NONCONFORMITY

Today’s “Triple P” post or positive post for the posse is about NONCONFORMITY.

Name calling is NOT nice. Words like oddball, crackpot, eccentric, flake, fruitcake, geek, misfit, nutcase, odd bird, screwball, strange bird, kook, loner, maverick, and odd duck are all things I’ve heard said about me. I laugh because I’m not a bird or a duck. Anytime you challenge the established order and defy conventional thinking, you will instantly become a target.

I don’t mind being called names because I learned a long time ago from Les Brown someone’s opinion of me does not have to become my reality.

So why do we worry about what other people say about us? Why do you care if they acknowledge or “like” you anyway? I think it is because people want to conform and fit in with the broader society. Many are afraid to be themselves.

Here are three reasons why you should shun the well worn path of the masses and live a life of joyous nonconformity.

1). IT’S BORING. Life is God’s most precious gift to us. So why live a dull, monotonous, repetitive life? When we enter action with boldness, we engage life fully. Of course we never know what the outcome will be, but why should that stop us? Make your life a grand adventure and NOT a “play it safe” existence. Some will cheer you for your courage to live by your convictions, while others will boo you from the sidelines. Take life on anyway.

2). LACK OF CREATIVITY. Upheaval and transformation are the disrupters of the status quo. But for innovation and creativity, I would not be typing this message on my revolutionary iPhone now would I? Exercise your creativity by not only thinking outside of the box, but by exploring ways to make your contribution to the world. Unleash your creative capacity to make up new stuff and make life happen for you.

3). THE STATUS QUO. When you follow the crowd, you never go further than the crowd. When you think like you’ve always thought before, new ideas elude you. Try challenging yourself to reach beyond your own comfort zone and try new things. Interact with people who think differently than you, have different ideas, and test you to learn and grow beyond what you know.

TAKEAWAY: I get it. Nobody likes to be called names and made to feel like they don’t fit in. I don’t have this problem and never have really. You shouldn’t either. You have many talents, skills, and abilities locked deep down inside of you. You know this to be true, but keep ignoring your inner self to fit in with other people. Stop doing this. Say to yourself you are not going to live a boring existence. Say to yourself instead you are going to unchain your “conformist mind” and allow your creativity to flow freely. Finally, declare psychological war on status quo thinking that keeps you trapped in mediocrity. Now go out and disrupt the status quo today.