Weirdo

This week’s memo: “Strange people build better worlds.”

“Couldn’t be me.” Unfortunately it really couldn’t be them because being the odd one out comes with pressure most people avoid. Figures like Nikola Tesla, Albert Einstein, Vivienne Westwood, and Steve Jobs all had difficult paths. People dismissed their ideas, misunderstood them, and often treated them like outsiders. They stood out because they were original, and they kept believing in their ideas while also learning when to adjust.

I had to confront myself on how far I was going just to appear normal. I silenced my voice in moments that mattered, avoided experiences that would have built me, and consistently showed up in ways that took away from me instead of solidifying me. The hardest part about the confrontation was realizing I did it for people I wouldn’t even want to switch lives with.

A lot of people who feel different end up thinking life is a get right or get left situation. It’s definitely not. The real challenge is learning how to express yourself. Self expression is a skill, not something you either have or don’t have.

If you’re multifaceted, you probably already know what it feels like to have different parts of you pulling in different directions. Your mind keeps creating new thoughts and ideas, but you can’t build a clear identity from everything you think. At some point, you have to decide what represents you. You have to get in your head that you’re not a mess, you’re just unstructured.

When you write down what you like, what matters to you, and what you want to become, things start to take shape. Without that, you just show up as potential without focus. Structure helps people understand you, and it helps you understand yourself.

In the beginning, building structure can feel strange. When you start acting with intention, it might feel fake or forced. The feeling is most likely imposter syndrome. If you’ve been used to moving freely without rules, discipline can feel like you’re becoming someone else. People will notice changes in you and question it. They might say you’re acting different or trying too hard. Ignore that because it doesn’t automatically make them right. Improvement is real work. You’re not becoming someone else you’re just gaining control over who you already are and how you show up, ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT.

Odd people have always added something important to the world. They notice things others ignore, they bring new ideas into normal spaces, and they challenge what people think is possible. Now do know that being “odd” only helps if you can express it in a way people can understand. Otherwise, it just stays inside you without direction.

There’s a difference between being unique and calling yourself weird without knowing what that means. Some people use that label as a way to avoid defining themselves. If you don’t take time to figure yourself out, you end up showing up as unfinished thoughts instead of a clear identity.

Do you want to try to fit into what’s normal, or do you want to shape yourself into something true to you? Do you want to enjoy what others have already made or do you want to create for your own pleasure? It won’t happen overnight, but it can happen over time. You only get one life, and learning how to express yourself might be one of the most important things you ever do.

- Lionel Loevall Reddick