I have recently read an article on The School of Life on loneliness and individuality. It made me think about freedom and independence. Though apparently similar, so many nuances separate the two.
It's true that individuality, like independence, is often celebrated as a marker of strength, creativity, and authenticity, but the reality of being different can also be deeply isolating.
Standing out from the crowd, while potentially empowering, frequently comes with feelings of alienation or self-doubt. The experience of constantly noticing how we don’t quite fit in—whether in terms of beliefs, personality, or even lifestyle choices—can sometimes leave us feeling more bewildered than emboldened.
I have experienced this feeling of “weirdness” all my life, with all the choices I made. Always, labeled as the “different one” wherever I went. When we find ourselves in such space, the gap between who we are and who others expect us to be may become painful. Instead of revelling in our uniqueness, we may feel disconnected, questioning whether our differences are a source of strength or a burden. I often felt they were a burden (confession).
In such moments, the social fabric we rely on for a sense of belonging it is stretched thin.
This tension between celebrating our uniqueness - we are all unique, none of us is special - and confronting the loneliness, sometimes brings a fundamental human paradox. It reminds us that while individuality is important, so too is the human need for connection, for shared experiences that help ground us in a collective sense of meaning.
In a world that often prizes conformity over creativity, many of us have felt the sting of being misunderstood, marginalized, or even labeled as "crazy/weird." I am inviting you to reclaim that sense of uniqueness, to reclaim the freedom of uniqueness and its innocence. I am inviting you to reclaim your unique innocence. I am opening a new session of Reclaim your Innocence on October 24th at 18:00 CET. More info here.
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