Washing dishes is a meditative practice for me. My hands go on autopilot, lift, scrub, rinse, repeat, and my mind is free to wander. I have had some amazing moments of clarity with my hands covered in suds, fingers all wrinkled up like little prunes. Sometimes I'm so deep in my thoughts, that my husband or kids will come into the kitchen to talk to me, and I won't even notice they're there until they wave both of their arms over their head, or raise their voices just enough to break my trance.
On occasion, I want something more than the intermittent rush of water, and clang of pan on pan to accompany my thoughts, so I'll listen to a podcast while I wash. I will admit I got in the podcast game a little late. My husband had been urging me to do it for years by the time I finally got on board. And while I listen to a few different podcasts fairly consistently, my favorite podcast is still the first one I ever tried, Unmistakable Creative. I don't know that I've ever come away from an episode without some new insight or expanded sense of possibility.
One of my favorite parts of the podcast is the very last question, Srini Rao, the host, asks, "What makes someone unmistakable." I always look forward to hearing how the guest will answer that question, and then analyzing how the way I live my life fits (or doesn't fit) within their answer.
I don't know why it had never occurred to me to do this before, but yesterday as I was finishing up with the last of the dishes, listening to an episode featuring Neil Pasricha on the "Role of Intrinsic Motivation in Our Happiness" (great episode by the way), it occurred to me to pose that question to myself.
What do I think makes someone unmistakable?
I thought about it for a few minutes while wiping down the counter and drying my hands, and came up with one word.
Honesty.
I shared my Personal Principles Declaration about a month ago, and my second principle is, "Be honest with yourself and those around you," and the more I thought about it yesterday, the more I felt that if you are always striving to uphold that principle, you will be unmistakable, because authenticity is unmistakable.
If you are honest with yourself and others about who you are, about your intentions, motivations, aspirations and passions; if you are honest, even when it is not easy, especially when it is not easy and transform the power of that honest knowing into honest action, the result will be an unmistakable life.