Is Your Normal More Amazing Than You Think?

September 14, 2012 — 20 Comments
Is Your Normal More Amazing Than You Think? | Joseph Lalonde

The hum-drum of your day job. The daily commute. The routines you have in place for your life.

They’re all normal to you. They seem natural to you. And they’re boring. At least in your eyes they are. I know these routine tasks can be to be.

But there’s something amazing in normal. Can you believe that?

Ferris Creek Mountain Bike Trail

Ferris Creek Mountain Bike Trail / Image By Trailsource.com

We want to fight against normal. The experts tell you that it holds you down. You need to break free of the normal.

I agree, in part. We need to break free of the normal habits that hold us back. But there’s parts of normal that are amazing.

TALENTS

You probably find a couple of talents that come to you naturally.

Playing a musical instrument. An amazing knack for mathematics. Fixing a computer problem. Singing beautiful songs.

When you have a talent that you excl at, the talent can seem boring and normal.

Truth is, there are an immeasurable amount of people looking at you, longing for the skill that you have.

Your normal is amazing.

LOCATION

Where do you live? Is it normal or is it amazing? I bet it’s more amazing than you think.

I often discount the amazing city and state that I live in.

There’s complaints about the weather. It’s either too cold or too hot. Or there’s the struggling economy. Maybe it’s the lack of variety in your town.

Then there are the amazing things that my city has to offer.

We have the amazing Lake Michigan lakeshore. Some of the best freshwater lakes the world has to offer. Bike trails galore. Beautiful state and city parks. People who will go out of their way for you.

We also offer multiple music festivals. The Irish Music Festival, Unity Christian Music Festival, Summer Celebration (no longer held), and much more. People long to come to these events!

If my city has this to offer, I know your city must as well. Take a look around and see what your city has to offer. You’ll find there’s more than meets the eye in your city.

Your normal is amazing.

FAMILY

How many times have you come to think of your family as normal or boring? Probably more times than you can count on all your fingers and toes.

Truth is, there’s no other family quite like yours. Whether it’s your biological family or the family you’ve chosen for yourself.

Take time today to consider the amazing people that are in your family.

You normal is amazing.

THE PROBLEM WITH NORMAL

There’s a problem with normal. As you can see, there’s plenty of things that are normal to people yet they’re still amazing. What’s the problem with normal?

The problem is we’re too familiar with our normals. We feel like we normal our talent, our location, or our family like the back of our hand. And you might.

This fact doesn’t make normal any less amazing to those that don’t get to experience what you experience on a regular basis.

THE SOLUTION

Here’s the good news. There’s a solution to the problem of normal.

Take a step back from your normal activities or location. Give it a week or two. When you return, the amazingness of your normal can come rushing back.

I had this experience with the Unity Christian Music Festival.

Unity just held it’s 12 event. It’s normal around Muskegon.

I’d taken a step back and not attended the festival for a couple of years. This year I attended again. It blew me away.

My normal had changed. And it was amazing.

So be willing to take a step back. Let your normal reorientate. Your normal can become amazing again.

Question: How is your normal amazing? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.


Joseph Lalonde

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  • http://deuceology.wordpress.com Larry Carter

    I live near the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.  Every morning when I leave, I have the greatest view in the world.  On my way home every night, I get to look at these mountains all the way home.  My normal is awesome.

    • http://www.jmlalonde.com Joe Lalonde

       Larry, that is awesome! I bet that view can take your breath away.

  • Allen

    I live in Northern Virginia, close to Washington DC.  When I really think about it, despite the craziness of living here, my normal is actually really great.  I have friends, neighbors and church members from all over the world (literally).  There are plenty of opportunities to do just about anything you’d want to do, not to mention the historical aspect of the area would take you years to see and do everything.  I think it’s a matter of perspective- do you only see the negative like the traffic and sometimes the weather- or look at the big picture?  Many people come here to see what I see when I see it- during my normal life.  

