Can We Talk About Being Weird?
Photo of smiling gorgeous blonde woman wearing a t-shirt that reads, “So apparently I’m dramatic.”
Can we talk about being weird for a moment?
I fully believe that every single person on the planet has, at some point felt odd, or peculiar, or perhaps even abnormal. Every. Single. Person.
Is it any wonder? We’re, each one of us, a universe unto ourselves. No one else has our same experience, perspective, taste, education, etc. We are each our own very particular filter through which we interact with the world.
By the time we accumulate the skills to assimilate into a world that values “normal,” whatever that is at the moment, we’ve most likely smoothed over our rough edges, and added top soil to our psychic potholes. We function. We “get along.” We do what we’re supposed to do, and we leave our weirdo behind. There’s the rub.
Communication requires some kind of self knowledge. Connected communication requires we not only know ourselves well, but that we acknowledge the uniqueness of others. We’ve made ourselves so polished, so shiny, that we’re blinding each other to the absolute works of art we each are.
My weird is exactly why I am who I am today. Growing up in a small, rural town, I never felt like I fit in anywhere. Not in any of the cliques at school, not even within my own family, and I honestly didn’t have many friends.
I wanted to make art. I didn’t know exactly what that looked like, but my truck driver dad and cleaning person mom, were not enthusiastic supporters. I think I confounded them a little. I settled on the theatre, and you know what sealed it for me…? Michael Jackson’s Motown 25th Anniversary Special Billie Jean performance. At the time, his moves, the clothing, and the one oversized glittery glove were all so weirdly spectacular. It all gave me big feelings. Watching that performance was so enthralling and opened a portal that allowed me to see a future ripe with creativity and possibility.
So I ran away and joined the theatre.
What I mean is, I went to college in New York City and studied theatre arts.
It was there that I connected with others like myself. People who had rubbed up against normal and said, “nah.” There was the “method” actor who annoyed and scared people in equal measure; the in-your-face Italian girl who could belt the roof of the building; and the “ditzy” girl who had the singing voice of an angel. There were so many misfits that we all fit together.
And there was me: obsessed with words, trying to find the truth of every scene, and discovering my voice. One of the greatest lessons I learned from an acting teacher is this: Find the love. Every person on stage and in life speaks from love (or a lack of it). It’s your job to figure out what that love is, or isn’t, and respond.
Imagine if, in every day life, we responded from love. Imagine how much more richer and insightful our communication would be if we loved our whole, particular, mostly functional, gorgeous selves, and could hear others in that way. Imagine if leaders – whether business leaders, politicians, or heads of churches led in ways that made people know that it’s the differences that bind us?
Throughout my life, I have at times, let my freak flag fly, and I’ve buried it deep within myself. I know that I’m happiest when I allow myself to fully be my quirky, deeply sensitive, creative self. I am most connected to myself and others when I’m not hiding. I can communicate from a place of self love and build real, authentic connections.
Embracing my weird – my talents, my skills, my profoundly unique perspective, is what the world needs from me, and from you. “Normal” is what makes people afraid, hateful, and divided. We would all do better to uncage our strange birds and let them fly.
LB Adams is the CEO of Practical Dramatics, LLC. She is a communication facilitator & public speaking coach, author and keynote speaker.