How hard can it be, to be me (1)

Authenticity is about being you, about being true to one’s personality, spirit and character. Easy said, easy done? For some maybe, it seems to come natural to some, but not for me.

I have two challenges when it comes down to authenticity:

1. How do I really get in touch with my own personality, spirit and character
2. How do I remain authentic amongst all societal forces and pressures

They are actually not really separate challenges, they have an intertwined relationship. How do you know that what you define as part of your authentic you, is not really a translation of a societal force? Is it what you want to be, or what others want you to be? Do you really want something, or do you want it because some marketing-people are really good at their job?

The difference between the two challenges is that the first can be actively worked on, through a variety of methods. The latter is in my opinion purely an experience driven challenge, where experience teaches you to recognize the processes that are driving you away from your authentic self and teaches you to do something about it. However, if you don’t know enough about yourself, you will not recognize the processes related to the second.

This is the first in a series of six sidenotes. In the next one I will investigate authentic life.