Make a MARK: Differentiate yourself so that you can complement others

‘It shouldn’t just be me, but 10 other people who should say you are a star’ – it’s several years now, that I have heard this for me. Since then, no single day passed-by without reflecting on that conversation. These are some simplest ways to inspire people and change their life – aren’t they?

I can say this is my first post, and only to realize it’s been over two decades that I have been out of the practice of penning down thoughts. Thinking through, indeed, don’t know where the habit of maintaining a personal diary has gone these days/years. Well...there’s no better day than today to start it again, when it is a spree of sentiments running in the current times for self and others!

Now back to the topic. What did it mean? Simple - ‘Be a Differentiator’. You might be doing the same things as others, but do you leave a distinguishing mark for yourself that no one else can reach. The brand of ‘YOU’, is what mattered. The brand of making ‘others look good’ as well, was what mattered the most. The inspiration sounds ‘powerful’- right? But it isn’t easy!

The first things that generally strike the mind, what does it take to be that person – are you a specialist, do you offer uniqueness, do you understand the target, are you a problem solver, do you maintain effective relationships. Let me tell you, they all sounded secondary and what significantly counted to me were (and continue to be) -

1.      Trust – it must be true. It simply cannot be made up.

2.      Importance – it adds value to the entire system. If not, then what’s the point?

3.      Prove it – if you cannot demonstrate it, it won’t be believed.

So, what does making others look good mean? Not that you wanted to be ‘the blue-eyed’, but it is about providing support, being their back like creating a canvas for others to paint. Be the ‘anteambulo’! Clear the path for people around you, above you, and you will eventually create a path for yourself. Proceed in front of the benefactor in anything and anywhere, make the way for those above and lead the way for those around, do the right communication and most importantly of all ‘walk-the-talk’. Live it, and generally make other’s lives easier!  

If you are about to start now, be sure of a few fundamental realities too – 

1. You are not as important as you think you are, but you need to find yourself among all.

2. You must be having an attitude (define it for yourself), but that needs to be readjusted. Remember you are dealing with above and around.

3. Most of what you think you know is wrong or not valid now, so unlearn and learn. Upskill and re-skill yourself. But be ahead of everyone in there, always be knowledgeable.

There is one fab way to work all of this out of yourself: relationship – find yourself attached to people and the organization who are successful, your identify - subsume yours into theirs and move both of them forward concurrently.

What all did it mean through the journey? Being a person who not only enjoys but loves anything that I do, and equally being a person who thrives on challenges, it’s two things – Happiness quotient and Success Quotient. To me it was, once again proving the anecdotal evidence that ‘making others look good’ is a powerful pathway to personal growth and lasting happiness. And btw, it’s not a jolly ride – it has its own areas to pause and look at. Will share next time. Just take the learning from here to ‘Be the Differentiator’. Be that someone, who not only makes a MARK for self, but complements others too.

Through this post, it is my gratitude to the positive influence that, the one sentence leaves forever in life (one at the beginning of the post). And I would like to share it towards my commitment to pay-it-forward. I have promised to myself to do it, during all the learning from the coaching that has transformed me to what I am today. I have always shared my experiences and learning (including mistakes, no regrets!) with groups of people in-live, but in the current world sharing through this post to create any small impact that it could in helping others reset their button or give it a thought.

Here’s the good news, not just that, it’s fairly larger good news – that everyone has a chance to stand out. Everyone has a chance to be a brand worthy of remark. Check if you are the one. Touch someone who is in need during the current times, be it personal or professional or just a moral support. Stand-by and be their back, make them look good in whatever form it is. But you may want to remember all the pointers above.