Your Authentic Self

 What does it mean to be you?

There is a great deal of talk about identity.

Eastern tradition tells us to forget about the ego and popular culture instructs us to self-care, have me-time, abandon relationships. What leads to long-term happiness?

The Harvard Happiness study tells us that at life's end, the happiest among us are those who invested in relationships, in love. Also those who focused on experiences rather than on buying things.

Your personality does stabilize at around the age of 12 and by that I mean traits and ways to handle anxiety. Beyond that, you're not a character in a story which means you dont have to comfortably fit into a given box - because nobody fits into that box, not a single person. People are too wonderfully varied and complex which is why there really is no need to cling to stereotypes or to pay for aesthetics in order to feel like a person. 

You are your body and your mind with no need of fashion, make-up or surgery. That might be a poor business model but appreciating the essential things and living simply will enrich your life. By taking the focus away from yourself, and onto others, you will also enrich the world.