Being original

What if everyone in the world was exactly alike? What if everyone talked the same, acted the same, looked the same, listened to the same music and watched the same TV programs? The world would be extremely dull with no excitement, no discussions, no viewpoints expressed and nothing new learnt! The beauty of the rainbow comes from its contrasting colors. Differences add spice to life and offer meaning to existence...

Thank God for differences!

You were born original, why die a copy!

Every dream of every human being is different from another. And yet, so many of us strive to be something we are really not. Everyone tries to conform, everyone worries about social acceptance and thus everyone loses what was truly originally their own possession: their uniqueness! We ought to be thankful for the differences that we so try hard to give up to attain bland conformities and bland universal conventionalities. Differences are important and they should be respected. For example, many important people throughout history were considered different, such as Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Harriet Tubman, Peter Tchaikovsky and Abraham Lincoln. They did great things, but some people thought they were ‘odd’ because they had strong feelings about something, which may not have been acceptable to everyone else. That's the difference. That's the reason we remember them today. Because they were so different.

What is in your hands and what not

You do not choose to be born. You do not choose your parents. You do not choose your historical era, the country of your birth, (even rebirth if that really exists) or the immediate circumstances of your upbringing. You do not, most of you, choose to die; nor do you choose the time and conditions of your death. But within this realm of choicelessness, you do choose how you live.  What you make of your life, what difference you make to others around you, how much you matter to the lives of those you touch, what you offer to the world and how you make the world around you a better place.

Dare

The world around you is a battleground. We don't deny that everyone is part of the ‘ordinary’ world. The ‘extra’ bit in the ‘extraordinary’ makes all the difference. Everyone is fighting for survival and as Charles Darwin expressed: the world ensures only the survival of the fittest. If you merge with the crowd you get lost in it. To stand out you have to be distinguished. If everyone excelled, there would be no term called excellent. When Gandhiji gave up his lawyer’s attire to move to a khadi cloth around his waist for the rest of his life; he did not even know how much of a difference it was going to make. But he dared. And it made a difference. The movement of non violence that got India its independence; was definitely something unheard of.  It was different. And it made a difference.

Decide how different you will be

Every step of the way you must try hard to better yourself. Life always goes on; but your life does not have to run you, you must run and rule your life. If everyone believes in partying and having fun, you could be ‘different’; have fun and study hard too. Have fun and still excel. If everyone does drugs to be ‘cool’ you could start an anti drug campaign for teenagers, that's also ‘cool’ and ‘different’. Everyone rebels and believes that the ancient culture is backward and parents are less important than friends; be ‘different’; be a good child to your parents and be a wonderful friend too. Be different for the better. In the ordinary world of unkindness and selfishness, be kind and selfless; in a world of self-centeredness and superficiality; be giving and emotionally connected; instead of having numerous frivolous relationships; be ‘different’ be committed and dedicated. Doing the wrong is always easy in every walk of life. Being true to yourself and to the world is hard; but doing the impossible makes you different.

No! Know you’re not alone

Sometimes it’s just not possible to face the numerous challenges of life, and still continue to stand strong when the world seems against you. But you have to live up to your own expectations and match nothing less than them. Live up to your ideals. Keep your self-respect high, even if you are put down by the lesser souls who don't believe in your effort; always aim high. At the same time do not be too hard on yourself. Take small, planned, focused and directed steps towards your goals. Count your blessings and get over your shortcomings. Rule yourself and you will be the king!