Will You Claim Your Puzzle Piece?

This post is all about Authenticity.  Why?  Because I believe that authenticity is the #1 most important thing we can bring to the world.

Brendon Burchard loves to share this quote from his dad:

The most important thing we can contribute to one another is ourselves.

You see, I’ve noticed a lot of people spend time trying to be like someone else, or trying to fit into a mold that they believe other people have set for them.  I know, I did it for a long time.

I believe we have this instinctive need to be accepted by other people… we are, after all, a social species.  Our caveman survival depended on us being able to be part of the clan (so we could hunt bigger mammoths and stay safe from predators).

But our survival, and our growth into the world-dominating species we are today was dependent on opposable thumbs and one other thing: storytelling.  The ability to share information from different experiences.

Here’s the thing though, in order to share information from different experiences, we needed to be different.

And I truly believe that in order for the world to keep becoming a better place, to ‘up-level’ on a grand scale, it’s going to need all of us to be our unique selves, and bring our unique experiences, thoughts, personality, etc.

And the reason why is, I think we’re kind of like a puzzle….

The Puzzle Piece Analogy

We are all familiar with jigsaw puzzles, where hundreds of tiny pieces lock together to make a bigger picture.

1) Each of us is a puzzle piece, and the world or our bigger community is the big picture.

Puzzle pieces all have different knobs and grooves — sometimes they’re long and skinny or short and wide, sometimes you’ve got two grooves beside each other so that it looks like there’s a spade or a heart sticking out of one corner, sometimes there are completely unexpected angles or squiggles or flat bits…

But a puzzle piece is designed to interconnect with other pieces around it, and it’s designed to only fit in one spot.

2) Each piece has a little bit of the picture on it, but we need to get all the pieces in their specific spots in order to realize the full potential

Human beings are meant to be in groups, but they’re not meant to all be the same.  We need different little pictures coming together to complete the tapestry of the whole.  We have a synergistic effect, where the net total is greater than the sum of the parts.

It requires us to be different.

3) When we try to fit in a spot that isn’t exactly right, the puzzle can’t be completed.

Have you done this with a puzzle?  Two pieces fit together but they’re not seamless.  You think, maybe it’s okay, maybe they do fit, but as you keep working on the puzzle, you realize none of the other adjacent pieces fit.  Or you’re missing a piece somewhere else…

The same thing happens when we pretend to be someone we aren’t (in other words, we are inauthentic).  If we manage to fit ourselves into a spot that isn’t quite right, the whole puzzle gets a little wonky because other pieces don’t fit quite right with us either.  And more importantly, we miss ending up in our right spot, and might even keep someone else from fitting into theirs.

4) The only way to figure it out is to keep trying.

Sometimes you can see exactly where a puzzle piece goes, but often times you need to try a few different spots before you find the right fit.

It’s the same with people.  We need to try things, we need to follow our interests and our curiosities, and see what fits.  Otherwise how will we know?!

Be Your Own Puzzle Piece

Sometimes I feel like it’s a silly analogy, but I think it really fits quite well.

When we are acting as our authentic selves, we are exhibiting our true puzzle piece shape.  The pieces that connect with us, fit easily (there’s no banging the table or trimming of puzzle pieces here!)

So often, we think that life has to be hard.  That we need to exert effort, and try some personality-gymnastics in order to fit in.  We believe we need to compromise for the greater good, to satisfy the people around us.

But really, the only way to finish the whole puzzle, is for every puzzle piece to find its fit.

And the only way for the global community to reach its highest level, is for every person to let their authentic selves show.

So what about you?  Will you claim your ‘puzzle piece’?  Will you let your authenticity shine and fill the space that only you can fill?