Introduction
The society is composed of people who differ in opinions and various ways of doing things within the society. For the majority, people tend to agree on how people should behave and think for the sake of community’s solidarity. However, there also exists a section of the community that believes that rules are there to be broken and so they should constantly live their lives either thinking outside the box or without a box. Out of these perceptions came people referred to as mavericks and nonconformists. Nonconformists are those who’s thinking and behavior out rightly express their dissatisfaction with being ‘normal’. They believe in doing exactly what is wrong and in so doing they stimulate people to think enough on ways of sustaining their values. Mavericks, on the other hand, are independent people in terms of their thinking, and they always encourage good behavior regardless of the situation. They do not make compromises. The society needs diversity in opinions and behaviors, but still, it is more important to encourage people to be mavericks instead of non-conformists. Mavericks Mavericks in most cases are normally people who stand out in the society, and they are recognized for their success in changing people’s opinion through their being different from the majority. They add spice to the society through their ways of doing things and thinking. There are mavericks in every sphere of people’s lives starting from writing, music, business, politics and even science among many other fields. They ask questions and do not take anything for granted when they are faced with various issues. Their success stems from the fact that they are more than willing to try something new and make sure that it works to their advantage and the society at large. They bring in new ideas, humor, color and fresh perspectives that people often find to be in short supply in the community or organizations. It is for this reason that mavericks are important in every sphere of people’s lives given that they make most of the inventors, innovators, and artists (Anderson 23). Mavericks’ opinions are normally used as a benchmark of what constitutes good or bad in the community. For example, Martin Luther King was a maverick whose messages and opinions are still being used in the world to teach people about peace and unity despite their differences. He successfully managed to champion for the rights of the African Americans as being equal to the rights of the Americans not just because the law should protect them but because they are human beings and they deserve to be treated better. The Americans did not share in his beliefs, and they constantly mistreated the Africans on grounds of their skin color. Through the insistence and leading by example, the Americans came to see that treating each other like an equal party was a way of promoting peace, love, and unity amongst themselves. Being a maverick has got more to do with the post success of holding a particular opinion rather than seeing it as an ongoing process. It focuses on the aftermath of the mavericks’ actions and beliefs in terms of how they managed to bring about changes in people’s opinions (Palmer 102). Non-conformists As aforementioned, the non-conformists are more concerned with breaking the rules. Their happiness comes from doing things that are perceived to be controversial to the society’s wellbeing and success. Being a non-conformist requires that a person can face the society and still insist that they are right despite being wrong. For instance, the terrorists qualify for this category of people. Taking people’s lives in masses is a huge achievement for a terrorist as confirmed when they even go public claiming that they are responsible for such kinds of actions. There is pride in defying what is considered ethically moral or that which is considered to be an act of integrity. Nonconformists do not make a huge section of the society, just as the mavericks do. They are cut from a different cloth and for them they thrive on being negatively different. They do not believe in blending along with people, or getting along with them or even being popular. It is not their thing at all. They are not capable of doing anything else rather than cause trouble. They would rather ask for forgiveness instead of seeking for permission. They do not ooze with social skills for making people recognize their good side, all they want is for people to see their negative side even when they do not intend for it to happen (Palmer 102). The non-conformists are essential to creating a climate in which people always strive to stick to their morals regardless on the conditions in which they find themselves. It is because they will help people to question the value of their beliefs in integrity and the roles that these values play in the society. When a non-conformist gets interested in something, they will try as much as they can to get to the bottom of it. They tend to be excited by the thrill for information hunt and how they can use it to harm people in a way that suits them. They do not focus on being right when they get information they need. Being right here denotes adopting the majority normative views to which there are two basic reasons for this kind of approach. One, people tend to assume that the truth will always lie in the numbers and if they are on the opposite side of a unanimous decision then they are automatically wrong. Secondly, people fear rejection for being different and this is the pride of the non-conformists. All there is to life is being negatively different. Creating problems out of the present solutions. Out of this comes the need to constantly stick to moral regulations in all spheres of person’s life (Palmer 102). How mavericks and non-conformists exist Each of these types of individuals exists at the extreme ends of the society and through their interactions people can question what they are used to. The question as to how these people exist in a society can be evaluated by asking whether being a non-conformist or a maverick is a choice or a situational occurrence. From a personal perspective, it is a matter of choice since the individual will always condition themselves to suit different environments. In response, they will act according to their environments differently. The magnitude of their actions will conform to the standards of their environments so that the effect that they would like the people to feel gets the attention that they wish to have. Were it not a matter of choice, this kind of people would not be able to do certain things without reasoning, such as the case of religious mavericks or political non-conformists. Their ability to exist in a society comes from the fact that the society is not self-sufficient, and the variety in opinions