I always wonder why so many educated people seem compelled to be so nice, formal and predictable in situations where, if their true feelings were to surface, they would portray a very different picture from the one acted out.
Being a rebel at heart, it has always come natural to me to try act the opposite of what it was expected of me. Not exactly what society teach you to be proud of, but in all fairness, it really helped me develop a true sense of freedom and self awareness.
I grew up refusing to be ashamed of being spontaneous or speaking my mind for the fear of being judge or labelled.
Like I still refuse to believe that majority of people out there are that insecure that they need to be fake and repress their true voices in order to fit in and feel accepted. I think it’s all just a matter of convenience. It is easier in fact to be told what to do and how to act than to take responsibility for our own actions (and consequences)
But what kind of example that behavior sets for future generations?
I don't want my kids to grow up in a world where they think they have to give up their free spirited nature and mold or shape their personalities in order to fit in. I don't want them to stop being genuine and grow concerned about speaking their mind or question everything.
Sometimes I think kids are actually the ones to learn from.
Their natural lack of any filter may place them at a very extreme end of the social behavior spectrum but it seems to me that adults, with all they ‘rules’ end up way too far from that extreme right towards the opposite end.
The result, seems to me, a society compelled to follow all rules — good or bad without sometimes even understanding why but only because that’s what they are expected to do.
But are we really supposed to stop thinking for ourselves? To ignore that voice inside, our instinct, until it grows so weak that it can no longer be heard? That’s a slippery road that leads to repression, stagnation and predictability. A road that ends up where spontaneity dies.
We grow up learning about great individuals who spoke their minds, acted their feelings out and stuck by their ideals, their dreams. They were seen as leaders, saints, eccentrics but they all had the same thing in common: they were not afraid of being who they were and show it to the world.
We should reflect on that and understand that we don’t need to end up on a history book in order to be great. We just need to be true to ourselves and stop being afraid that who we really are may not be good enough for others.
Much thought and consideration of course needs to take place before acting or speaking as to how those action or words will effect others. Being spontaneous does not mean being hurtful, or rude or unkind. It means being honest to oneself and others and when that happens then we will act only for the greater good. And this last point is fundamental. It makes all the difference because the point here is not to break the rules, but not to use them as an excuse to hide our true self and live miserably.
And for those people who still believe that level of confidence can only come from money, fame, good looks, please, stop kidding yourself.
You are the key to your own success, your inner voice will always be there trying to guide you through this life and all you have to do is allow it. You have to go back to those days when as a child you saw the world thorough eyes that knew no shame or fear and pick up your journey from there, right were you left it.