We're never equipped to pre-define ourselves.
For the desire to be understood, we often get rigid with our personalities, believing consistency is what society rewards.
We define our characters in front of the audience, to be seen as confident. While in reality, no one really asked us to be a constant.
In fact, rigidity hurts personal growth and learning.
We try hard to maintain that image we pre-defined, even omitting the lessons we learn as we grow through life.
Living can turn into a performance, a draining one, where you may stick to your faulty belief that others are keeping track of the way you live and that you're expected to be consistent with who you are.
This builds up tension and restricts any form of true self-expression.
You're not a finished product. And we really should not expect ourselves to be.
We live every day, discover new perspectives, and become aware of deeper and deeper layers of our existence and this world.
And this all demands growth. And growth needs change.
Defining ourselves as a certain type of person, just for the sake of society, is always a premature act.
Allow yourself to change. Allow yourself to grow.
You don't need to keep living the life that made them define you.
And who's really watching, except you?
Growth begins with permission—then with progress.
You are allowed to change—for the doors to open, the emotions to take shape, and the life you truly deserve to unfold.
And truly, no one is watching as closely as you think.
Free yourself from keeping beliefs that hold you back, which no one really asked you to keep.
That's when growth truly takes shape.
And when it feels right, that's when it is done right.
How you feel on the inside is the real compass.
Thanks for reading today's email!
If this made you feel more connected with your inner Self, I hope that feeling stays with you.
If you have any suggestions of what I should write about next, feel free to reply under this email. I'll be happy to read them.
Or share anything this small essay has sparked in you—I truly enjoy reading them.
Anyway, thanks for staying with me.
Jasir Ibrahim
From Clearform.