is the root of all reasons to continually seek new ways of doing old things. The question would be whether the non-conformists can be convinced to change their ways by interacting with the mavericks since they are viewed as a negative influence in the society or even in the organizations. People should be taught how they need to be maverick and avoid being non-conformists. Since the decision to be a maverick or a non-conformist depends on an individual’s decision, placing people in controlled social environments can serve to condition a person’s behavior to conform to certain standards as they are expected of them. It will allow for a controlled environment in which people’s actions can be monitored. The ability to monitor these behaviors is what makes it possible to control a person’s behavior when they are in extreme conditions. It creates a situation whereby observation of people who are non-conformists to helps people to recognize the value of appreciating the importance of rules in the society. As such, those who are responsible for such procedures from the family setup, to the community and to the organizations in which people work should be able to deal with the non-conformist people (Palmer 102). Dealing with the non-conformist people can be considered as a way of encouraging people to be maverick. One of the ways in which people can be encouraged to be a maverick is by creating a company culture that does not support non-conformist ideas, especially when they disregard the family values. The company should try as much as possible to encourage being a maverick through recognizing and rewarding independent thinking, creative feedback and also encouraging teamwork. Through this approach, the fellow colleagues will act as the overseers of non-conformist ideas before the administration takes part. When the people can deal with non-conformists themselves, they will be able to appreciate a culture that supports non-conformist ideas and encourage it among themselves. Also, creating a culture that promotes open communication helps in allowing the people who feel like they have to be conformists to feel free to communicate freely without fear of victimization. It allows the people who work in the organization to be able to communicate their opinions, and if they pose threats to the organization then, these problems can be dealt with from an earlier stage. Owing to the fact that nonconformists tend to find pride by defying the majority opinions, they are likely to enjoy such situations but still, coming up with rules that aim to tame their behavior can go a long way into ensuring that people are able to deal with the fact that being a non-conformist is not a good idea (Misiroglu 203). Another way of telling people not to be conformists is to ensure that they stick to teamwork. Non-conformists are people who completely disregard the value of teamwork and forcing them to stay in the respective groups will ensure that they try to be as normal to the other people as possible. Through these group works, the non-conformists will be forced to accommodate the group member’s opinions and work by them, especially if the majority of the group members do not support their opinions. They will also be able to appreciate the role that each of the team members plays in sustaining the group’s activities. The importance of teamwork is that it helps the people to recognize the value in being members of a larger community and how they think in relation to various issues. Teamwork allows this kind of participation when the non-conformists do not get a room for their non-conformist ideas being accommodated. It will have to force them to think before they act since they will be very much aware that their actions may have disastrous consequences for them. With this in mind, the non-conformists will be able to think of their actions (Hodgson 103). Encouraging people to try to emulate other people within the organization who are perceived to be mavericks also encourages the non-conformists to think about their situation. Rewarding such acts will serve to motivate them to seek to try and understand the reasons as to why being a maverick is more important than being a non-conformists. It creates a situation whereby people use the mavericks in the society as a threshold for what constitutes good behavior and good thinking. Hence, the culture that will exist is that whereby people always want to change the lives of other people through their actions and to think. If this is, the source of competition then being a maverick will be rewarded not just by those who are mavericks, but also those who aspire to be mavericks because they like the status or because they are non-conformists. Emulation of behavior is also good since the non-conformist will realize that as an individual there are some decisions that they will have to make as a person by learning from their environment. Because non-conformists are thrilled by the desire to get new information, they will always try to see the other side of things that they do whether they are positive or negative. This curiosity will encourage the individual to continue aspiring to be different especially when they see that they are helpful in the society. In the process of letting the non-conformists get to know the value in being mavericks, it is important to consider encouraging them not to be afraid of letting go of their behaviors. Letting go of a habit is a difficult challenge for any person, and it requires moral support. When the non-conformist is encouraged to abandon their bad habits, they will realize the importance of acquiring new ways of thinking and behaving only if they are allowed to. It will help them to see the other side of life not as an alternative but as a way of living a good life since it is the right thing to do. They will not be fighting what they are doing but instead they will be doing it out the conviction that something good is in it for themselves and not for the entire society. As such, these non-conformists will realize that a society’s values exist not for the sake of it but the sake of sustained existence within the society (Copeland 209).
Works Cited
Anderson, Perry. American Foreign Policy and Its Thinkers. , 2014. Print.
Copeland, Lori. The Maverick. Wheaton, Ill: Tyndale House, 2005. Print.
Hodgson, Bernard. The Invisible Hand and the Common Good. Berlin: Springer, 2004. Print.
Misiroglu, Gina. American Countercultures: An Encyclopedia of Non Conformists, Alternative Lifestyles, and Radical Ideas in Us History. Armonk (NY: Sharpe Reference, 2009. Print.
Nelson, Rhonda. The Maverick. Richmond: Mills & Boon, 2007. Print.
Palmer, Diana. The Maverick. Thorndike, Me: Center Point Pub, 2010. Print.
Leigh, Lora. Maverick. New York: St. Martin's Paperbacks, 2009. Print.
