My mom tells me I’m unique. But that hasn’t really helped with the job hunt.

Applying for jobs oddly resembles applying for college. I can easily recall the feeling of submitting my final college apps. That day, I proclaimed to my mother, “I’m sick of being deep. I’m sick of talking about who I am, what motivates me, what makes me unique… I just want to be shallow, M-dog. I just want to talk about girls.” It was the search to portray myself as something special, one of a kind, bound to revolutionize the world… as a hormonal teenager who had no idea how to even iron his own shirt.

Doesn’t the adjective “unique” just sound so appealing? It’s the individual conquering all, the singleton rising above the sea of six billion other bodies; it’s ownership over an ethereal quality that has no comparison. It’s our qualification for an open position; it’s the unseen product that hashes open an untapped market, the undiscovered solution to a global issue.

I was flipping through a book on Western art the other day. Well, it was more like a modern tome; the book was almost two feet tall and a foot and a half wide. My journey through the manuscript’s lavish depictions and concise, digestible descriptions was a relaxing effort to feel more artsy and worldly. After quickly passing over the Byzantine era, I ran across the famous Renaissance names: Michelangelo, Masaccio, Leonardo… And apart from being stunned by the detail of their artwork I frankly became undoubtedly jealous of their titles. Whatever happened to the days of the painter slash philosopher slash scientist slash mathematician slash world renowned pastry chef? Seriously Da Vinci, was that really possible? Sure, I secretly long to climb the ranks as the world’s best Mechanical Engineer slash Department Store Soundtrack Producer slash Dodgeball Tournament Announcer but realistically…

Yet maybe the modern quest for individuality can take a page from the Renaissance masters. I recently stumbled over a blog entitled “Defining the New Singularity.” Senior VP of Creative at frog design (a creative consultancy in San Francisco) struck a chord with his opening line: “Mick Jagger is a beautiful man.” Mark continued to elaborate upon what he coined as the “Mick Jagger phenomenon,” the beauty that ensues from the perfect harmony of personality, emotion, identity, and talent: his singularity. The article was mostly concerned with the present and future of successful “design,” the poignant balance of form, function, consumer identity, and emotion among a myriad of other factors, but this manifestation of singularity is what stuck with me.

I told a friend last night that “half of college is about finding balance,” and I think I finally believe what I said (moderately silly). It’s possible that truly excelling in numerous areas academically and creatively is not as feasible with modern standards, but maybe today’s Renaissance man, today’s sharply unique individual is a complementary mix of the right talents and traits, one who embodies singularity through his balance rather than solely his excellence.

The New Year passed about two weeks ago, and the I think the air is less about resolutions and more about sticking to them about now. I know my road through adolescence has been fraught with this struggle to unleash this inner Mick Jagger—and I’m sure the internal conflict won’t soon subside--but in some ways I like to use the New Year as another go at it. I’ve found time to evaluate, to weigh in, to make resolutions to better balance myself, and one can only hope such efforts will translate to a stronger, more singular embodiment of oneself.

Of course this is big talk for a soon 20-year-old who still wears a retainer to sleep in his truck blanket at night, but thinking forward never hurt. M-dog used to tell me I’m unique. Granted that was in the second grade when I was applying for the gifted and talented class about oceans, it was most likely a first step towards my wide-eyed, optimistic outlook.

Foolish as it may be, I continue to search for the right mix of experiences, influences, and inspirations. And at least until now, that’s been enough.

Labels: job hunt, mom, unique

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 29, 2008 at 12:50 AM. You can skip to the end and leave a response.