Look up to the underdogs

Ed Sheeran recently revealed in an interview that he and Taylor Swift might be one of the most popular singers of their time but the two successful musicians were not popular kids in school. He added that it was this unpopularity that made them succeed musically. He was quoted saying, “There’s an underdog element to it. Taylor was never the popular kid in school. I was never the popular kid in school. It also comes from always being told that you can’t do something and being like, ‘F*** you. I can’.”

Kids who weren’t popular in school or were bullied get much farther ahead as adults, believes psychotherapist Dr. Kashissh Chhabriaa. She shares an instance where her client  was constantly bullied in school for his complexion and his personality, which resulted in a low self-esteem. However, with timely intervention the kid was counselled to polish his strengths and focus on the positive traits of his personality, “The kid is now a goes to  college and is a member of the college committee. Today, his peers walk up to him for taking important decisions. He ensured that he groomed himself to not let the demons of his childhood bother him when he grows up,” she adds.

Taylor Swift (Photo: AP)

It’s also related with what one chooses to do with life, “An underdog always is the one who chooses to play one or is forced to be one. Circumstances or personal choices have a major role to play. There comes a point where they realise that enough is enough and leave everything behind and take things heads on. It is then that they start taking subconscious efforts to do well in life,” she explains.  

These traits push the person to do something extra ordinary in life as they work hard to not just become successful but build skills to be liked by others. “They are driven by the urge to be liked and that’s how they develop strong inter-personal skills to make things work in their favour once they grow up. But this notion is also generalised since not all kids who were underdogs grow up to become successful,” says life-coach Khyati Birla.

However, the urge to do well in life has its share of drawbacks if you get too carried away with the constant need to be in the limelight, “It goes on to become an obsession if it is not balanced correctly. These people would then go to any extent to make sure they are never unpopular and they may also hamper their health in the bid to stay in the limelight and be successful,” Kashissh warns.