If everyone is unique, isn't everyone special?
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Everyone is unique, no doubt about that, but 'unique' and 'special' are not synonyms, and uniqueness is not always valuable. A lame horse among ten able horses is unique, but is it valuable?
There is a Yoruba proverb; A child always thinks his father's farm is the biggest around till he sees the farm of some other person's father. It's natural for us to amplify our value, but the market always dictates the price. Everyone thinks their jewellery is really valuable, till they take it to a pawn shop.
'Special' is a comparative word that measures value. It suggests there is a ranking, a pecking order or a scale. And if there is a scale, you better agree some people are at the top, at the middle and at the bottom of it. We live in an hierarchical society. It's why we have performance grades in school and pay grades at work. It's why we have titles in our communities and ' special guests of honour' at ceremonies. We make decisions every day, we judge, interact with, hire, fire, date, marry people based on their perceivable value.
Saying everyone is special is like saying everyone is 'the best'. If everyone is the best, then nobody is the best.
So how do you become special? It's by acquiring skills, competences and resources. It's by performing excellently and increasing your measurable value. It's by doing something and doing it really well.
Can and will everyone do this? No! And that's why some people are special and some are not. You are special not because you THINK you are, it's because you SHOW you are.
There is a Yoruba proverb; A child always thinks his father's farm is the biggest around till he sees the farm of some other person's father. It's natural for us to amplify our value, but the market always dictates the price. Everyone thinks their jewellery is really valuable, till they take it to a pawn shop.
'Special' is a comparative word that measures value. It suggests there is a ranking, a pecking order or a scale. And if there is a scale, you better agree some people are at the top, at the middle and at the bottom of it. We live in an hierarchical society. It's why we have performance grades in school and pay grades at work. It's why we have titles in our communities and ' special guests of honour' at ceremonies. We make decisions every day, we judge, interact with, hire, fire, date, marry people based on their perceivable value.
Saying everyone is special is like saying everyone is 'the best'. If everyone is the best, then nobody is the best.
So how do you become special? It's by acquiring skills, competences and resources. It's by performing excellently and increasing your measurable value. It's by doing something and doing it really well.
Can and will everyone do this? No! And that's why some people are special and some are not. You are special not because you THINK you are, it's because you SHOW you are.