Rest assured that no matter who we are or what we do, there is at least a handful of people somewhere in this world who are convinced that we’re not rowing with both oars in the water. This is absolutely normal. Since no two of us have had exactly the same informational inputs and experiences in our lives, our programming will be different which will of course, prompt us to develop different perspectives of the events and situations we encounter. That produces differences of opinion and occasional conflicts. That’s just the way life is.



So why the heck then, do so many of us spend so much time and energy trying to convince folks otherwise? We try to make sure that we do the “right" things so we’ll blend in with the rest of the crowd. We say and do those things that are acceptable to “the group" – our friends, family and co-workers. We try really, really hard to fit the mold that we believe others would approve of. We sell our individuality for a reassuring nod and a pat on the back.

And yeah, I realize that sometimes our work requires us to generally reflect the “corporate attitude" in the things we say and do. It helps keep the coins flowing in. And there’s certainly no good reason to continually be a butthead just to see how many people we can aggravate today. (Of course, it is sort of fun to stir the pot once in a while to see what happens, isn’t it?) I realize too, that we all have our individual reasons for wanting to be accepted and liked. That’s OK to a point. But when one of our main objectives in life is to be universally loved, we’re just spinning our wheels because it ain’t agonna happen.

My suggestion? Just be you – whatever “you" happens to be today. Be goofy! Let it all hang out, baby! You can’t control what other folks think about you anyway. (Influence - yes, control – no…) If you have what you believe is a valid opinion – about anything – express it. It’s not necessary to be argumentative or confrontational. That can quickly build walls and become an obstacle to any kind of productive communications. But there’s nothing at all wrong with being a creative, independent thinker. Can you imagine what the world would be like if these types of individuals had never existed? We’d still all be huddled in caves wondering where our next meal was coming from. Thank God for goofiness!

So the next time you have a major urge to conform just for conformity’s sake – force yourself out of the cave and introduce your personal new “wheel" concept to the world. And whenever you see someone else wandering off in what you might immediately feel is likely a weird direction, at least give ‘em a pat on the back for having the courage to be themselves and the initiative to try to blaze a new path through life. This world can always use more thinkers – even the really goofy ones!