Posts tagged with “genuine”
10 Signs You’re Being True to Yourself
“The most confused we ever get is when we try to convince our heads of something that we know in our hearts is a lie.” ~Karen Moning
It’s painful and stressful to feel like you’re living a lie. Like you’re hiding how you really feel, saying what you think other people want to hear, and doing things you don’t actually want to do—just because you think you’re supposed to.
But sometimes we don’t recognize we’re doing this. We just know we feel off, or something feels wrong, and we’re not sure how to change it.
It makes sense that a …
Authenticity May Feel Risky But It’s Worth It
“Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we’re supposed to be and embracing who we are.” ~Brené Brown
Growing up I experienced a rollercoaster of emotions. One minute I would be on top of the world and the next I felt overwhelmed by anxiety. I didn’t know how to share my difficult emotions in a healthy way with my friends and family, so I started suppressing them instead.
I realized early on that it felt safe to hide my feelings, because no one could judge me if I kept them to myself. I believed …
Stop Trying to Blend In: The Simple Secret to Being Yourself
“Be yourself—not your idea of what you think somebody else’s idea of yourself should be.” ~Henry David Thoreau
How many times have people told you to just be yourself? A million times perhaps.
How many times have you felt able to do this?
Until a few months ago, I thought this was frighteningly hollow advice, like “Don’t worry.” And I had no clue how to be myself. What does it even mean?
The Simple Secret to Being Yourself
My friend continuously tells me that being yourself means doing things you want to do and not caring about what others …
Embrace Who You Are (Not What People Expect You to Be)
“Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we’re supposed to be and embracing who we are.” ~Brené Brown
Now that the fog of what everyone else wanted for me has lifted, it seems so clear to me that we need to be who we truly are—not what society expects us to be. But it wasn’t always this way.
For decades, I bought into a model of success that belonged to someone else. I was studying for my MBA, but I didn’t want my friends to think I was weird, so I didn’t reveal that …
Why Self-Compassion Is the Key to Being Our Authentic Selves
“To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don’t need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh
I was raised in a family where outward appearance and reputation were important. Standing out was only encouraged if it was within the bounds of what was considered “normal.”
No one ever explicitly told me, “What other people think of you is more important than being your true self,” yet that’s what I learned to believe. It became my mission to be accepted by others, because I thought that only then would I be worthy of love.…
Becoming More Authentic: Accept Yourself and Forget Approval
“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” ~E.E. Cummings
For most of my life, I was a chameleon. I stayed under the radar, hoping I’d blend in and not draw attention to myself. I was full of self-doubt, so I molded my personality and beliefs based on my company. I traded my authentic self for the security of being liked by my family and friends because of my fear of being judged.
By suppressing my opinions, I was perceived as easygoing, but at what cost? I disrespected myself by allowing others to influence major …
Dare to Live: 10 Unconventional Ways to Be True to Yourself
“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” ~E.E.Cummings
Have you ever had a clear sign of who you really are and then totally ignored it?
Maybe it required too much change or taking a big risk. Maybe you were scared to have to convince a loved one how much you needed this. And so you rationalized that “it wasn’t the right time.” Convinced yourself to “be sensible and put it off for a while.” I know how this feels, because I did it too.
I was twenty-one then, and in my third year of medical …
10 Ways to Be Who You Really Are
“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” ~E.E Cummings
I was a pretty shy and very quiet kid, so going to school for the first time in kindergarten was a terrifying experience for me.
After a short time, though, life brightened for me in my little elementary school. As it turned out, I loved learning and was a natural student. It was my bliss and often a respite from tumultuous home circumstances, the first place that I spoke out loud with confidence.
Unfortunately, in the urban neighborhood where I lived, being smart meant being …
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