I’ve been told that I’m a chameleon, changing myself to fit any situation. It’s true, I’ve struggled to fully embrace all aspects of myself and tend to only show what I think will be best received in any moment.
Learning to embrace my full self without judgment has been a worthy challenge, and every step to overcome my insecurities brings me closer to my own nirvana of inner peace.
The online world makes it very tempting to fabricate an image of myself.
Sometimes I feel as though I have nothing interesting to offer social media because I don’t live a glamorous life.
Most days I’m in stretchy pants and shirts made dirty by little fingers.
It’s easy to go online and see endless pictures of people, mostly women, living fabulous lives. I know many people are faking it, on some level, and playing it up to gain followers.
Still, it makes me feel as though I have less to offer because I have no desire to pretend to be more glamorous or enlightened than I am.
I’m often too busy living my life to stop and take a picture for the internet.
Thankfully it seems things are changing. More people are sharing candid photos with honest captions. People want to see authenticity, they want to relate and connect with others.
When we share our true selves, we allow others to fall in love with who we truly are.
So perhaps I do have something to offer. I may not live a fabulous life, but I do speak with authenticity and vulnerability. I’m drawn to people who are honest and willing to be seen even in their less-than-glamorous moments; these are the people who influence me the most.
I don’t want to present only my most polished version of myself, or worry about saying something that isn’t on brand. I cannot adequately serve the world if I’m only offering a fraction of myself.
We are all complex beings, with both light and dark in us, to pretend otherwise is to deny our true power.
My power lies in my ability to speak my truth. Share my story as it unfolds without needing to edit my struggles or smooth away life’s natural blemishes.
I am colourful, fluid, and complex, and I no longer want to change how I come across to better fit in. I’m one in 7.53 billion. We can’t all blend together, nor do we need to stick out.
Perhaps I can be like a chameleon, and just fit in by being myself.