Be Yourself

If you follow my socials, you’ve probably seen or heard me talk about originality and not being afraid to be you.

I stan the whole “be yourself” movement. Sayings such as “fake it till you make it” do hold some truth to it. But, the emotional & physical toll that “pretending” takes on the body will surprise you.

Will Smith was on the Breakfast Club the other day, accompanied by Martin Lawrence. Promoting the third (hopefully final) instalment of the Bad Boys franchise.

Will went on to mention how his role of “The Fresh Prince” helped him kick start his acting career. However, it also restricted him from being able to truly being himself in the eyes of the media. Everyone see’s Will Smith as Will Smith (you get what I mean).

It’s similar with Disney stars. During my time growing up. It was Raven Simone, Hillary Duff, Dylan and Cole Sprouse etc.

Even though we knew they were acting, the role they played became how we saw them as individuals. Seeing them any other way was odd.

Anyway, moving on. I feel like I’m going off on a tangent.

Social media has played an enormous role in conditioning people to behave a certain way. What we need to understand, is that we all can’t be the same kind of person. We’re not robots.

You know what I’m taking about?… so many people are acting the same, dressing the same, even talking the same way.

And anyone brave enough to just be themselves are sneered at or made fun of.

Isn’t that a shame?

Granted, in some situations it’s not advisable to be 100% yourself. For example, during an interview or at the work place. I don’t agree with this but I understand it.

Especially if you’re a POC outside of Africa. You’re an ambassador for your people every time you step out of your house.

However, outside of that. Think about it… are your decisions and actions your own? Or have they been influenced heavily by things around you?

Is how you portray yourself when you leave the house or when you’re online really the way you are behind closed doors?

You’ll be surprised how many more genuine connections you’ll create when you’re being yourself. Most of the time, people can tell when you’re being fake.

It’s a deterrent.

Originality is a breath of fresh air in a society where we’re all wearing face masks.

Be a breath of fresh air. Be yourself.

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