Don’t Aint To Be The Best

“Don’t aim to be the best. Aim to be the only.”

-Kevin Kelly

The intro to a recent Rich Roll podcast with Kevin Kelly immediately pulled me in. 

It’s a subtle shift in perspective but gets you to the same place, if that is your goal–if you are the only, you are the best. 

The Pursuit of being the “only” comes with less pressure than the Pursuit of being the “best”. 

The Pursuit of being the “only” gives you the freedom to define success while the Pursuit of being the “best” is confined to the definition of others.

The Pursuit of being the “only” allows you to explore, experiment, and find your authentic life while the Pursuit of being the “best” most likely will keep you following the beaten-down paths of the “bests” that came before you.

As Kelly suggests, aiming to be the only one is just as high of a bar of being the best but it allows you to arrive at it on your terms, not the terms of others.

If you’re pursuing your authentic life, the Pursuit of being the “only” will probably resonate more than being the best when you compare the two.

See you tomorrow and keep pursuing,

JC