Do You Know Who You Are?

Many of us will say we do, but do we really?

Few of us really know who we are. Sure, we may identify and present ourselves a certain way, but how much of that is a facade, an idealistic representation of who we want to be, not who we are?

Now, as social creatures, it’s only natural that we emulate the behaviors and actions of those around us. Why? Well, it boils down to social conditioning.

Even the most daring of us are wary to do something outside of the cultural and social norms we’ve been raised in and grown accustomed to. We know the consequences that tend to follow when we do things that don’t quite fit the mold that society has meticulously crafted.

Of course, those consequences have much to do with judgment and little to do with acceptance. And as someone who’s never quite fit in, those consequences were brutal.

Sure, I could fit in (if I forced myself to), but what was the point? Only to seemingly be ‘accepted’ by individuals who were also struggling to find themselves?

Throughout my journey of self-discovery, I’ve been thinking through why people are quick to judge those outside the metaphorical ‘box.’

From an evolutionary perspective, it makes sense. Standing out and failing to conform to certain behavioral patterns could get you killed by some wild beast. Extreme scenario, but you get the idea.

Only, the thing is we’re no longer living in tribal times. So, why has our mentality of homogeneity as a means of protection remain?

There’s no harm in being different, yet so many people are stifled by being true to themselves. Whether that be for their gender or sexual orientation, religious beliefs, cultural background, disability, etc.

And the most devastating thing about this?

The fact that people lose ownership of who they are.

See, once we start trying to be like everyone else, we slowly begin to feed ourselves this notion that we’ve always been this way. That we’ve always had certain values or…

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