Shall one play the contrarian or the individual thinker?
It’s not that interesting to be the rejectionist of the status quo just for the sake of it.
What’s more interesting is forming one’s unique style or opinion and projecting that with confidence — minus the bombast, of course.
What individuates individuals is their desire to make a difference because they believe in something.
‘Think different’ is a call for variation and abstraction. We need more of these poets, those who stray to the side to peruse the neglected fragments.
We need less antagonists, those who say the opposite of what everyone else is saying. Thinking outside the box is not a vocation, nor some deliberate existential thrill.
The self-appointed individual pokes at the mainstream without pretentiousness and criticism. She strives to make blind spots visible.
Once we get over the societal pressures of what we like and dislike, we get to focus on the heart work: what matters instead.