I know that when I was growing up there was a lot of emphasis on being original. If you were going to get respect and admiration, you needed to really stand out. Come up with your own style. March to the beat of your own drum. Figure out a way to differentiate yourself from the crowd. One of the values that I didn’t really learn until later on in life is the value of healthy imitation. I say healthy imitation because there are many instances when you should not get your cues from those around you. That being said, part of being a mature adult is recognizing when and where you should learn from and follow the example of others. I’ve been going through the 70 resolutions of Jonathan Edwards and resolution 54 is…

Resolved, Whenever I hear anything spoken in commendation of any person, if I think it would be praiseworthy in me, that I will endeavour to imitate it.

I have a natural bent towards competition. It’s something that I don’t have to think a lot about. If I’m not careful however, I begin to view others as competitors to conquer as opposed to fellow travelers to learn from. The more confident I become in who I am, the more secure I feel in being able to learn from others. If we will humble ourselves and put our egos aside, we can learn from anyone or anything. Maybe there is someone in your sphere that does some things better than you. You may have recently or you may soon find yourself in a conversation where someone else is being praised. Instead of defaulting to the popular response of jealousy or envy, why not see it as an opportunity to learn? If there is a behavior that is being praised in someone else and it seems fitting, why not adopt it in your own life? I’ll bet that there are a multitude of opportunities to learn and grow around us every single day if we will just open our eyes to them.