Being Different Vs. Being Yourself

People are so consumed with being different that they 1) Emulate someone who is considered different, thereby joining the hordes of people who already copy said idol; or 2) Move so far out of the status quo that they are ridiculed and mocked into submission.

If you're trying to be different because you want people to admire you (ie follow you on twitter or read your blog), then you won't get anywhere. You're like these one hit wonders that MIGHT put out a summer jam but brick when the actual album comes out. Your type is a dime a hundred or two, and you'll fade out of existence as quickly as you pounced on you 10-15 seconds of fame.

If you want to truly be different, you've to do so for yourself. You have to appreciate your hobbies, follow your dreams and stand on your values. If you can do so, you will truly be different. Other people will respect and admire that and follow your lead. The secret isn't that people like what you're doing, they like who you are as you do it. And if they don't follow you, it isn't supposed to matter right?

And that's how you become different: being yourself. There is no one else like you in the world. No one else can like anything else quite like you can. Take myself as an example (yeah right). I'm Josh and I like riding the train, the color red and King of the Hill. Random, but that's me. I stick to it, and my friends appreciate it. My friends read my blog and follow me on twitter: if no one else ever did I would still be content.

Forget me (not that quickly nucca) and consider two trailblazers in fashion, music, etc but really who they are: Kanye West and Soulja Boy. Both of them followed their own blueprint.

For a time, Kanye's style was ridiculed as too preppy and gay. Jay-Z originally dismissed Kanye's style, now he copies it down to the album covers. As much of a fool Soulja Boy is, he's following his dreams and making music that resounds with a lot of people despite SoundScan numbers. Half of his last album is on the radio. I believe that he bricked not because no one liked his music, but because it was shared widely over the net. Still, they stuck to what they appreciated and now they are successful.

Bird walking in Osaka, Japan...

But there is the downside to being yourself, sometimes you will leave the status quo. You have to stick to your guns however. I'm always strapped... when I hit the club... Both Kanye and Soulja have had b*tch fits and nervous breakdowns because of the pressure. Kanye has been called a gay fish and Ice-T told Soulja to eat a dick.

...word? What's really good with the allusions to homosexuality when niggas don't like how you rock? Like I'm trying to impress dudes anyway. Pause.

Being different can be heartbreaking, but being yourself is always fulfilling. Success is sometimes random, but peace, happiness and joy are always available.

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