Someone who is original is a person who goes against normal behavior and beliefs, in a good way. To improve upon the current, you must be open to the possibility that there’s better. Originality is freshness. To be original is to bring about that which is “fresh”.

Someone who is original won’t be afraid to stand out and speak up. It takes courage to do something in a different way than how it’s supposed to be done. You have to be brave to be different than how you’re expected to be. Originality is daring. To be original you have to be bold.

These are the people that drive creativity and change in the world, originals. Their mannerisms are like guidelines for being creative. Although it may seem like the originals were just destined to be, and nobody else stands a chance, this is not true. It’s all about your mentality. If you can get your mind set on adopting the mannerisms of originals, you can be one too.

Mannerisms Of An Original:

• They are moderate procrastinators. If you rush to get things done quickly, there’s no time for new ideas to sneak into the mix. If you take too long, there won’t be any ideas at all. When you’re right in between, ideas can brew and hatch more ideas you’d never expect. So it’s ok to be quick to start and slow to finish, as long as you make it to the end.
• They aren’t always the first, but they are different and better.
• They manage fear and doubt differently. Instead of letting it paralyze them, they use it as fuel for motivation to test, experiment and refine.
• They take the initiative to doubt the default – that what already is. Originals will seek out a better alternative.
• Because their mind is open to other options, they’re likely to experience “vuja de“. This is the phenomenon of looking at something you’ve seen countless times before and suddenly seeing it in a new way.
• They don’t let fear stop them from trying. The originals biggest regrets are not their actions, but their inactions; the memory of the chances not taken.
• They never worry about what people will think of them. Embarrassment is of no concern to an original.
• They produce mass amounts of material. Their constant output of ideas guarantees that, within the variety of attempts, there are moments of originality.

So as you can see, being original is not about being a “chosen one”. It’s just a way of perceiving things. Think of being creative as just, being curious; and go for it! The more originals there are around, the better the world will become.

I got my inspiration for this article from the following Ted Talk by Adam Grant:

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