5. The power of authenticity
Did you ever have someone give you an article of clothing as a gift? Let’s say it’s a sweater, and they knitted it for you or picked it out especially with you in mind. You want to like it, but you just can’t. Maybe it doesn’t fit. Maybe it’s a fuchsia color that looks terrible with your skin tone. Maybe the wool makes you break out in a rash. But the giver wants you to love it and wear it all the time. And you must choose between your own discomfort and hurting their feelings.
What did you do when faced with that kind of dilemma?
In psychology and philosophy, “authenticity” is defined as living one’s life according to one’s inner feelings and beliefs rather than the expectations of others, whether it’s family, religion, the culture or society. Or that sweater-giver.
It’s all too easy to find oneself trapped in some identity that has been handed to us by others, often (though not always) with the best of intentions. Whether someone has told you, “All little girls want to play with dolls” when what you want is a soccer ball, or they’ve told you, “There’s no reason for girls to be educated” when you dream of going to college, sooner or later you are going to have to choose between being true to yourself or going along with another person’s plan for you, between claiming your own power or giving it away.
