They will push you to fit in, to dress alike, to use the same tools, to fit the format.

They are the high school English teacher in love with his novels and the book editor who needs you to fit in with the program. “That’s the way we do things around here.” They are the well-meaning productivity guru who wants you to get faster, not better.

The safest thing you can do, it seems, is to fit in. Total deniability. Hey, I’m just doing what the masses do.

The masses are average. And by definition, we have a surplus of average.

Don’t be different just to be different. Be different to be better.

“In the republic of mediocrity, genius is dangerous.” ― Robert G. Ingersoll

It’s important to stop basking in the glow of mediocrity.