What makes a person unique? What makes them stand out from the crowd? Is it their personality, traits, mindset, courage, actions or something else entirely that makes them extraordinary? Let’s dive in and find out what makes someone unique.
What makes you unique?
Each of us is unique. It is in our DNA. From our fingerprints and facial structure to intelligence and self-confidence. Even identical twins tend to have psychological and emotional differences that make them uniquely individual. But if all of us are unique, what do we exactly mean by “a unique person”?
Well, a unique person is very different from what you expect someone to be. They do not fit into our social expectations. They are one of a kind individuals, who are not misfits, but inspirations. Their personality, characteristics, traits, words, behaviors and actions reveal their uniqueness in everything they do. While they may be odd and eccentric at times, they are enthusiastic, confident and courageous. And this dichotomy in their genuine nature makes it important for us to know what makes a person unique.
They are unparalleled individuals who can find inner strength and determination even when the best of us may feel hopeless. Uniqueness can be established in a variety of ways and you can be unique based on your skills, abilities, accomplishments, experiences and personality.
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12 Qualities of a unique person
What are the things that make a person unique? Here are some of the most (un)common traits of a unique person that make them not just stand out from the crowd but carve their own path to reach their individual goals –
1. Your experiences in life
Ever wondered what makes a person unique? The answer is simple – our daily experiences. What we experience in our lives shapes and moulds how we see the world. Our perspective, mindset, attitude and personality depend on our life experiences that make us who we are – different from one another.
Past experiences can greatly influence how we interact with the world around us. Whereas, new and unexpected experiences can rewire our brain structure and influence our behavior and uniqueness. Each and every experience you have in life, whether minor or major, can completely change you as a person.
While negative experiences can make you defensive, anxious or withdrawn, positive experiences can make you more confident, brave and resilient. However, it is when you decide not to be trapped by your experiences but learn from them instead, that is when you can truly be a unique person.
2. Your beliefs
Your core beliefs and values are some of the most important things that make you unique. Our perceptions which develop through experiences strongly impact our beliefs. The things we believe to be true about ourselves, others and our environment shape our opinions and faith in ourselves and others, whether negatively or positively.
These core beliefs and values become a part of our belief system that we will strongly defend. These set the standards we follow for ourselves and our lives, defining what is acceptable to us and what is not, helping us make the right decisions and stand out from the rest. This is what makes a person unique.
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3. Your perspective
Our perspective is how we look at the world. It is our own individual view of everything around us. While you may sense and perceive an experience as positive, your best friend may perceive the same experience as negative. This difference in outlook and worldview is what makes a person unique from others. The fact is, no one can see the world like you do.
Your thoughts, emotions, experiences and viewpoint are your alone. Embracing your unique perspective, while being open to others’ opinions is necessary for achieving unique success.
4. Your personality
What makes a person unique? Their personality traits. This is perhaps one of the most influencing factors in building your uniqueness. While there are some common personality types, each of us has a distinct personality colored by our thoughts, feelings, needs and experiences. Our personality is composed of cognitive, emotional and behavioral patterns developed over time with the help of different biological, cultural & environmental factors.
On the outside, the personality traits of a unique person may not seem drastically different from an “ordinary” individual. What defines their uniqueness is how they use their personality to constantly improve their habits, beliefs, mindset, attitude and communication.
Unique personality traits can often be something minor and negligible, like the coworker who always reminds you to drink enough water. While a lot of people may genuinely care about you, a unique person will always reveal their real personality through their interactions.
Related: What Type Of Unique Personality Do You Have? Personality Test
5. Your attitude
Our attitude defines us. It is reflected in our thoughts, perceptions, interactions and behaviors. Whether you are an optimist or pessimist, your attitude can be infectious and can strongly influence your loved ones and people around you. As our attitude is directly linked with our accomplishments, optimistic individuals often ignore pessimists. And this is what makes a person unique – your ability to maintain your natural attitude that can help you get through challenges and be successful.
While a person with a negative attitude can also be unique, their frame of mind is often toxic and unhealthy. And no one likes being around toxic, negative people. So if you want to be truly unique, learn to develop a more positive attitude as it is rare to find these days.
