Why Did Dr. Seuss Say There's No One Youer Than You?

Dr. Seuss published that line in 1959. Theodor Geisel — the man behind the hat — had been rejected by 27 publishers before his first book found a home. He knew something about being told you were the wrong kind.

Which is probably why he wrote so directly to children: you don't need to become anything. You already are something no one else has ever been or will ever be. The whole world has exactly one of you, and it's not a rough draft.

The invitation is simple, and harder than it sounds. Don't spend today trying to become someone else's version of better. Spend it being more thoroughly, unapologetically yourself. That's not permission to be careless. It's permission to stop apologizing for being exactly who you are.

There is no one alive who is Youer than You. That's not a compliment. That's a fact.