be like me, be like me, be like me, lie to me

i'm pretty convinced it is ingrained into our nature to expect others to be like us. in other words, we crave uniformity.

when you are a certain type of person, you tend to feel this more than others. i think creatives feel this a ton. creatives tend to be stereotyped to oblivion...they're lazy, unorganized, messy, late, procrastinators, with untucked shirts, uncut hair, pierced everything, and no money.

these are of course are all lies, but are all true. i have been lazy, unorganized, messy, late, procrastinated, left my shirt untucked when it was 'appropriate' to tuck it in, left my hair ragged even when it makes people uncomfortable, pierced my ears 5 times and my eyebrow and can be known as something of a mooch.

now. i have been these things, and many 'creatives' have been these things, not nearly always all of them at once, and even if they were, why are some so uncomfortable with it? the answer is often, but not always, uniformity.

i have a friend that works at a large church and has been there for around 8 years. she is a creative to the very fiber of her being. she has been overlooked, ignored and devalued time and time again over the course of that time. after as long as she has been around, she is starting to gain some ground. after nearing a decade, the need for her to look the same, act the same, be the same, has started to decrease...dare i say some have even celebrated her.

i knew another creative that was basically told 'if you would cut your hair and dress nicer you would probably be on staff at this church already.'

and yes, creatives do it too...judging the straight lace.

we walk about life saying 'be like me, be like me, be like me..." and what we are really saying is 'i'd rather you lie to me.' we are more comfortable with people lying about themselves to fit in than celebrating who they really are.

so who are you?
are you willing to let people tell the truth?
be like you