Let’s Be Brave.

We’ve all been told “Just be yourself!” Crazy idea right? The idea of living it your personality, values and what brings you pleasure? Of course.

Then you remember that being “yourself” also means living out EVERYTHING about you…the flaws, the controversial opinions and the mistakes. It means inhabiting every single part and confidently portraying it in every situation.

This is when being “yourself” doesn’t sound so great. Because when who you are suddenly becomes weird, embarrassing or unpopular, we don’t want to do it. In fact, to avoid it, we will let other people tell us what to do, think and pursue.

What happens when you want “yourself” to be loved and viewed so positively, that you lose the things that have made “you” in the first place?

Welcome to the “brave authenticity” complex. What do you do when your authenticity and true beliefs get confused with that the world tells you to do?

Once this happens, it takes a lot of bravery to gain back back your most authentic self.It takes a lot of bravery to ignore what others say and live out who you truly are, even if you suffer some pain and embarrassment along the way. In my last semester of college, I am dedicated to doing brave and creative acts to gain back my authentic voice.