Sarah Bryn definitely captured me as a person in this picture! |
At 22 years old, I am still growing as an individual and discovering who I am as a person. I continue to find the things that truly make me happy. Unfortunately, I was not always myself as I was living by the expectations of others like my parents, peers, employers and mentors. Part of it was due to being an impressionable young girl that felt pressured to fit in with society. I was an extremely self-conscious timid girl who was super awkward and constantly worried about pleasing those around me. The goals I was pursuing in life were not necessarily my own, but those pushed upon me by others.
Over the years, I finally got the courage to by ME!!! I have broken out of that timid shell and am letting my bubbly - slightly hyper crazy - personality shine. I love being a ball of uncontrollable energy that is contagious to those around me. But most importantly, I am not letting others dictate who I am as a person.
I have found this is the most happiest I have been in years as I am living my life the way I want to. I cannot express how proud I am to have found the courage to be myself. I was afraid that I would not be liked by others as much, but I was delightfully surprised that those around me actually love me for who I REALLY AM. The best part, I am no longer worried about pleasing those around me.
What is being "yourself?" This is definitely a subjective topic, but for me, it is who we naturally are when we have our guard down and grandioseness.
I encourage you to be like an innocent child. Live in the moment as they do and find the things that are aw-inspiring to you. Children have yet to succumb to social pressures of fitting in with society; therefore, children are definitely their true natures as they do not care what others think of them!
Be silly, be loud, be yourself! I find it frustrating how many of us on a day to day basis suppress our true selves in fear of what those around us would think. When my friends point out that I am embarrassing them by being silly, I tell them that Vancouver is a busy city and no one has time to stop and judge me on the street. In fact, I may have just made the passerby's day by twirling in my dress down the sidewalk.
The negative thoughts in our head definitely hinder our true selves from shining. This is definitely an outcome from worrying about how you are being perceived by others. Follow your intuition and find the positives in your day. You do not have an obligation in pleasing others. I always felt that my parents and friends happiness was more significant than my own.
It does take some time to find who you are as a person. As I said earlier, I am still growing each and every day. I am always learning more about myself, but I would not have if I did not choose to be myself. It can be very challenging because we are so concerned about what others think about us.
This was a tough post to write because we all are unique with diverse experiences. The first step I think in being yourself is choosing to be yourself :) the rest is following your own instincts and pursuing what makes you happy!
BE YOU
BYES
Photograph by Sarah Bryn http://www.bryncreative.co @BrynCreativeCo