What Are Your True Colors?
What are your True Colors?
I was listening to the radio when Cindi Lauper was singing “True Colors”.
“And I’ll see your true colors, shimmering through
I see your true colors and that’s why I love you.
So don’t be afraid to let it show, your true colors.
True colors are beautiful like a rainbow.”
What are your true colors? Who are you? Think about it for a minute.
Do you show your true colors, your honest to goodness real you to everyone? Why or why not?
For me, I had an AH-HA moment a few years ago. Jane and I were attending a business meeting. She stated that she was retiring from a job that she loved and had for 30 years. Her words tumbled out – “I feel like I am losing who I am. I identify myself with my job. My success and all that I have accomplished.”
I went home from that meeting and had a serious chat with myself. Yes, you heard it, I talk to myself. I too had identified ME in conjunction with my education and my job as, RN. I used to say “I am a Mary Kay Beauty consultant but I am also a nurse.” How did I get here?
Growing up, I was always told to “fit in”. I wore hats and long dresses when they were not in style, I just liked the outfits! As you can tell over the years ME came out more and more from my clothing style, makeup style, to my activities in my life. I have short hair, I love dramatic make-up, my jewelry is big and bold and I love bright colors including black. I have a black belt in karate and am a reiki practitioner.
For a short time, I tried to be like other people, but I gave that up quickly. It was B-O-R-I-N-G!!!
How do you express yourself -Through your clothing, music, activities, or in other ways? Are You showing your true colors to the world?
There is a saying on my fridge “Don’t try to fit in when you were born to stand out,” think about it. Who are you? Do you scream to the world “It’s me!” or do you whisper in the corner?
Visualize who you are. What are your likes and dislikes, religion, lifestyles, music, books, talents, family, and friends, sometimes it is too easy to fit a round peg in a round hole? In order for you to be happy and at peace with yourself, you have to define who you are and what you want to be and do in this world.
After several years of attending forums, classes, and discussion groups, I have found that I have characteristics that make me ME, that no one else has. My mind can go miles away from the rest of me, especially my mouth, not that way! I cannot always convey what I am thinking because my mind is moving so fast. This is my problem and I have to slow down so I can appropriately communicate clearly with others.
I also love to learn and read. I read a lot of everything from business books, to romance to Literature. I am currently learning Spanish. Every day I learn something new. It can be intimidating if I start to vomit facts or a new item I learned it is my problem, and I have to curb my enthusiasm, and only throw out little bits here and there. Not changing me, but changing how I present myself to the world.
I love my AH-HA moments. They are so profound. Learning about myself and how I interact with the world was an eye-opener. As I am writing this 
article, I feel I have grown so much into the true colors of ME.
Now some homework: get a pen and paper:
- Write down your education, jobs, family, friends, gifts/talents, and aptitudes, do you feel you are true to yourself?
- How do you see yourself? Happy, positive, thoughtful, angry, depressed
- Ask several friends who can be honest with you to tell you your persona to the world.
- Take a deep breath. Look at all the info.
- Do you like what you wrote down about yourself or what other people told you?
Are there some things you need to change? How will you make this happen?
I know this is a lot to think about all at one time. If you do it now it is done for a while. It is spring and time to clean up, so this is your mind spring cleaning.
Let me leave you with a bit from the Robert Frost poem The Road Less Traveled:
“Two roads diverged in a wood and I, I took the road less traveled and that has made all the difference.”
LOOK AT YOUR SKIN
APPRECIATE IT
LOVE IT
TAKE CARE OF IT.
Donna Emschweiler Mary Kay Beauty Consultant