This helps you to be more and more yourself

With big decisions in my life, I always received one piece of advice: stay true to yourself, and it will be alright. When I entered a relationship, while hauling boxes during a big move, and in a card from a colleague when switching jobs. It is a wish aka advice that keeps coming back to me. And every year I see more and more why, because you only have yourself if you adapt too much to others.

FOPO stands for fear of other people’s opinions. It is not nearly as fun as FOMO, indeed. The fear of what people think of you causes you to adapt. It is something natural, as it used to ensure that you fit within your tribe or group. However, FOPO can also be paralyzing, causing you to be less and less yourself. And that can never be the intention. To combat FOPO, small smart tips help, but to truly stay close to yourself, more is needed. According to psychologist Michael Gervais, who coaches managers at Fortune 50 companies and top athletes, developing a personal philosophy is the way.

A personal philosophy makes you aware of what you truly value in life. This can be a word or a sentence, for example. Michael Gervais has a few questions you can answer to put your own philosophy in life on paper:

1) When you are at your best, what beliefs underlie your thoughts and actions?
2) Which people have traits and qualities that align with what you value?
3) What are those qualities?
4) What are your favorite quotes or words?

Take those answers and choose one word or make it into one sentence. Voilà: your personal philosophy. And every time you feel that FOPO is holding you back, you go back to that one sentence, to that one belief and you do it anyway, even if you are afraid of someone’s opinion or reaction. Go for that promotion, dance in the rain, and say what you think. In the end, it will take you further because you are being yourself and staying close to your own beliefs.

Source: Harvard Business Review