The Difference pt.2

My dearest readers,

in this conclusion to the previous post I want to stress what Orrin Woodward once wrote: "You can't make a difference until you are to be different." Far too many have the desire to be outstanding, but only a handful are willing to accept that only being possible if you stand out and are different of some sort. "Why spend your life trying to fit in, when you are born to stand out?" (Ziad K. Abdelnour)

Difference often has a negative connotation, because it strongly opposes the mainstream, contemporary commonalities we either afflict upon ourselves or have society do that for us. Who wants to fall out of line and be approached as someone different, non-compliant with what culture dictates at a given time? It often resonates in how we present ourselves and how we are perceived, eventually coming down to a "somebody versus nobody" debate; but the matter specified therein is our standpoint.

Are you somebody, or willing to be nobody? Are you a nobody, because you stand out and don't quite match with the rest of the bunch, are incapable of meeting our society's demands, or are you a nobody, because you do fit right in and no one (yourself included) sees you as someone special, as someone different? Conversely, you could ask yourself whether you're somebody because you are just like your peers or somebody because you're not. Understanding that standpoint and interpreting these tenors is often only a matter of confidence, because "[c]onfidence is knowing who you are and not changing it a bit because […] someone's version of reality is not your reality" (Shannon L. Alder).

What is your reality? Are you the one with jeans and a tee, the one to mimic the "appropriate" attire policy, or are you the one to break the code of culture, suited up with people a week later still chit-chatting about your choice of tie and handkerchief (or dress)? There are certainly times when your choosing is to match with what is required, but likewise are there many opportunities when it is just not the right thing to do. Be strategic! It is on you to make that choice every day. "Strategy is [all] about making choices; it's about deliberately choosing to be different" (Michael Porter), but we're talking about the kind of "different" you can back up and wear with distinction.

"Be different so that people can see you clearly amongst the crowds" (Mehmet Murat İldan), but be different in a way that reflects who you truly are. Don't be different simply for the sake of being different, but be different because you never intended to be just one out of many. And even if it might be intimidating at first, all of us who have been different at some point know how much comfort actually comes with it, and, more importantly, how much confidence these situations can teach us. If you want to be the difference, the key player, the game-changer, you first, of all, need to be different, because there is only one way of being outstanding: by standing out! Know that "[b]eing different and thinking different [is what] makes a person unforgettable. History does not remember the forgettable" (Suzy Kassem), but it remembers you if you're original, special, and willing to stand out. #MomentumToGo