You have to be odd to be…

The odd and even numbers start with the numbers one and two respectively. In life, we attach a lot of importance to standing first be it in academics, sports, quizzes or in form of competition. Perhaps the only place a person is not keen to be first, is in the roll call list. It may look ironic, that to be first you have to acknowledge that it is an odd number. However, there is a large message though, which suggests that you have to be odd, different, stand out in a crowd, evolve into someone unlike anyone else, if one wants to stand first. The challenge is to mentally be ready to be different, have the self belief that being different is the way to be noticed, that being different does not mean being a deviant and that when one is different, the conformists (who are always in a majority) would try everything in their power to bring you back in line.

Here are a few rules to being on top and standing first:

Give wings to your imagination – All of us have a wild imagination that often pops in the form of dreams, ideas, wishes, hopes and wishful thinking. To give momentum to your imagination think wildly, be creative, don’t curb your instincts and never prejudge your thoughts. Let you mind free to explore, to soar high, to visualize creatively, to be wild and fantasize. Look around and observe the man made wonders and you will see the wonders created by imaginative people. If they had curbed their natural urge, stifled their wild imagination and feared criticism they would never have achieved what they did. Be odd in your thinking and that is the way to be number one.

Dare to be different – A wild imagination will give you ample alternatives to explore. However, picking on one of the numerous brilliant ideas that you have would be a huge challenge. Most times we are caught between choosing from equally attractive and equally challenging alternatives. More importantly you may never find support from those around you, who cannot be as imaginative as you or are constrained by their own understanding and logic. Thus the choice of alternative becomes even more complex for it is yourself belief that has to overcome all rational objections. If you can see the path ahead, no matter how rocky or perilous, you can be sure very few will dare to walk that path and so you have the advantage to be pioneering the way. By being different, you risk being labeled odd but remember fortune favors the brave.

Never fear failure – There is an inherent risk of failure in any new venture. Failure must therefore be viewed as a reality check, that helps keep the venture on track. Fear of failure is perhaps the single biggest reason that separates the achievers from the dreamers. The achievers have factored in the risk of failure and then made decisive progress whereas those who had lofty ideas, gigantic plans and aimed for a risk free venture got waylaid by a syndrome called ‘paralysis by analysis’. Managing failure is also an art. The focus must be on root cause analysis and fixing the problem rather than apportioning blame and squabbling. When confronted with failure there is a thin line between being obstinate and having confidence; the key is to listen, observe, think through and be humble enough to correct the errors. When one fails there will be plenty of criticism, lots of well meaning but often ill directed advice; be rationale in evaluating them. Bear in mind that failure is not falling down but failure to get up.

Act today – Most plans never take off because we wait for that perfect moment. Most times the perfect moment is always delayed because we have never defined what that perfect moment is. In a race the starter gun begins the race. In our quest for glory we wear two hats; that of the starter and that of the participant. More importantly in our mind we do not see the rivals and so we believe we are competing only against ourselves and so we wait to make the perfect start. They say that even a tortoise makes progress only when it sticks it’s neck out; be bold enough to stick your neck out and begin today.

Keep improvising –They say quality has no finishing line. No matter what you have achieved, there is scope for improvement. When you strive to improve further, you remain competitive. You make yourself invaluable and edge ahead of the competition. One trait that always helps become competitive by improvising is by listening and paying attention to feedback. The negative feedback about yourself, the positive feedback about the competition and the wish list that people express, all provide vital inputs for you to reinvent yourself. Imagination and asking questions are the other traits that will provide you inputs to work upon to edge past the competition and get that odd number one spot.

Each day provides you and opportunity to improve upon yourself. Every new thought, act and effort that helps you grow, change and improve means you are better than the day before. You are retaining your number one spot by choosing to be at odds with the previous day and bettering yourself.

Try these:

Read the poem If by Rudyard Kipling by clicking on the following link http://tinyurl.com/6xkmplx
List out the actions that you have initiated despite not getting support from family and friends, that have helped you achieve something significant. Can you recall actions that you initiated that failed by still helped you improve by learning from that failure?
Identify a hero and a heroine from history that you admire. Find out at least 2 decisive decisions / actions/ initiatives that each of them took that was bold, different and path breaking that made them a hero and heroine in your estimation.