“I had rather be first in a village than second in Rome.”
~ Julius Caesar
The properties you are born with are not necessarily who you are, outside of the characteristics inherited through your parents, friends, and experiences in life that have shaped your personality. One should see themselves as an artist, a clay that can be continually molded to their liking.
Sometimes we allow ourselves to be confined by the titles and societal norms that are placed upon us: this is not how life is lived to the fullest. Allow yourself to write, make changes, and then write again. Your life story is yours and yours only to author. There are no mulligans in life, and one should make it the upmost priority to count every stroke, even those that lead you away from the hole. I find one of the most effective ways to improve is to copy those that are ‘experts’ in the field. Yet, originality makes us who we are, distinguishing us from the rest; it is the most difficult thing to replicate because it cannot be replicated. And so I propose to you this: learn from others and take what is good, but never lose your uniqueness. Juice is temporary. Anyone can obtain the juice. But the sauce? The sauce is forever.
AT