Statistically, I don’t think it’s possible to be perfectly average. Even if it were, this would only be momentary. In a split second the average shifts, given the billions of people in the world…
So what difference would it make if we were to think of ourselves and everyone around us as extraordinary? How would it affect the stories we tell ourselves and the way we see others?
Our narrative
In a world that wants to constantly grade people, it’s so easy to let others rank us. Or for us to be overly conscious of where we are not hitting the mark.
Unfortunately, without our consciously agreeing to it, we often end up in some sort of box. Limitations of expectations. Boundaries of capability and influence. The right to speak or think.
But they are just constructs and don’t give room for our extraordinariness.
So where do you shine? What do you notice that others fail to see? What keys do you have that will unlock doors for people to walk through?
Or to use a phrase I’ve been playing with recently: making the kind of ruckus we were created for…
Our story of ‘them’
In our tentative steps to embrace a different narrative about ourselves, we also have a choice about how we see others. And the impact can be liberating or condemning.
For example, in my community as I was growing up, which school you went to was very important. It represented a judgement of your worth and your potential (and whether you were likely to get into trouble). And people in the community, some more overtly than others, altered their expectations, their conversations, and their support accordingly. Where you were placed aged eleven could determine your whole future.
This was an era where worldviews were givens, and few questioned them.
Today we have different versions of ‘us and them’. And whilst our appreciation of diversity is greater, so is our insularity. We are often too busy to ‘see’ others and our agendas make it easier to put people into boxes.
So as Quiet Disruptors I believe we have a choice: to be intentional and generous, or to become more self-absorbed. Ultimately I wonder if this is a decision about power – power over, or power to.
We all have some level of power, even if it’s just the potential to decide how we view people. This is an internal judgement. We can use this power to put people into boxes that make us feel more comfortable. Or we can choose to look for what makes them extraordinary and seek to support them in realising it. This can have many expressions.
However, if we only have a faint appreciation of what makes us extraordinary, it makes it much harder to genuinely see it in others.
So how about starting with writing ten ways in which you are extraordinary…
This week
Reflecting on the short posts this week:
– Monday: Disruption doesn’t require noise – we can hold the power of transformation, quietly
– Tuesday: Creating a fresh wave of change – there are people waiting for us – are you ready?
– Wednesday: Just how far have we come? – pause and take a moment to be encouraged
– Thursday: If only you could see what I can see – yes!
– Friday: Seeds of change – these are real and living