Sunday, May 06, 2007
One Me
I just came home after an intensively fun weekend with my LCP Team, Team Bondage. I don't think I have ever laughed nor reflected that much in a weekend. These guys are simply the best guys an MCP can ever have.
At some points during the weekend, I realized one strange yet extremely refreshing thing: these guys are not my subordinates but they are my friends! And not just any kind of friend, but friends who accept me for who I am as a person and who I was as a leader.
There was a brief moment during the last few months when I felt I needed to be normal -- dress normally, act normally, speak normally. I wanted to be "normal" because I have always been the one who asked the inappropriate questions, laughed the loudest and said the most random things, without really caring what other people thought. I was weird (and I am kind of downgrading it already by saying that since I am beyond weird). At a certain point, I did start caring about what people's opinions were of me. Guess what? I started being unhappy.
After being sick, I realized that there is no point in pretending to be something I am not. Maybe people find it strange that I wear the brightest of pink during a season when black in is, but who cares? So what if I don't treat CEO's as people more important than I am and ask them direct questions? Who cares if I dance the weirdest in the club or drink the most? Who cares really? This is my life and I will live it the best way I want to, the best way to make me happy and the best way that make me experience well being.
Of course, I still care about other people and would not really do something extreme like slap a person out of sheer pleasure. What I am trying to say is that being normal is nothing but an illusion created by an´otherwise abnormal society. What is normal in the end is loving who you are, proudly showing your true colors to others and being accepted in the process.
Why should we try to hide our flaws when everyone around us is as flawed? Who really spends time thinking about you but you? Everyone is so caught up in their little bubble that in the end it really does not matter if you were sounded stupid, if you wear the kookiest of clothes or if you have the most "regular" of jobs? Life is too short to be lived for others. In the end, the ones who really care about you, those who call your friends, do not need to be convinced you are a great person anyway.
So now I can proudly say, I accept myself, flaws, strengths and all. There is only one me in this world and I celebrate that. :)
3 comments:
Don't you think it's easier to say, then to do?
Well trust me, I am in zen now. I accept my flaws so badly I want to flaunt it.
But yeah it takes a lot to be in this place. I have a REALLY tough life, that's why I have come to this conclusion. It takes years and a lot of tears.
But you know what? It is worth it.
I really agree with this post. This brings me to the difference between the arts school and the business school. In business schools people are taught to act in a certain way (very conservative etc.) and hide your flaws. In art schools people are taught to do the totally opposite, to be totally unrestricted. The latter environment definitely increases creativity and the earlier decreases it. I find it interesting to see how does it work when they are going to combine these schools in Helsinki: Business and technology meets arts - restricted meets unrestricted...
However, I still find it important to be able to act/dress as the society wants for instance in situations like meeting the CEO =). Everyone who can act as freely as they want in their job can consider themselves very lucky.
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