The Power of Onlyness

Conviction is willingness to do the work, to live with uncertainty, to be open to asking for help, and not to worry about the end result.

You’re standing in a spot in the world that only you stand in, a function of your history and experiences, visions, and hopes. From this spot where only you stand, you offer a distinct point of view, novel insights, and even groundbreaking ideas.

But it’s worth remembering that she started this work about seven years ago, when almost no one thought it was an especially viable idea. Since then, Marie Claire, Oprah Winfrey, and even President Obama’s White House have “discovered” her, and the reason most of us think her timing is perfect is because Kim and others like her had the foresight to

onlyness: a different point of view grounded in one’s history and experience, visions, and hopes.

Luckily, there’s an easily accessible antidote to imposter syndrome. It is simply to be yourself, and to be so deeply committed to a purpose that what matters is not how you appear to others but what is actually served.

How you respond to a situation like this—a challenge, a new situation, something that bothers you—depends very much on who you are, what you care about, and why.

“What do I do that adds remarkable, measurable, distinguished, distinctive value?”

First, you stand in that spot in the world that only you stand in, then you meaningfully connect with others so that you (and, more to the point, your ideas) finally have a new pathway in.

“By enabling many kids, there are enough people like you joining alongside you, thus changing the culture.”