I had an interesting conversation in a meeting today about the belief that we can be anything we want to be. Our society wants us to believe that if you work really hard and persevere that you can achieve anything. “American Idol” and “So You Think You Can Dance” sell the promise that fame and fortune are just a perfect performance away. Millions of college athletes sacrifice their bodies every day for the dream of going pro. Everyday, thousands of university grads submit a resume for a job that only one of them will receive. In fact the American Dream being sold to us, that the perfect future is within our reach, may actually be setting us up for disappointment and failure.
Now how’s that for a happy thought of the day?
But what if humans were not created to be this way. Maybe working our butts off to achieve some fantasy is not the ideal plan for our lives. What if each of us is a uniquely created person with vastly different personalities, experiences, gifts and talents? If this were true than no one would be capable of judging us, grading us, and deciding whether or not Hollywood is ready for us. (Sorry Cat and Nigel). What if where we are was exactly where we were supposed to be? In all our striving to become something we’re not, we often miss who we really are. Life would take on a totally different feel if we were free from a life of competition where we were felt like we’re being ranked and judged.
I believe that you and I weren’t meant to strive for some carrot that society defines. I believe that we were created to fit uniquely into a role that no one else can fill. Instead of exhausting ourselves trying to attain predetermined acknowledges and achievements, each of us should instead invest time getting to know ourselves better, and evolving into the person we were created to be. It’s not just that we’re square pegs trying to fit into round holes, our shape is so unique that there is really only one place in life we’ll ever fit. More often than not, that place will be exactly where we are right now. It will be fluid and ever changing. It will cause us to be flexible. It will make life challenging and exciting all at the same time. Most importantly it will lead us into a life that we never dreamed possible, but one that has never been defined. We’re not marching towards a destination to win at life; we’re evolving throughout a journey that is distinct from anyone else. We’re free to be us.
The message of, “You can be whatever you want.” needs to be adjusted.
The message should be, “You were created to be unique”. Spend a little time discovering how different you are, and maybe the American dream will fade away into a new more exciting reality.
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