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Positive Abnormality -
Be a GENIUS by discovering your Speciality,
Uniqueness, and Meaning
By Timothy So, Positive Psychology News Daily “I
believe, however, that such abnormal moments can be found in
everyone, and it is all the more fortunate when they occur in
individuals with creative talent or with clairvoyant powers.” De
Chirico, 1919
“Am I
abnormal?” People sometimes tell me their thoughts, plans,
behaviors and ask me this question when they know I am a psychologist. I am
not in a very good position to answer this question, yet this leaves me
in rumination over another interesting question, “Why do people try to
be normal but not someone special? Why not be Positively Abnormal?” “Oh! I
wouldn’t have done that if I had a bigger pan at home. I only have an
average-sized pan,” answered the fisherman. Sometimes
we want to do something special or come up with great
ideas, yet we are not willing to make the move since we tell ourselves,
“I’d better not try this, I’m just an average-sized pan!” Yes,
sometimes we constrain ourselves and try to be “normal” people. But
how many of us have ever tried to think about the reason why they are
so distinguished, so special, so outstanding? Or have ever imagined
them trying to be normal, lacking their meaning of life? Obviously we
have not. Being
a genius has also been linked to optimal functioning and health by
numerous researchers and theoreticians. The best illustration would be
the humanistic psychology movement led by Abraham Maslow and Carl
Rogers (Cassandro & Simonton, 2003). 1) A genius is someone who possesses unique or distinctly characteristic creative ideas or behaviors – uniqueness. 2) A genius is an individual with social impact – when the genius’ thoughts, idea, or products have a tremendous impact on the social environment, ranging from the other members of the individual’s field to the society as a whole. 3) A
genius is someone who has a high quality of intellectual power
where intellectual power or importance brings positive social impact. They
are as ordinary as any Tom, Dick, and Harry in many ways. The
only way they are different from others is that they believe that they
are unique and daring enough to stand out from the crowd, think outside
the box, and choose to go on a path that those with a self-limitation
are afraid to choose. We
might not be achieving as much as these great
people did, but if we believe that we are special and not the same as
everyone, and are confident that we are capable to do things we are
really good at, success and happiness could be there awaiting us. If we
have the courage to explore, we could experience the different
amusements of existence. Imagine
if Galileo had not believed in himself and was not
daring enough to challenge the ineradicable classic teachings; if
Michael Jordon had lost faith in his ability and given up his career on
basketball after failing to make the varsity basketball team at Laney
High School; and if Beethoven had doubt his talents in music and
despaired after losing his hearing, we would have missed many
incredible changes and marvelous performances, and these people would
no longer be regarded as “geniuses” but just someone ordinary. Researchers
however do not hold the same stance. Snyder and Fromkin (1977; 1980)
proposed the “need of uniqueness” as an attribute, in which the
striving for uniqueness would bring about a sense of positive
self-esteem. If we
want to make a breakthrough, we need to learn to
embrace our uniqueness. We have to realize that we are unique and
special. We
have to find out in what ways we are unique from others, as
illustrated by the first definition of genius by Gassandro and Simonton
(2003); then we have to respect that and make good use of it. Start
discovering our potential, strengths, and
“abnormality” that would motivate and drive us to do something
meaningful and positive! People
would feel psychologically satisfied
and fulfilled if they could alter the dull routines in life, whereas
being weary of life whittles away one’s volition and brings about
negative psychological impacts. It is
also important for us to get rid
of the tendency to avoid incidents that seem unusual, as it hinders our
willingness to confront challenges and try out something new. Are
you teachers ready to encourage your students to explore
something special in them? Are
you managers and leaders ready to pay
attention to your colleagues who work particularly well on something?
Is
everyone ready, in the new year of rat, to discover your
“abnormality” and do something positive and meaningful for the
community? ~ ~ ~
Eccentricity....Eccentricity
2
articles sites books Positive
psychology. Highly Sensitive Gifted
/ talented news
& resources Articles:
high ability -
gifted/talented Intensity / sensitivity resources : articles sites books Introversion
/
shyness. ~ ~ ~
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       Misdiagnosis And Dual Diagnoses Of Gifted Children And Adults ~ ~ ~ |
Yet when we are reading news about people such as Bill
Gates (Chairman
of Microsoft), Tiger Woods (world No. 1 golfer), Placido Domingo
(world-renowned operatic tenor), or Ron Howard (Academy Award-winning
film director and producer), we admire them and think, "Wow, how can
they do that, they are really geniuses!” 
Yes, many great names in history, such as Benjamin
Franklin, Ludwig van Beethoven, Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo Galilei,
George Bernard Shaw, Winston Churchill, and still many others, all
recognized their own strength and interests, believed they are unique
and enjoyed being unique (criterion 1), and put extra efforts to make
their dreams come true, to impact society positively (criteria 2 &
3). 
Related
Talent Development
Resources pages :