Don't be different.

Don’t be different, be you.

It’s trite now to hear and say that everyone is unique and to be different and not to worry about what others think but realistically that just doesn’t happen like it should because we’re surrounded by others pressuring us to be like them, whether they realize it or not.

I struggled for a long time with comparing myself to people like John Maxwell, Brene Brown, Simon Sinek, Patrick Lencioni, and whoever else because they’re wise, knowledgeable people who lead in a way that I want to lead. And therein lies the rub. They have knowledge, wisdom, and experience that is beneficial to me, so how to I take that in while remaining myself and not becoming like Simon, or Brene, or Pat.

Well first of all you will change, if you're learning new things then you're growing and so you're changing. You can't have growth without change, but you can still keep the core of who you are the same.

Don’t try to lead (or be) like someone else. Try to be you.

I know that it’s easy to say and difficult to do, so just take baby steps. Look for one little way that you can stop being like someone else and start being yourself.

I think it’s especially difficult because we need to balance learning from those who have come before while not merging ourselves with them. How do we be us while applying what we’ve learned from someone else?

I think it just takes practice.

A lot of practice.

I first think that it takes practice because new things feel awkward, so how do you tell if you’re feeling awkward because it’s new or because it’s not an accurate reflection of you?

I’m not really sure how to make that differentiation, but I know that I always feel relief when I realize that I’ve been trying to be something unnatural. I think that one of the keys is knowing what defines you and why you're living life the way you are. You can take new things on that fit with that and discard those that don't.

I have a lot of questions, and I’m just passing some of them on to you here because I don’t really know and I’m not sure how, even though I have ideas.

Tell me if you figure it out.