Don't Be Ordinary - Stand Out

Recently I saw one of my favorite Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes. This one included Q, a god-like creature, who allow Captain Picard to go back in time to when he first graduated from Starfleet Academy. In his youth he was brash, took risks and that caused him to be stabbed in a fight. In his trip back in time he wanted to change that, to be less risky, more ordinary. Q allowed him to change his past but when he went back to his future, he was no longer captain. He was now in a boring job on the ship taking orders from others. Q informed him that it was his qualities of brashness, his boldness, his risk taking that made him become the captain. He was seen by people because he had those qualities.

OK, why am I rehashing a Star Trek episode? One because it's good but more importantly, we can learn something from this episode. We can learn to not be ordinary. We can learn to stand out. Think about it. When you were growing up and wanted to be picked to be on a team, you had to stand out among your peers by being good at the sport. The same will be true for you throughout life. If you want to be selected for a job, or picked for a particular assignment, you have to find a way to stand out. Ways to stand out can include working longer than others, giving helpful input into a project, volunteering, etc. Whatever you do, find a way to be exciting and wanted. Just don't be ordinary.