A person will one day understand that jealousy is useless and that imitating others is tantamount to suicide.
Paul Boyenden, the author of "Six Ways to Find a Job" said: "The biggest mistake job seekers make is not staying true to their true colors. They don't show their true colors and can't be completely honest, but they give Give him the answers he thinks you want."
During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, there were two calligraphers. One of them imitated the ancients very seriously, and made sure that every stroke must resemble someone. For example, a certain horizontal stroke should resemble Su Dongpo's, and a certain horizontal stroke should resemble Li Taibai's. Naturally, once he reached this point, he was quite proud. The other one is just the opposite. Not only does he practice hard, but he also requires every stroke to be different from the ancients and pays attention to nature. It is not until he has practiced to this point that he feels at ease.
So, who is smarter? Neither of them is convinced by the other.
One day, the first calligrapher ridiculed the second calligrapher and said: "My dear friend, which stroke of your calligraphy is from the ancients?"
The latter one was not the same. Instead of being angry, he asked with a smile: "I would also like to ask my dear friend, which stroke of your handwriting is your own?"
The first one heard this and was immediately speechless.
From a creative point of view, the first calligrapher has nothing new and has nothing but endless repetition of others, which is extremely undesirable; the second calligrapher studies tirelessly and creates My own unique style makes "I am who I am"!
Be yourself and don’t imitate others. This is also the advice that American composer Irving Berlin gave to the new generation of composer George Gershwin. When Berlin and Gershwin first met, Berlin already had a great reputation, but Gershwin was just an unknown young composer. Berlin admired Gershwin's talent and asked him to be his music secretary at three times the salary Gershwin could earn. However, Berlin called Gershwin again to advise him: "Don't accept this job. If you accept it, you will become the second best Irving Berlin at most. If you can persist, one day you will become a first-class Gershwin."< /p>
Gershwin accepted the advice and gradually became a very contributory American composer in the contemporary era.
When Chaplin started making films, the director asked him to imitate the famous comedians of the time. As a result, he achieved nothing. It was not until he started to be himself that he gradually became successful. Bob Hooper had a similar experience. He spent many years singing and dancing, and it wasn't until he developed his talent for gags that he really became popular.
Mary Machilide made her first radio appearance when she tried unsuccessfully to imitate an Irish comedian. It wasn't until she emerged as her true self - a country girl from Missouri - that she became New York City's biggest radio star.
Kim Autry has always wanted to get rid of his Texas accent and dress like a city guy. He also claimed that he was a New Yorker, but he only earned ridicule from others behind his back. Later he began playing the balalaika again and singing country songs, which established his career as one of the most popular cowboys in film and radio.
William James once said: "The average person's mental utilization rate does not exceed 10%, and most people do not know what other talents they have. Compared with what we should achieve, in fact, we still have More than half are not awake. We only use a small part of our physical and mental resources. People often live within the limitations they set. We have all kinds of resources, but we often fail to use them successfully." It is unique in this world. There has never been anyone like you before, and there will never be anyone like you again. So, we are a new self in this world, be happy about it! Make good use of your gifts. Ultimately, all art is an expression of oneself. No matter good or bad, you can only manage your own little garden well, and no matter good or bad, you can only play your own instrument well in the orchestra of life.
——Quoted from "Inspirational Parchment" by Yanbian People's Publishing House