Be Yourself

Be Yourself.

This concept seems so easy as an idea, but is honestly one of the hardest things for us to do these days.  Think about it.  If you scroll through Instagram for even 5 minutes, have you ever counted how many of the images/videos are ads?  I did this recently and was ASTOUNDED at how many of the stories & posts were actually targeted ads.  It’s scary as well how targeted they are – Instagram has me pegged – between Non Alcoholic Wines, Sourdough Recipes, anything Sarah Jessica Parker related, Old Money Outfits that I can buy for $10, Speakeasy Style design – yeah, they know who they’re talking to.  Just a few minutes though, and you are given SO many ideas and lessons on how to act, how to spend money, how to be a great parent, how to be a good friend, how to be funny, how to be a good wife – it’s beyond overwhelming.  10 minutes later and I catch myself thinking about how I should dress differently, die my hair, eat less seed oils (what is a seed oil)? – and somehow am left from these ads and so called motivational speakers that I follow, feeling worse about myself.

As an experiment, I took an entire weekend and promised myself I would not scroll social media, not even one time.  By the end of the weekend, I was more present, more aware, and felt happy in my own shoes (literally, I didn’t buy any shoes all weekend which probably wouldn’t have happened if I had been on the Gram).  This really sunk in the concept of just being yourself, and being happy with that.  We are pushed in so many different directions & told how to be/think/act/dream/plan/etc – that we forget who we really are and what we enjoy, and truly, who God designed us to be. 

We are all given specific gifts from God, and when we get distracted trying to be someone or something else, or who we think we should be, we are literally ignoring our true calling.  You have so much to offer this world just by being you.  I encourage you – if you feel like you have to be anyone different than you truly are – take a break from social media & be present in the world you live in.  You just might discover some hidden talents, or something you forgot you enjoyed.  There is only one of you and the world needs more of it.  Trying to be more like anyone else is well, overused.  The world already has that person.  Be YOU!