In order to be special, first you need to be special against something.

The bigger that something is, the more room there is to be special against it.

A very large amount of that something is called a monoculture. Monoculture is the fertile ground for people who can offer special things.

I've made this mistake too many times: offering something special without framing it against a monoculture, and the thing feels mundane.

Personal examples

1. I proposed to my fiancée (now wife) against a wide variety of monoculture at once:
   1. Vietnamese young adult experience
   2. expectation of a stand up comedy show in Vietnam
   3. how a proposal is usually portrayed
   4. ... etc
2. The concept of our wedding:
   1. Context: I always hated the culture of weddings. They seemed to be all about the groom and the bride inviting a bunch of people over to admire them, which seems narcissistic to me (a trait I'm not a fan of).
   2. So I and Giang created a wedding concept: "A Wedding for our Friends", which put emphasis on ALL of your guests. The theme continues through out the wedding with emphasis on our combined social circles, pooling together shared memories. It's more about everyone else, rather than just the groom and bride.

A "Museum of Friendship", where each guest has a photo & history with us