Authenticity!

The difference between Average and Awesome 
​"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”
Charles Caleb Colton
I know the topic of being Authentic has been covered many times and a quick Google search will yield many results but I would like to add my 5 cents worth (read “rant”).
I have come across several instances of late where imitation is irritating and quite frankly it’s sad. I don’t believe for one minute that people cannot come up with original ideas. Everyone is unique, their lives shaped by unique experiences and their thoughts moulded by unique encounters so why is it necessary to imitate others. Are you simply too lazy to apply your mind?
Please don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with sharing provided it’s for a good cause, you give credit where credit is due and you do not have anything to gain from it personally. NEWS FLASH … If you take a masterpiece, colour out the artist’s name and insert your name, the masterpiece still belongs to the original artist. It does not belong to you.
If you persist in taking ideas created by others you might ride the crest of the wave for a while but it has been proven time and again that you will return to being average at best and at worst, you will crash and burn.
If you persist in taking ideas created by others you are akin to a thief … not only are you stealing ideas but you are robbing the world of you. You are not sharing your unique colour pallet with the world. There is only one you and if you are too ashamed of you to show your true self (colours) to the world, spend some time working on you.
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment." This is true but I don’t think we can only lay blame at the world’s feet. I implore you to stop trying to be someone else, stop taking someone else’s work, concepts, ideas and art … set up your own easel, take out your own brush, colour your own authentic life and be AWESOME!! (end of rant)