In an earlier post entitled Knowing and Trusting Thyself, I described “knowing thyself” as a three step process involving: 1. Ignoring the general consensus, 2. Developing your own ideas and 3. Sticking with your own ideas. In this post I will share my thoughts on step 1. I’ve been studying Japanese language, culture, politics and history for a long time and I’ve spent a fair amount of time living here. Over time there are a number of things that I’ve grown to like and dislike about the culture. The qualities that I do like are: the high value they place on respect of oneself and others, humility and their high sense of responsibility. The one Japanese quality that really bothers me is the “group” mentality; it’s the belief that if everyone is doing A, A must be a good thing. If everyone is eating apples, you should too; this is the anti-maverick mentality.
The majority of the cultural differences between Americans and Japanese are a manifestation of the individual versus group paradigm. Most Japanese people, at the core, follow the “sheep” and “shepherd” model: experts are the “shepherds” and everyone else is a “sheep.” I believe this model is perhaps the most fundamental model of human interaction; it’s biblical. Americans also tend to fall into this model, but for them, the distinction between “sheep” and “shepherd” is transitory; the “sheep” can decide, at any point, to break away from the herd and become their own shepherd; American “sheep” are fully aware of their potential. Of course this is a generalization, but insofar as generalizations are reflections of a prevalent observed reality, I believe this to be true. Japanese people highly revere their experts, sometimes to the point of worship. Americans, on the other hand, have the, “if they can do it so can I” mentality and believe in the possibility for the “average Joe” to become an expert or leader. This is the mentality of a maverick.
What’s a Maverick?
America is a land founded by mavericks; a maverick being: a lone dissenter, as an intellectual, an artist, or a politician, who takes an independent stand apart from his or her associates. (www.dictionary.com) America’s position as a world leader, I believe, is directly related to this maverick quality of breaking away from the norm and forging its own path. At its core, capitalism rewards most handsomely those that take risks, i.e. the entrepreneur, the trailblazer, the maverick; the modern world is a product of such people. One only has to look to the pioneers of the motion picture industry, the light bulb, and the personal computer, to understand how much of our modern civilization is the result of mavericks. Whether or not you agree with capitalism or how it has affected our world, this much is true: those that walk to the beat of their own tune stand to gain far more than those who follow the grain. Of course, with the potential of great gain comes great risk, which is why most people decide to follow the pack. It’s safer, more predictable and less likely to keep you up at night.
Be a hero 
, not a zero 
People who make a distinction between “safe” and “risky” tend to be those who have little self-confidence or who don’t really know themselves. Whoever heard of a hero who avoided risks? No one! A hero, by definition, is one who takes risks. Actually if we think about the DNA of the prototypical hero, it consists of one primary trait: facing and overcoming adversity. For the hero, there is only one possible path, to overcome the obstacles and save the day. But that’s fiction not reality! Real life isn’t that simple!
Or is it? The path of any hero is never easy, if it were easy who would care if they succeeded? I believe our lives are they same. All the famous people of the world are famous because their lives have been marked by adversity and challenge, but they persevered and prevailed; that’s why we find them interesting and that is why they serve as our inspiration. Everyone’s life, whether famous or not, is a journey and along the way we have many chances to embrace who we were born to be; those who become who they were meant to be are the people who recognize the chance and take it. They are the mavericks of the world.
You don’t like apples? Try oranges!
Though I don’t believe in individuality for the sake of being “different,” I do embrace the truth that we are all created uniquely and that we each have our own special way of contributing to the world. Not everyone is meant to be a leader or even rich and famous, but I believe everyone is capable of becoming a person fully confident in who they are and is capable of overcoming adversity and finding their unique and special place in this world. Fundamentally, people are most effective when they are doing what they love; I think few people would disagree. The challenge is figuring out what one loves to do; and it’s hard work, there’s no way around that. If everyone around you likes apples but you don’t, are you going to stick with eating apples or would you rather try an orange? Similarly, if conventional wisdom (i.e. your parents J, peers, society etc.) says that you that you should be a doctor because it is secure, prestigious and pays well, but the thought of being a doctor doesn’t excite you in the least bit, wouldn’t it be worthwhile to say no in order to find something you really love? This is the mentality of the maverick: it is the person who is not afraid to stand alone, think for themselves and come to their own conclusions for the sake of discovering and determining that which moves them deeply. I believe in the 21st century, being a maverick will lead to the most fulfilling and enjoyable life possible. It’s not an easy choice, but hey if you don’t like apples, why not try an orange?
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