Sometimes in life we're the outlier. When that occurs you have to think deeply about why you find yourself in that position and what to do.
Thinking back, I haven't had that many outlier experiences. For the most part, I've found myself to be part of the mainstream. At school sometimes as an educator, I did find myself in the outlier position when it came to some school decisions. I typically thought a lot about the decisions and who agreed. I generally shared my point of view, but then went along with the team's decision as none of the decisions where I found myself an outlier were that grave or dangerous to the welfare of most children, and if the situation did affect a child significantly, I worked with colleagues to find a helpful way for that child to follow the rule or practice.
Recently I found myself to be the outlier in a team decision. Just like at school, I thought a lot about why I was in the outlier position. I shared my point of view to the dismay of some, but in the end, I had to accept the fact that the team was making a decision different from what I would choose, but a decision that would not gravely affect the people involved. I chose to go along with the decision, and will support the decision as I can.
I've never worried a lot about being an outlier as I generally share my opinions and think deeply about how far to push what I think. I also realize that I don't have all the answers and good teams generally will make good decisions even if I might not agree with those decisions. We can't control all aspects of life and sometimes we do have to go along to get along. Onward.
