, a Japanese website that lets people create their own fortune teller-like tests, has a new test among its ranks specifically for conducting vibe checks. All you have to do is visit the page, type in your name (or any name), hit the “diagnose” button, and watch the magic happen. In return, you’ll get a chart that tells you where you fall on the vibe spectrum, with categories ranging from “cursed” to “feral” to “gremlin.” It also tells you whether you passed or failed.
Apparently, I’m a baby.
It’s also going viral. At last check, people have used the tool more than 166,000 times based on the site’s internal counter. I wonder what that says about our collective vibes as a species.
Recognize your brand’s excellence by applying to this year’s Brands That Matter Awards before the early-rate deadline, May 3.
