The Phenomenon: How to Become One by Samuel Ufot Ekekere - HTML preview

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your unique INDIVIDUALITY: create it

Everyone is a unique personality however the semblance with some person that has being before. Our world is filled with too many crowds that soak the true identity of those who would have stood out. The bandwagon effect is the mitigating factor that those who intend to be Phenomenons must fight. It’s a really big challenge especially as it seems the attractive and very convenient option. However the challenge, you will have to get of the band wagon and let it go.

How about taking a trek?

The availability of the bandwagon eases worry of getting to the destination, but it heads to a crowded destination. Phenomenons don’t share the stage with the crowd. No, they watch the crowd from the stage. The crowd can afford to ease their way to the concert with some silly lucre any time they desire but the phenomenon will have to walk and work his way to the stage and prove he is worth watching. What this means is you may have just only you trekking that long route to the phenomenal status at the beginning with people mocking and yelling at how foolish you may seem. But if you continue the trek, you will find people who certainly will believe in your trek and they’d jump from their wagons and you’d soon need a wagon too and your new status will be driver position rather than being driven.

• Here’s some things to note about the trek
• It could be TIRING at first. Imagine trying to run the 1KM distance for the first time. Its often a huge task for first timers. You’d lose sweat fast and you’d consider quitting at the first time before even reaching the 500m mark. That’s the same feeling trying to become that individual phenomenon creates. You may tire or wear out over thinking of the silence that characterizes the initial individualistic life and the seemingly heavy load of work you have to do. Like the would-be athlete who continues until his body adapts and is disciplined to the distance, you have to persist.
• It may not seem the REALISTIC option at first. Just imagine jumping down the band wagon with all the noise and seemingly joyful people and choosing to trek solemnly the distance where the crowd is heading especially if you have kilometers to cover. It doesn’t seem realistic. But individualistic phenomenal people dare to do the unrealistic. They jump out from the wagon and yell “to hell!!” with the howling mob. They’d rather enjoy the silence and inspiration that comes with a trek; feel the pain that the distance may offer knowing that at the other end when they get to the concert, they’d be the ones the howling mob would be watching.
• It could be EXCOMMUINICATING at first. Those who have lived the phenomenal life had that initial misunderstanding with the crowd in the bandwagon. The crowd turn their eyes against them, seeing them as threats to what seem like their elusive joy. Check on Bill Gates, Martin Luther, Reihnard Bonnke, W.F Kumuyi, Yongi Cho, Martin Luther King Jnr., Mohammed Ghandi and all those who have started one movement or the other through history. The common story you’d get is they were misunderstood, misconstrued and excommunicated from where they had belonged because they chose to develop their new individual thoughts quite different from what they were used to.
• You may be considered KIND OF NUTS at first. Everyone who’s on the crowd think the crowd is the major way to flow. If you are not on their bandwagon then you are nowhere. You may be considered whack, thoughtless, cracked or perhaps even mad. But that’s the only way the individual you can be created. You have to accept their verdict at least for now and head on with the phenomenal you in mind.

Developing and maintaining your individuality is a huge task in our modern society especially with the use of propaganda and mass conformism as a means of helping people find sense of value in the community around which they live. This system often has a huge effect on persons who choose to single themselves out. We are faced with a society that kills our capability to think out of the box and abnormal sometimes because we are offered norms and sometimes, even fines against this norms. We often find it difficult to find that individual who we truly are but rather we stick to this callous waste of our energy.

You sure want to break off this.

1. Spend time with yourself. The strongest part of us is that longing to be welcomed amongst our friends, colleagues, acquaintances and associates. We want that enjoyable communication flow that keeps us around these persons. While this is healthy, we need to learn to spend time with ourselves. This might seem lonely and sad a situation at first but its only in activating this side of us that we truly live the words of Plato “man know thyself, an unexamined man is not worth living”. Take some time out in the warm hands of nature and bath yourself with mild creative inspiration that can only come when you are alone. It doesn’t mean you are leaning towards being an introvert. Rather you are reflecting into yourself and getting to know yourself better than you already do and you will be able to create your original thoughts and pattern of life that is uniquely you

2. Try creating something and anything however little. We are individuals with characteristic nature and purpose. We often come to this realization but because of the “adoption of common front” or the “application of universal principles”, we have blinded our eyes to the individual us and what we are capable of doing. There is an original creative instinct inside you that is only yours. It’s the same for the over 7 billion people who leave on earth’s ground. Our genetic makeup is all different meaning God created us differently each to be creative ingenious. There is something creative about you that is too special in a world of over 7 billion persons. Begin to create. If you can write, write. If you can talk, talk. If its sculpting you are good at, do it. If you are good in acting, act. Surprisingly, Phenomenons are not created because they made their way to school. No, they tapped into their creative ingenuity and seized on that. The academic system provides us with already known knowledge. You can’t make difference with what is already known. What is inside you is unknown and that’s what drives all the scholars crazy. They want to know what the great new idea you are pouring out is. The truth is an original idea however minute it is, is worth a billion already existing idea however giant they may seem. So now, get at creating, that’s where your individuality lies.

3. Set your goals high. For you to get out of the bandwagon of similar thinking men means you know there is something the crowd cannot offer. The crowd only comes to watch and you are not going to watch. You want to be watched. What this means is, your goals must be far apart from that of the crowd. You won’t want to make that long trek only to go and watch along with those who had used the wagon. The trek then would be a foolish act. You have the stage at sight. Your goal should:

S. Stimulate you to get off the bandwagon, make the trek and get through all the challenges that comes with the trek until you make it to the stage.

T. Target being the cynosure of attention rather than watching those who are the objects of attention.

1. Activate a passion to improve your creative instincts infinitesimal until it becomes the standard for others.

G. Get you off the distractions that may come as a result of your seemingly delay in reaching the stage and the mocking that may come as a result of this.

E. Encourage you with a brighter picture than where you are now.

You cannot afford to lose sight on that delightsome big picture you have creatively designed. You may not be encouraged at first and some unambitious person may advice you to give up because they are afraid of realizing their bad mistakes in life. You can’t afford to give up until you achieve your goal.

4. Allow your instincts rule and be fearless. Encourage your individuality by standing up to defend your thoughts or opinions even if others say they are wrong. Allow your instincts rule and direct you rather than some cowardly person who has not achieved one bit before. It pays to find who you really are and what you really stand for and spread the news about it.

5. Create your own purpose.  What is your purpose? It seems a question clouded in some mystery. To make it easier, find that act you love and can’t do without every day, note it. Find people who have lived their lives doing what you love. Meet them, share ideas and then create your own individual identity at what you love. You love music. How about quitting singing people’s song and writing yours? You love reading books. How about writing books that others will read? Get at creating on what you love doing and before long you will find you have created your own big purpose for living.

With all certainty the individual you is what everyone wants to see, but everyone won’t see it and they won’t allow themselves the fun of seeing the individual you if you are hanging with them. The bottom line is; you will have to quit everyone to be someone.