Often, those who tread off the beaten path are misunderstood or mischaracterized and so we asked folks from the community to reflect and tell us about the times they’ve been misunderstood or mischaracterized.

Jose Rico

I have never been able to fit into a social group, at school, or work… Whenever I was with a group of people, I was always aloof, I tried fitting in with the trends, in sports clubs, and social gatherings and I have always felt that I didn’t belong, I have always been thinking about my goals and how to achieve them, always focused on not falling to distractions and situations that can put my vision at risk. Read more>>

Lianne Mauladiin

Although teaching rooms full of high school art students is great preparation for performing live stand-up, Its been a challenge in some ways juggling both. I don’t know if I was projecting my own insecurities, but when I started in stand up I didn’t want people in the audience to know I was a teacher. Read more>>

M. M. De Voe

Because I founded a nonprofit that helps writers stay creative after having kids, I am frequently asked if I am a mommy blogger or if my books and short fiction are for kids. I hold an MFA from Columbia and my writing is award-winning literary and slipstream fiction. Read more>>

Lauren Hudson

Other artists and even my students; assume because I teach art that I am not talented or skilled in art-making. The phrase, “those who cannot do, teach.” comes to mind. Read more>>

Ramxes

Being misunderstood, and mischaracterized in an industry like music can be extremely detrimental especially when people are naturally looking to put others in a box. Therefore this mischaracterization can affect a lot. Read more>>

Lenny Mika Bonk
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Ever since I was a little boy, I had the dream of being an author, publishing my own books, and standing on stages to share my words with the world. For a long time, nothing could have seemed more unrealistic though. Read more>>

LX Xander

I feel like I’m CONSTANTLY being typecast, pigeonholed etc. – but in a way, I don’t think it’s a bad thing. As far as branding goes, I think it’s important that people can make immediate judgements about you as SOON as they see you, because you only get a few seconds of people’s attention nowadays. Read more>>

Mike Balint

One of the most difficult things I encounter as both a creator and an entrepreneur are peoples preconceived notions on how things “should” be. In 2014 I co-founded a construction and engineering firm that has grown into an 8 figure business over the past decade. Read more>>

F’iona Mesha

I think it’s easy to be misunderstood or mischaracterized. There are an influx of people in the music industry who look and sound the same, so when someone comes around who is the total opposite of that it can go either way. Read more>>

Aimee Herman

I am learning that how I am perceived–or misperceived–has become the fuel to my writing. We are born into boxes. These boxes determine how we are treated in life. Read more>>

Morgan Bakaletz

In my adolescence, I never understood why I felt so different from everyone else. Despite having my own body, wearing the clothes that I wanted to, and trying to be the person I thought I wanted to be, I still felt wrong. Read more>>

Kevin Ben

One of the hardest issues I face is in this day in age is people only looking at the surface. To everyone on the outside I am a rapper. You wouldn’t know that I’m well versed in many genres from not just hiphop but country, house music and more. Read more>>

Dommique Diamond

When it comes world of modeling and just being a creator in general I would say that I’m a bit misunderstood or they just misunderstand how I move in the industry. Read more>>

Tonio G

More times than not I’m misunderstood and mischaracterized. Unlike many artist who set in on a specific genre, I feel like, I’m order to operate at the peak of my creativity, I can’t limit myself to one genre. Read more>>

Jason Woods

For someone like me who comes from the indie world, we put on a multitude of hats in order to a project to get made. Whether you are the one who is conceptualizing the script or the shoot, or the one shooting said project, to even editing and distributing — you’re involved with all aspects of it to see it through. Read more>>