<p>Assignment:Do people succeed by emphasizing their differences from other people?</p>
<p>Franklin D Roosevelt once said,'All successful people have one common characteristic-uniqueness and originality'. Franklin's wise thoughts hold true even today, in our contemporary society. It is only when people stand out of the crowd and emphasize their differences from other people that they can prosper.
The fact that people can succeed by developing unique characteristics is established in the 1937 modern literary classic epic, The Lord of the Rings. In the novels, Aragorn is a strong warrior, who lives in recluse as a ranger. But Aragorn's destiny has much more for him. Apparently, he is the descendant of the Numenors, the kings who reigned over Middle Earth. So when trouble regarding the awakening of the Dark Lord and his powerful weapon befalls the realm, he rushes forward to rescue the world. He differentiates himself by always being loyal to the cause and willing to sacrifice himself for the greater good. He never boasts his right to the throne; rather, he leads his people to victory and is eventually established as the one and true king. Aragorn accurately exemplifies how uniqueness could lead to accomplishment.
Another compelling illustration of the assertion of the assertion that people achieve more by going against the conventions is the widespread acclaim and rise to popularity of the heavy metal band, Black Sabbath. Since its inception in 1955, the band has earned a name for itself by doing things entirely different from the others. In a time of pop rock and blues, Black Sabbath experimented with new ideas-ideas that would have been considered unacceptable and even taboo to many-and consequently gave birth to heavy metal. They still continue to baffle audiences across the globe, in addition to having the largest and most loyal fan base. Black Sabbath highlights how underscoring ones differences can pave the way for glory, fame and triumph.
To summarize, it is only when people come up with unique and individual ideas and perform distinguished extraordinary tasks that they can shine and prove themselves. As Bill Gates said during one of his talks,'Anomaly is not always bad;rather, it is often the primary cause of success'.</p>