You Are Already Special.
Last month I went to Berlin, the Mecca of individualism, big dreams and unique people.
What I found there is a crowd of very beautiful but pretty much same-looking, same-behaving, same-trend-following humans. I had a slight cultural shock because there’s too much of everything. There’s no limit because we are a society which never gets satisfied. We want more of everything — more of fashion, more of uniqueness, more of food, more of special things and special people.
We all try to stand out and be unique. We strive to find our own taste and be different from everybody else. We want to have a unique opinion, a unique taste, unique story.
We try to be individuals, different-minded and special. We want to be seen as Wow-humans and to feel so. When we wear fancy, modern clothes, speak 10 languages, write poetry, paint our eyebrows, combine haute couture with vintage trash, wear cool sunglasses with a beanie, we feel great about ourselves, and everyone around us thinks, “I wished I was her/him.”
Well, maybe we are seen as hip, but do we really feel this way? From deep within, does this nervous run after societal trends make us happy? Do we feel special?
I guess, we don’t. Simply because we’re still the same crowd, mostly walking with a too serious face, staring into our phones, no smile, no eye contact. We strive to be individuals, but all we end up doing is looking the same, not able to find the root of our eternal feelings of not-enough-ness.
When we see each other’s Instagram accounts, one could think we have the perfect life. But it’s not the case. At the end of the day, we all sometimes feel lonely, left aside, not enough, not special. Feelings of not doing enough and not being creative or good enough at what we do.
What we often forget is that:
a) nobody else looks in the exact same way like us
b) nobody thinks in the exact same way like us
c) nobody brings the exact same ideas to the table
d) nobody loves in the exact same way like us
e) nobody’s ideas are exactly the same
d) nobody has the exact same taste
And so on. It’s an endless list.
So if we are naturally so unique, individuals of greatness and special beauty, why aren’t we proud of this gift and play this magic joker card?
Why do we follow some illusionary trends and end up being a crowd of same-looking people singing the same song instead ?
The trend of today is: authenticity. But it is something we all have already in us for free. We just have to look inside and find our voice… find our selves!
The trend of today is: individualism. But we are already individuals from the day we are born.
The trend of today is: creativity. But we are already infinitely creative when we dare to share. Just remember how creative and courageous you were as a kid until your family members, friends, partners, society subconsciously killed this courage to just create?
The trend of today is: uniqueness. But we are born so unique, like nobody else! Uniqueness is found for free in each one of us.
The trend of today is: spirituality. But we are all spiritual. The spirit is in everything.
There’s no need to have green-pink asymmetric hair and play 10 instruments at the same time, wearing recycled bamboo shoes and a poncho from Peru made by the sacred Amazon snake, in order to be special and feel so.
There’s a need to be the most raw, amazing You. Do you know somebody who is just like you? I don’t. So please do yourself and our world a favor and create, share your ideas, spread your thoughts, your talents and all the good you have inside. This is what we all are hungry for. This is what we’re lacking so much: individuals understanding that they are already individuals.
So next time you don’t feel so very special, remember a) through d) above and smile into this awesome unique mirror. Because there’s indeed nobody as special as you are.
***
Olga Chirkova was born in St. Petersburg and moved to Germany when she was nine. She believes there is no journey which is more difficult than the journey to your own true nature. It can be hard, painful, confusing, but it’s worth it. It is the most beautiful and honest journey there is. Come with her on the journey on her blog.