Stop Trying to be Like Them
It’s stale and tasteless.
Although Robert Palmer’s song Addicted to Love is not the basis of this piece, the opening line is.
Your lights are on, but you’re not home. Your mind is not your own.
Since its release in 1985, when MTV was cool, I saw the poignancy of the music video. The expressionless faces of all the beautiful women looking identical were and still is a depiction of humanity’s befuddlement.
Who are we supposed to be?
You watch others, observe their words and moves. You may even “subscribe” to their so-called wisdom. Learning from others is smart, but if you try to be just like them, you will fail. A twinkling of success might temporarily peek through, but inside the spark has died.
You will never be happy following someone’s step-by-step advice without adding your own spice. Their success is not a recipe for yours.
Each of us is like a leaf on a tree, a finger on a hand. We are unique in our beauty, in our purpose. The leaf doesn’t ask the other leaves how to stretch towards the sun. The fingers do not request instructions from the other fingers. The left-hand does not behave like the right. They work together for the good of the whole, with an appreciation for all the other working parts.
It isn’t a competition. It’s a collaboration.
You are a student and you are a teacher. You are not a stamped-out duplicate of another. Life would be boring if we all painted like Picasso. While others can teach you a skill, give you a tool. or share a technique, use them to enhance your true self, not mask you to look like everyone else.
The uniqueness of an individual adds flavor. Like a magnificent stew, you swirl in a cosmic pool shining, dancing, with your brilliance. You are here to express your rare exquisiteness. There is nothing wrong with you, and you are not broken. You are growing.
Don’t make the mistake of believing others are better than you. Look in the mirror and say, ”WOW! Here I am and I am fabulous!” Then go play in the magic of your genius.
You can get my book, The Real Us (and we’re not crazy) on Amazon.
