World Academy of Art & Science

What are the distinguishing attributes of Individuality?

Individuality is the possession of characteristics that help to set an individual apart from others and thereby make him unique. It can also be defined as the ability to act along lines that one believes are correct for oneself. That is, if one’s convictions and beliefs and outlook on life appear correct to him, he or she proceeds to shape his or her life on that basis even if others do not approve of it.

Individuality, creativity, original thinking, scientific discovery and social innovation.

So long as an individual conforms to the general beliefs and usages prevailing in the society, he will not think in a way that is out of the ordinary. Only when he has his own unique point of view and has a keen perception that does not conform to the regular pattern will he come up with a creative understanding.  For example, when everybody around him believed that the sun was going around the earth, Copernicus had a unique perception that convinced him that the available evidence shows the earth to be revolving around the sun and not the other way around. That unique perception is his individual trait and without that he would not have come up with such a radical idea. Individuality helps original thinking in that it gives the original thinker the courage and bravery to speak about what he has seen and discovered though it be contrary to established beliefs. For example, Darwin had an original insight about the nature of life and discovered the process of evolution. This was in direct contrast to the creationist views of life held by the church. Had he been intimidated by the power of the church, he would not have spoken out. But his individualistic nature gave him the courage to speak out what he felt to be the true state of affairs and he held on to his beliefs even after he faced strong opposition from the conservatives.

Individuality and leadership

Individuality encourages self-reliance, initiative, persistence and unique perceptions and new visionary ideas, etc. All these are very useful to leaders and therefore it is not surprising that many leaders are highly individualistic. For example, Gandhiji was a great leader of modern India. He saw India under British occupation. He wanted to free his county without much bloodshed. He came up with his own unique concept of civil disobedience and non-violent resistance. It appealed to the generally peaceful disposition of the Indian population and they responded en masse. It is the persistence born out of his individuality that gave Gandhiji the strength to go ahead with his unique method to secure freedom and survive all skeptic and pessimistic comments and British persecution.

Individuality and entrepreneurship

Individuality is very much necessary for the flowering of entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurs are men who take new and fresh initiatives and individuality is very helpful for taking new initiatives. Entrepreneurs may be discouraged by others around that their new venture may not succeed and that they are venturing into unknown areas with no certainty of success. Only an individual with a firm conviction in the truth and soundness of his beliefs will persist in the face of discouragement and opposition.

In the 1983, Dr. P.C. Reddy gave up his medical practice as a heart surgeon in USA, returned to India and established the first 150-bed, private, world-class corporate hospital in the country, he faced lots of skepticism and criticism from other doctors. But he was determined to proceed with his venture, because he was an individual who believed in the soundness of his conviction that such a corporate hospital will succeed. Today Apollo Hospitals operates 46 hospitals in India and overseas with more than 8000 beds along with a national chain of medical clinics, pharmacies, and allied medical businesses. His pioneering effort has become the model which countless others have imitated to bring modern medical facilities and therapeutic capabilities to India.

Individuality, egocentricity and selfishness

Individuality is the capacity to competently deal with any new situation other than what one is trained for and what one is familiar with. We describe F.D.R as a formed individual. He was a politician running trained for routine administration. But when he took office the country was not normal and functioning routinely. It was in the midst of a severe depression requiring emergency measures and he rose to the occasion and managed to bring it out effectively.              

When suddenly war descended on the nation, he tackled that too very effectively and would have brought Japan down on its knees had it not been for his unexpected demise. Such facility for tackling depression and war which are very different situations demonstrates that Roosevelt was a true individual.

Since their abilities far exceed that of the average individual, it may be natural for many of them to become vain and egoistic. But it is not the case always. Gandhiji was also a true individual who was adept in politics, religious matters, tackling foreign occupation and dealing with social reforms inside the country, etc. But he was totally unegoistic. He did not seek power though he could have easily become P.M or President of the country. The only thing he wanted to do was serve the people and the country.

One may argue that Gandhiji is a rare phenomenon and that he is not typical. Americans are very individualistic in general but also very egoistic and self-centered.  They have developed physical and vital individuality only and therefore it is not surprising that their individuality is accompanied by a strong self-centeredness also. Gandhiji’s individuality was somewhat spiritual and so it escaped the egoistic accompaniment. So one can say that when spiritual individuality emerges, it will be free of egoism and selfishness.