6. Your creativity
Creativity and inventiveness are some of the most important qualities that make a person unique. Your ability to create original and new ideas and think & act independently determines how unique you are as a person. Creativity allows us to give birth to new pieces of art, imagine new concepts, find novel solutions and build new objects using our imagination and creativity. There is no doubt that one’s creative abilities is what makes a person unique.
As each of us are gifted with different talents and levels of creativity, being truly and genuinely original and creative can make you stand out instantly. Whether in art or business, imagination and innovation is always desired and appreciated. Our creativity is based on what we believe to be original and beautiful. This makes our creative expressions unique, making us unique in turn.
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7. Your intellect
All of us are intelligent in our own way. While some individuals have impressively high IQs, some of us are smart in navigating the world. All of us have varying degrees of kinesthetic, logical, analytical, naturalistic, linguistic, intrapersonal and interpersonal intellectual skills. The different types and levels of intellect is what makes a person unique.
While someone may be good at solving the Rubik’s Cube, another person can be truly gifted in speaking different languages. All these different types of intellect makes all of us unique in our own way. So even if your intellect may not meet society’s standards, that doesn’t mean you are not intelligent or unique.
8. Your life goals
Some of us may walk down the same path, but our destinations will always remain different as each of us have a different end goal in mind. Someone may want to achieve financial success or fame, while another person may want to have a healthy relationship or become an artist. The moment you have goals in your life and become determined to achieve them, you immediately become a unique person.
Even though we may have similar goals, how we achieve them is very different from one another. Our goals determine our focus, mindset, effort, energy and time investment. Our goals give us direction, motivates us and helps us build the life we want. Working on their goals, whether they are long-term or short-term, is what makes a person unique.
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9. Your intuition
Our intuition enables us to understand and realize certain things instinctively, even without using logic or conscious reasoning. People who are more instinctive tend to know more about their past, present and future than people who have low intuition. And this is what makes a person unique.
If you don’t believe that intuition is real, then you would be surprised to know that scientists define intuition as “ability to understand immediately without conscious reasoning and is sometimes explained as a ‘gut feeling’ about the rightness or wrongness of a person, place, situation, temporal episode or object.”
When your intuition acts as a strong guidance system you naturally become different from those who don’t use their gut feelings as much. In fact, research suggests that intuition plays a crucial role in decision-making, social cognition and creativity, which further adds to your uniqueness.
10. Your Individuality
Individuality is self-hood. Your individuality makes you stand apart from others no matter how similar they may be. It makes you who YOU are – your most authentic, unique self. Your needs, responsibilities, rights and goals are completely different from someone else’s and embracing your individuality will pave the way for true happiness.
When you try to be like someone else or change your natural self to fit into another person’s definition of who you are, you lower your self-esteem and sense of self-worth. By staying true to your individual self, you shatter your insecurities and become self-reliant. This is what makes a person unique.
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11. Your authenticity
Just like you need to have your individuality, you need to be your authentic self to be a unique person. Authenticity requires you to value your spirit and personality and stay true to yourself even in times of stress when it becomes difficult to be your natural self. A truly unique person is not just authentic, they take responsibility for their actions, and stay honest with themselves and others.
While you respect others’ opinions, you don’t pay any attention to what they think of you nor do you allow anyone to influence you which makes you stand out from the crowd. You also make sure that your actions and behaviors are in sync with your core beliefs.
You don’t change your stance depending on the situation, rather go against the tide, whenever needed, only to defend your values and principles. This is one of the most honest answers when trying to understand what makes a person unique.
12. Your relationships
Just as we are all unique, so are our relationships. We have different relationship dynamics with our parents, intimate partners, family, friends, and coworkers. We even have two separate types of relationships with both our parents. Our relationships have a strong impact on our mental and emotional wellbeing, our morals, our decision making and how we present ourselves.
Just like toxic relationships can lead to trauma and depression, healthy relationships can inspire us to be our best selves. Our close relationships influence our authenticity and individuality which transform us into a unique person. The depth of our relationships is what makes a person unique.
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Celebrate your uniqueness
Every individual is a different work of art painted with strokes of life experiences, emotions, personality, knowledge, biology and environment. We all have our own point of view and personal beliefs based on how we have experienced the world. Our journey in life shapes the person we become and each of us have a separate destiny at the end of our personal journey.
Our uniqueness makes us special and odd at the same time. And that is the beauty of being your most genuine, flawed self. That is what makes a person unique
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