To stand out means to go outside the norm. Well-meaning people will tell you to stop. People don’t like change, and they will project their fears onto you.
The fear of being disliked stops many people doing what they want to do. They won’t reach out to that person, follow up or ask that question. They won’t produce the video or write the article. They’ll continue doing what they always did before because it’s a place of comfort. They are safe from criticism or rejection.
It takes the courage to be disliked, the realisation that some people won’t like what you do, but you do it anyway because you know why you are doing what you are doing. You care about something, and you’re willing to be vulnerable, to feel the fear of being rejected if it means producing something worthwhile.
Put yourself out there knowing that some people will dislike you. That’s okay. You don’t need to be liked by everyone.
Soon you realise that most people don’t care. It was your ego telling you that you are so important, that everyone’s eyes were on you. This is the trap of the spotlight effect. You were really going to stop doing something that mattered to you because you had an inflated sense of self. You were going to prevent yourself from producing something extraordinary because you cared too much about your image.