If People Think You’re Weird, It Probably Means This
“If people think you’re weird, that probably means you’re on the right track.”
I just wrote the sentence on Twitter and sent it out into the world.
It blew up almost immediately, in a positive way.
What is it about those words that resonate so strongly with so many people?
I think it’s this.
We spend so much of our lives being told to conform.
It starts in school.
If you don’t follow the rules, you’re going to get into trouble — and I’m saying this as someone who has always been a rule follower.
I’m trying to break away from that mold more and more.
I don’t think it’s about being Mr. Goody Two Shoes.
Rather, I think it’s about a feeling of doing the right thing, whatever that might be.
I’ve always held that principle close to my heart.
I admit, sometimes my values make me pretty stubborn.
But the thing I’ve realized over the last few years is that I have the power to choose my own values; I don’t have to immediately accept the values foisted on me by my family, my friends, or my society.
And I think that’s what my tweet gets at.
We’re so often told what to do, that’s it only human nature to want to turn and run in the opposite direction.
It’s tempting to be a contrarian for the sake of being one, to go in the opposite direction of whatever is most common.
I’m not saying that’s what is necessary, but I am saying that the human spirit is indomitable and capable of choosing its own path in life.
But some people go to the grave not realizing just how much power they have.
In the end, it’s our power that scares us — not our anxiety, not the potential for failure, but our power.
What do I mean by that?
Marianne Williamson said it better than I ever could.
“Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?”
So who am I to be great?
Who am I to think that I can change the world?
Be confident, we’re told, but not arrogant.
Be brave, they say, but not boastful.
We all have these qualities within us.
What makes each of us unique is the proportions in which we use them.
Who is to tell you that your way is wrong?
Only you can know that.
You know your life best.
You’re your own longest friend.
“Weird” is just a label, and you aren’t the one doing the labeling.
