We are unique.  We get told that often.  So, what does it mean to you and your Hero’s Journey? It means your Hero’s Journey could not have been done by anyone else and will have uniquely-yours results.

I’m pushing you to see your goals as a Hero’s Journey, so you will see that by its uniqueness, it makes a difference in the world.

For example, your goal is to write a book.  A romance novel.  You love to read them, and you long to write one.  You write the story with an Asian-American female protagonist like yourself–a young woman with Asperger’s Syndrome (autism). It’s unique in the market, and it turns out readers love it.  Just like Helen Hoang’s novel, The Kiss Quotient.  Hoang brought her unique experiences to the story, and ironically, the story was universal. Readers identified with the character’s vulnerabilities and foibles, and the books brought attention to girls and women with Asperger’s.  (The ratio of males:females is thought to be around 3:1)

Your Hero’s Journey to write a book doesn’t have to be just like Hoang’s,.  You have lived a completely different life and will bring your experiences to your characters. In that way, your book will be unique and bring a new perspective to whatever story you choose to write.  We’ll never know what that is if you don’t write it.

For another example, you want to be a fashion designer and you’ve made it to college.  You are the first person in your family to graduate high school, yet alone college. Your family are recent immigrants from Guatemala and speak three different languages at home:  English, Spanish, and Xinca (an indigenous language). You were born in the U.S., but no one else in your family was.  They brought family heirlooms and clothes with them, some of which reflect the side of family with indigenous roots. Who knows, maybe you will be the next Isabel Toledo!

Let us see what you can create!

Photo by Oriol Casas on Unsplash