November 28th, 2007 in Productivity

Avoiding Mediocrity: Do You Dare to Be Different?

Following the herd is a sure way to mediocrity.
Patti Wilson

I don’t know about you, but one of the things I’m afraid most in life is mediocrity. For me, life is too precious to be lived in mediocrity. Life is a golden opportunity, and we should use it as good as we can. Living in mediocrity means we do not use the opportunity as good as we should.

Unfortunately, many people are trapped in mediocrity. I believe one of the main reasons is they do not dare to be different. You need to be different if you want to be above the average. The question is:

Do you dare to be different?

This question might not be easy to answer, but how you answer it will make the difference between excellence and mediocrity.

Here are some more specific questions to help you check yourself and take actions:

1. Do you have a dream?

This is the first question you should ask yourself. I believe one of the main reasons people just follow the herd is they don’t have a dream. If there is nothing to pursue then why bother being different?

But a dream is what sets you above the average. Not having a dream means going to mediocrity on autopilot.

If your answer for this first question is “no” then start searching. I’m sure you have a dream deep inside of you. It might be something from your childhood. Maybe for long time you have been too busy to let the little voice of your dream be heard. This is the right time to heed that little voice.

If you have found your dream, the next question is whether or not you have the courage to follow it. Questions two through five will deal with that.

2. Are you doing what you want or what you should?

There are often implicit “rules” about what someone should do in a particular situation. For example, when there are two job opportunities, the “rule” says that you should take the one with higher pay.

But is that what you want? I mean, does it help you achieve your dream? Maybe the job with less pay will help you achieve your dream while the one with higher pay doesn’t. Do you have the courage to be different and follow your dream?

3. Do you worry more about being loved than being what you love?

Another reason why we don’t dare to be different is because we are trying to meet other people’s expectations. We often worry more about what other people say than about what matters to us. But living someone else’s life is a bad way to live your life. Why should you lose opportunity just because of what other people say?

4. Do you choose what is safe rather than what is right?

Maybe you are not trying to meet other people’s expectation. Maybe you just don’t want to take risks and therefore you choose to play safe. But this is exactly what many old people regret. When they were asked in a study about what they regretted most and what they would do differently, most of them answered: “I wish I had risked more.” Don’t let the same regret happen to you.

5. If you had only six months left to live, would you do what you are doing now?

You can only answer “yes” to this question if what you are doing matters to you. Doing what matters to you is a sure way to excellence since you will do it with all your heart. But you need the courage to be different and follow your heart. Do you have it? I hope your answer is yes. Life is too precious to be lived in mediocrity.

WRITER'S BIOGRAPHY

Donald Latumahina

Donald Latumahina writes about personal growth and effectiveness at Life Optimizer. His mission is helping people live life to the fullest. You can read his featured posts on multiple topics.

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Open English says on November 28th, 2007 at 11:31 am

This is a really great article, I loved it, especially the last question. Sadly I think most people in the world aren’t doing what they want to do but what they think they should do, its sad.
Truthteller says on November 28th, 2007 at 1:24 pm

don’t know who wrote this but I have it on my wall next to the computer….

“The man who follows the crowd will usually get no further than the crowd. The man who walks alone, is likely to find himself in places, no one has ever been before…

You have two choices: you can dissolve into the mainstream or you can be distinct. To be distinct you must be different. To be different, you must strive to be what no one else but you can be”
corey says on November 28th, 2007 at 1:43 pm

I made the mistake of taking the higher paying job earlier this summer. Climbing the corporate ladder got old real quick and the novelty of cubicle dwelling even faster. So after four months I announced that I was leaving to pursue what I really wanted to do. I could tell my my coworkers reaction they were shocked, and perhaps a bit jealous. Taking the road of lesser pay also motivates me travel it right. If I’m going to follow this path, I’m going to do everything I can to succeed at it. It’s sort of an all or nothing mentality. I will take job potential over job security any day
Mary says on November 28th, 2007 at 7:53 pm

Being ‘different’ can be scary - but, what the hay!

I recently read a book by Tai Archbold where I was entertained, inspired and enlightened, all in one book. Now that is true Empowerment and certainly not safe!
mary says on November 29th, 2007 at 8:04 am

Excellent article. It’s amazing how the simplest concepts are usually the most profound.
I think one thing I would add to the list would be fear, but I suppose that fear in some form of the other underlies all the things you’ve outlined: The fear of being perceived as different, the fear of being ridiculed, the fear of failing, the fear of not maintaining the status quo, ad nauseum ad infinitum.

thanks for an thought-provoking and inspiring post!
Phil says on November 29th, 2007 at 8:27 am

This summer I decided to step off the career ladder and began co-authoring a website about happiness in the workplace. I’m still working (hard) at the “day job”, but I’ve never felt happier in my labours - in the office or at home!! The key thing is that we’re not building the site to make money but to allow us to do what we love. What’s interesting is that I no longer feel unhappy at work because I’ve re-framed what it means to me. I still definitely earn my salary, but now work is more a vehicle to allow me to do other things, rather than the main focus of my life. The satisfaction I get from my life outside of work is worth far more than the extra money or status I could earn by continuing to climb the career ladder. I just wish it hadn’t taken me quite so long to realise it!

Phil
http://www.the-happy-manager.com
Honey B says on November 29th, 2007 at 2:32 pm

Wow. Talk about mediocre (and grammatically incorrect) writing!

Mediocrity is based more on how you see your own life than on what you do with it. If you think your life is mediocre, than it is, regardless of what choices you’ve made.

The safe choice might be legitimate in some instances, and not in others, as is making a decision based on someone’s else’s needs and not your own. That’s called being a grown-up. I believe in living the life you want to live, but this article makes it seem so simple: Don’t have a dream? get one at the local Dreams R Us! Dare to be Different! Don’t Make the Safe Choices! It’s just so much greeting-card psychology.

Besides, what do you mean by “different”? Everyone is “different” from everyone else on some level. We all make choices for our own reasons; some of them are good reasons and others are not-so-good reasons, yet those choices are all still legitimate, even if they aren’t “different.”

How about dare to be yourself, whether you make the same choices as someone else or not, whether you live some childhood dream or not, whether you decide to be safe in this instance or not?

Sometimes being a true friend is more worthwhile than living a dream of being a legendary skydiver or hiking the Himalayas. If that’s mediocre, then so be it.
Donald Latumahina says on November 29th, 2007 at 10:20 pm

Thanks everyone! I enjoy reading your comments and learn a lot from them.

Honey B,
What I mean by being different is not to just follow the crowd, either on autopilot or to meet someone else’s expectation.
I believe everyone has a “calling” that takes her above the average in certain area. By definition, being “above the average” means you should be different from the crowd (which comprises “the average”).
Chaos Tamer says on December 3rd, 2007 at 11:46 am

I commend to you the book “Living Above the Level of Medocrity - A Commitment to Excellence”, by Charles Swindoll, Word Books, Waco, Texas, 1987.
Since Dr. Swindoll is a Christian minister and teacher, you can expect that basis in an extraordinarily applicable book for all people.
Briefly, key sections are:
1. Confronting Mediocrity Takes Thinking Clearly;
2. Overcoming Mediocrity Means Living Differently;
3. Combating Mediocrity Requires Fighting Fiercely;
4. Resisting Mediocrity Includes Standing Courageously;
…and lists/discusses(serially) through those sections 16 basic tenets.
Partial Swindoll Quote: “Living anywhere near the level of mediocrity…that’s where life gets dull, drab, predictable, and tiring…boring, a direct result of low aim.” (follows on James Russell Lowell’s “Not failure, but low aim, is the crime”.

All the best.