    • http://www.jmlalonde.com Joe Lalonde

      Allen, sounds like you’re living in a pretty amazing area. The scenery in Virginia is beautiful and provides the opportunity to do so many activities. It also sounds like there’s the opportunity to meet and interact with a wide variety of people. Amazing, huh?

  • http://dustn.tv/ Dustin W. Stout

    I’ve thought about this a lot. To Michael Jordan, how he plays the game of basketball is normal– it’s just the way he plays. To everyone else, it’s amazing. 

    Good points here Joe! I think we all need to take a step back from ourselves and just look at how God has created us. I think if we can step outside ourselves, we’ll find that there is plenty of amazing that God has wired into us. 

    • http://www.jmlalonde.com Joe Lalonde

      Great example with the use of Michael Jordan. If we take a look at our lives, I’m sure we’d see the same things. For you, it’s probably your design skills which are amazing. For me, it could be my skills with a computer. It’s all about our view.

  • http://intentionaltoday.com/ Ngina Otiende

    Yep, gotta agree with you, Joe. Thought my life back in Kenya was normal, took many things for granted. I have been away for one year.. i miss the the fresh & taste-filled food, the tropical weather, family, church, culture and everything. I seem to have forgotten everything ‘normal’…all my memories and images are of ‘awesome’. I don’t think we get to appreciate some things until we’ve been away for a while..just like you and the festival :)

  • http://www.changevolunteers.org/ Change Volunteer

    This is such an amazing perspective! Was just complaining about the rain, I complain about Texas being so hot and I suddenly saw the difference…words have power. Thanks Joe!

  • http://danblackonleadership.com/ Dan Black

    I live about 10 minutes away from the beach in San Diego, I get to enjoy the amazing beaches, food, and weather with my family. Every year thousands of people travel to SD to enjoy what I can enjoy on a daily basis.

    • http://jonstolpe.com/ Jon Stolpe

       Location, location, location.  That sounds like a great place to live!

  • http://jonstolpe.com/ Jon Stolpe

    I get to work with amazing people in and around the City of Brotherly Love.  

  • http://www.brandongerard.net/ Brandon Gerard

    My normal is traveling to different cities around the US. It sounds fun but I never really get to enjoy the cities i visit.  I have days when i just want to move to a cool town in the mountains and not travel anymore. Then I get a break from traveling for a few weeks and I am ready to get back on the road.  I can totally relate.  Once you are doing something long enough it just becomes routine / normal. Great Idea on stepping back and looking at it from a new perspective.

    • http://www.jmlalonde.com Joe Lalonde

       I’ve heard that from many different sales people. It’s a lot of getting to a destination, doing your job, and leaving.

  • jeff

    I have writing abilities that some people find clarifying and clear.  I find it boring sometimes, because I don’t always have something cool to write about and it doesn’t always get much feedback about it.  That’s my normal.  This is why I try other stuff and want to get away from it.

    • http://www.jmlalonde.com Joe Lalonde

       When you try other stuff, do you find the desire to write return?

      • jeff

        I think so.  There’s always that spark that makes me want to write about something – not necessarily about the other stuff I try.  I find it a bit annoying, actually, because… well… I want to do other stuff.  

        • http://www.jmlalonde.com Joe Lalonde

           Yeah, it’s that tug-of-war that we must balance.

  • http://twitter.com/cupojoegirl Eileen Knowles

    Great post, Joseph.  Just last weekend I had a heart to heart talk with my 8yr old son.  He feels average and normal (like that was a bad thing) and I was telling him that he was special.  There is no one just like him.  God created him and he is one of a kind…what is normal about that?  I agree, our normals are beautiful.  I live on a little water canal in NC (I live an hour from the ocean)  Everyday when I walk my dog, my route takes me along the Albemarle Sound.  Sometimes the water is smooth but yesterday there was a breeze and the water was choppy.  I love the view of the water. 

    • http://www.jmlalonde.com Joe Lalonde

       Sounds like you’re living in a beautiful and wonderful place Eileen. The sound of water can be magical. Do you ever take that for granted?

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