Being you is one thing only you can forsake.

It is easy to lose yourself in a World that bothers you with ceaseless messages on who you should be.

But your authentic Self is what guides you to your passion and your purpose, happiness, self-empowerment, and to one of the fundamental aspirations of the Human experience:

Receive and give Love unconditionally.

Understand that you are a pack animal, and by nature, you have a strong desire to belong to a pack. There are two ways to gain pack acceptance.

You can conform to pack expectations, or you can earn your way into the pack by contributing something meaningful to it.

When you do this, you are free to use your own inner compass to navigate your way through life, and this allows you to keep your authentic power.

If you decide to earn your way then that means you need to discover what unique contribution you can offer to the pack.

First listen to your heart and head to learn what your inner voice is telling you about your interests and passions.

Then the second part requires courage because it takes being emotionally honest with yourself to even do the first part of listening.

The path to the authentic You means showing people your true colors – being open and vulnerable with them.

Contrary to what most people assume, vulnerability can be a sign of strength, not a sign of weakness.

And showing your true colors also means taking an honest look at your flaws, real or imagined, that get in the way of our being grounded in your authentic Self.

All of this emotional honesty requires that you tap into your heart before you tap into your brain. Feel first; think second.

Most of us do this the other way around. We think a thought, and then that elicits an emotional response, which then produces a reaction.

Logic does have its place, but examine your intuition and feelings, then you let your brain analyze.

Once you wave that ‘You’ flag to the World, you can surround yourself with your natural tribe of people who accept you as you are.

If for any reason competition, rivalry, comparison or judgment enters into a relationship, work it out, and if you can not, say ‘Adios’ and move along.