ARTICLE SUMMARY: Growing up were you considered a geek or a nerd or worse yet, a jock?
Growing up, especially in high school there were stereotypes that we were all classified with and that label stuck to us all through school no matter how hard we tried to change it.
“THE VALUE OF BEING A CREATIVE WEIRDO” written by Michael Buckley is a look back at high school and how the high school caste system help shape and influence his life.
As creatives, designers and artist we do not usually fit in with the crowd. For the most part we are non athletic, not super smart, not overly social in general, we are more of an individualist, loners of a sort that never really fit in anywhere. It turns out that that’s ok.
Michael Buckley reflects on some of the weird patterns he has observed from his past
- Stereotypes and the social perceptions
- Ignorance of others
- Social Harmony
He also talks about aligning your values and how we can not fundamentally alter the way others perceive us. However, there are techniques to improve our confidence and authenticity, which can lead to a positive perception by the most important person of all, yourself.
Michael Buckley concludes his article by stating “Highly creative people will never truly fit in with the rest of society, which is a good thing. They are the innovators and help push us forward into the unknown. They must never succumb to the social conformity of blending in or becoming who they are not. To some degree, we must all embrace who we are as unique individuals and focus on maturing our authenticity instead of becoming obsessed with social validation.”
This is a great read, don’t be to surprised if you see some of yourself in this article.
Let us know what you think in the comments.
