‘Just be yourself’ sounds empowering—but is it always wise?

There’s wisdom in those mantras—be true to yourself, don’t compromise, live your best life—but they don’t tell the whole story.

Being yourself without regard for others isn’t authenticity—it’s self-absorption, even cruelty. At its extreme, it borders on sociopathy.

True selfhood includes awareness—of how we move through the world, and how we affect others.

When we embrace spiritual truths—that we’re all connected, that we’re one human family—our sense of self naturally expands.

But what happens when that awareness turns into self-erasure? Does caring for others become a slippery slope—toward blurred boundaries, people-pleasing, and losing who you really are?

Now we step beyond blind axioms and black-and-white advice.

The balance between self and other is hard to pin down—subtle, shifting, and tested daily.

No algorithm can resolve the tension between honoring our values and honoring others. This weighing is more art than science, more spiritual than material.

When you want to just be you, remember that your individuation is its own veil.

You are you, but you are also part of the greater collective.

Being yourself means being one with something greater.