Who are you?
It is a simple question with an oh so complex answer. Who we are, our identity, can sometimes feel undefinable. It can feel slippery, hard to grasp. There are so many facets to our identity that it would be silly to think we can cover it all in this blog post. Personality, interests, values, spirituality, culture, social relationships, sexuality, gender, character traits, beliefs, life experiences, and our behaviors all make up who we are. Because of this, your unique identity and sense of self is often evolving over time. Many aspects of who you are are longstanding throughout your lifetime, like those concrete personality traits you’ve had since childhood, sometimes since birth! Some parts of who you are get let go of through life experience as you add new ones. There’s also the lovely shiny parts of who we are and the not so pretty aspects of our identity, the shadows. How you think of and relate to yourself, and I mean ALL of yourself, is a big influence on every aspect of your life.
Having a solid sense of self helps you to feel like a whole integrated person. It’s also important to be flexible with it as you learn, grow, and experience life. Like I said, it’s slippery. Having a solid sense of who you are isn’t about getting the correct answer or a final destination point. It’s about feeling grounded in who you are. Compassionate and flexible with yourself. Knowing who you are, who you aren’t, and giving yourself the grace to grow and change. Gather information about yourself in all the areas mentioned above. Use this information to put the pieces of your self together. Spend time also thinking about who you want to be. What is the vision of that person, start making choices aligned with that, and eventually one day, you will be that person.
Questions to ponder.
What are the longstanding aspects of your identity; what has remained the same about you your whole life?
What do your choices and behaviors tell you about who you are?
Who do you want to be?
