Don’t be Ordinary
“It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live.” - Marcus Aurelius
“Ordinary” would be an offensive thing to be called. It denotes a lack of uniqueness, and certainly a lack of excellence. “Ordinary” is typically thought of as synonymous with “unremarkable”, but an argument can be made that “ordinary” carries much more profound implications. “Unremarkable” means uninteresting - literally, not worth remarking about - but to call something “ordinary” is to suggest it is disposable, and to explicitly characterize it as so devoid of value, the world would be thoroughly unaffected if the thing were thrown away. To call a person “ordinary” would be commensurate to labeling them useless, because if they suddenly ceased to exist, a million other ordinary people could theoretically step in to take their place.
And yet for how insulted we would feel to be called “ordinary”, an overwhelming portion of modern humanity seems perfectly content - willing, even - to quietly dissolve into ordinariness. One of the defining characteristics of the present age is mankind’s general acquiescence to the pull of laziness and apathy, in stark contrast to the fairly recent golden ages of industrial and scientific advancement. It’s especially notable that this widespread malaise is occurring at a time in which recent progress in medicine, technology, transportation, and communication have made life on earth more ripe with opportunity than ever before.
Of course, nobody is under any illusion that apathy is preferable to achievement; being human means having an innate ambition to elevate oneself in knowledge, skill, and a variety of other ways. But, in large part due to the ease and comfort in which we live today, there’s an unmistakable trend that increasingly sees individuals, namely young adults, letting go of desire to be the best they can, in exchange for contentment with the threshold of ‘just good enough’. People of today - especially young people - demonstrate an unwillingness to go above and beyond, seemingly satisfied with treading the proverbial water when it comes to essentials like finances, work, relationships, and health both mental and physical. Many of us will do just enough to afford rent and prevent getting fired, but recoil at the thought of putting in extra effort without the promise of immediate gratification. We marinate in the belief that success is a predetermined factor, until we become impressed with ourselves for simply accomplishing the bare minimum (see “adulting”), so when we see someone else accomplish something amazing, we remind ourselves not to be impressed because that person was meant to succeed, but we’re inescapably destined to remain ordinary.
The issue with this worldview, obviously, is that nobody is “designed” to be mediocre.
The irony is that most of us only allow ourselves to get away with mediocrity today by promising ourselves that tomorrow, we’ll start chasing greatness. Anyone would like to know what it’s like to fulfill their dreams. But for most people, curiosity isn’t enough to motivate action. Everyone wonders what it’s like to admire the view from Mount Everest, but 99% will never put forth any effort to train for the climb. In a world beset by this pseudo-satisfaction, it’s easy to lose sight of your aspirations; when we see everyone around us pretending to be comfortable with living a wholly unfulfilling life, we do our best to fit in. It’s important to keep in mind the reasons for choosing the narrow road to an excellent life instead of the wide, easy and well-traveled highway that leads to mediocrity.
Firstly, living an excellent life will improve the world around you. The more positively you are able to influence the world, and the more quality you can contribute to the lives of others, the deeper your own enjoyment of life will be. Consider the lives of those who came before us, because of whose hard work we are able to enjoy the benefits of modern transportation, medicine, communication, and other luxuries that wouldn’t have been possible if their creators had acquiesced to mediocrity. We thrive in relative safety and luxury, with endless knowledge and opportunity, thanks to the contributions of those who refused to be ordinary. Consider what an honor it would be knowing that your contributions to the world cause ripple effects that will positively impact future generations. An ancient proverb says that the world flourishes when men plant trees in whose shade they will never sit.
If that isn’t reason enough, consider how many people, past and present, could have only dreamt of the fortunes and opportunities available to you. Others who lack the resources or the potential might give anything to experience what you probably take for granted every day. It’s crucial to honor those who don’t have the same things we are blessed with, by making the most of the gifts we’ve been given. Imagine if someone bought your dream car, only to set it on fire; that’s the equivalent to having something someone else could only imagine, only to let it go to waste.
An acute and gnawing dissatisfaction comes with being ordinary. Nobody’s purpose is to be mediocre; each person has his or her inborn qualities that make us uniquely valuable to the world. This is especially evident for anyone who tries very hard to “fit in” - most fail, because no matter how hard you try you’ll never be the same as someone else; if they do convince themselves they’re fitting in, they become miserable, because there’s no difference whether they’re around or not.
This dissatisfaction only increases as you age. With each passing day that you refuse to pursue your goals, your life feels emptier and emptier. As you get older, you spend more and more time looking back on what could have been, and counting all of the opportunities you carelessly let pass by. Even if you refuse to admit it to anyone else, you won’t be able to fool yourself.
There’s no antidepressant strong enough to combat the emptiness of a wasted life.