Put Into Practice - The Authentic Self

What is  “the authentic self”? 

I love writing. Although, I don’t usually write for fun, I find that I like putting ideas down on a page, and if I’m asked to write for a class, like writing an essay for example, it is something that comes easily to me. Which was why I couldn’t understand why I had major issues in doing this assignment. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to do exactly. Then I decided to treat this assignment as a sort of personal project. A place where I am not restricted to a particular scope, and I can just write what I want and I feel like this can serve as a step towards finding my authentic self. 

Oscar Wilde said “Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation”. I believe this to be true. There are many people who mimic other people in the things they do, the way they talk. And as we become more exposed to the various facets of the media, we lose our authentic self and become someone else. It can be hard for one to be one’s authentic self. This is because many people don’t remember their authentic self. We learned in class that we are our most authentic selves when we were little kids and as we grew older and became involved consciously with the society, we are subconsciously morphed into a false self. 

To be our authentic self, I believe we have to be willing to let go of our false self. Doing this will require self- disclosure. Self-disclosure is very important to be able to unravel our authentic self. Self- disclosure to other people is good, but I believe self-disclosure to oneself, is even better. By being able to take a step back and understand ourselves, or what we think of ourselves, not what we were taught to think of ourselves, we begin to truly understand our authentic self. This is by no means an easy task. It is very easy to be someone else, to be perceived as someone cooler, or more confident. Although that works for a while, we find out after sometime that, that isn’t who we are supposed to be.

Self-disclosure is essential to knowing our authentic self because only when we are able to allow ourselves be vulnerable are we able to understand who we really are. When we take off the masks and allow ourselves to feel vulnerable, we know ourselves in depth. And this can be really hard, it is not a part of human nature to permit oneself to feel helpless in front of other people. What we also fail to realize is that we become stronger by embracing our vulnerability. I believe self-disclosure, vulnerability and authenticity work hand in hand. When we self-disclose to other people, we put ourselves in a vulnerable position and this shows us a bit of our authentic self.

What is my authentic self? Honestly, I do not know. These past few days in class has helped open my eyes to that fact. Shakespeare said: “this above all, to thine own self be true”. I would like to embody this quote as an important part of my life. I would like to believe that some part of me is authentic, but I would also like to fully discover my authentic self. By being honest with myself about things I like, things I like to do, and the things I want, I can start the journey to knowing my authentic self.