Are you standing out or blending in?

I would describe the election campaign for the next national government in Australia, now in its third week, as bland, boring, and baseless.

Neither the Prime Minister Julia Gillard or the alternative Tony Abbott have done anything to stand out in my view, rather they both seem intent on blending in rather than standing out.

Neither Gillard or Abbott have articulated a vision for the future that is compelling.  From what I have heard them say, I have no idea where we might be going as a nation except more of the same or a return to the past, neither of which is attractive to me.

Broadly speaking I meet three kinds of people; the happy being miserable, the happy being mediocre, and the happy being magnificent.

The happy being miserable complain about everything and are disengaged from reality.  I would put Mr.  Abbott in this category.  He seems a decent man with good intentions however his behaviour is about criticizing others rather than standing out himself.

The happy being mediocre sit on the fence and are also disengaged.  Prime Minister Gillard, also a decent human being with good intentions is in this category.  She seems to be promising more of the same when the electorate clearly wants a lot to be different. Her slogan is moving forward yet her rhetoric is about standing still.

The happy being magnificent don’t complain or sit on the fence rather they stand out from the crowd and leave us in no doubt about where they are going, why they’re going there, how we can join them on the journey, and what they stand for.

The future belongs to those who create it and if your blending in or sitting on the fence then all that your future holds is more of the same or worse.

Please stand out.

Become the magnificent one-of-a-kind human being that you are. 

You can change your world for the better and in the process you will inspire others to stand out rather than blend in.

And who knows we might just inspire politicians to be true to themselves rather than their parties outdated and mostly irrelevant ideologies and become 21st century leaders instead of relics of the past.

Be the difference you want to see in the world
Ian
Founder Differencemakers Community
Catalyst for changing what’s normal for the good of people, our planet, and for profit

PS Monday morning mentoring

Two years ago I began to offer mentoring on skype to my clients as a standalone service, or as part of a package, and recently this kind of mentoring became part of the package of Torchbearer membership of differencemakers community. 

On most Monday mornings wherever you happen to be in the world I can provide a 30 minute mentoring session for free.  All you need to do to book your session is email me with a date and time.  When I am already booked I will email you back with alternative dates and times.