Is the Inner You Different from the Outer You?

It would seem that we all have dual personalities. We have the person we show the world on a day-to-day basis and the person we are behind closed doors, when we’re alone, in the bedroom, intoxicated, or in any other event where we feel safe and/or significantly lower our inhibitions.
This week the subject of alter egos came up at a dinner table conversation and invoked an internal dialogue, ‘Do I have an alter ego? And, if so, who is she?’ And after a decent amount of thought, experimentation, and journaling, here’s who she is:
She’s the first girl on the dance floor and the last to leave. She dances with everyone and doesn’t care what anybody thinks. She wears 6-inch heels with short dresses like it’s nobody’s business and can dance in them all night. She unleashes her inner badass. She swears excessively and is overtly flirtatious. She likes rap and booty bouncing (this is a no judgment zone, remember). She’s wild and sexy. She’s also everybody’s best friend.
I let this inner Shannon out at our first staff party and people loved her. Looking back, I have no idea why I ever kept her hidden away. Perhaps it’s because of the way that society looks at people with certain of those qualities. Perhaps it’s because I was so engrained in my goody two shoes, straight A, responsible, nutrition-oriented, nurturing, motherly, volunteer-loving way of life. Everyone knew me in this one way and thus expected me to act in similar fashion. Whenever something out of the ordinary came up, it was met with, “Who IS this Shannon? What is she doing and why?”
When I came into a safe space here in my new community, I allowed myself to release the parts of me that I kept hidden. I’ve realized that I don’t have to choose between the wild and crazy Shannon and the responsible, mature Shannon. I can combine the two. I can take the qualities I love best from each and mesh them together into this person who gets to work on time and does a great job, but who also knows how to have fun and get down.
We all have that inner goddess or badass just waiting to be unveiled. It’s a matter of letting her out. (And if you’re a guy, you have your inner god or badass in you, too). Get outside of the box. Start thinking outside of societal standards and what’s acceptable in your social circle. You shouldn’t have to hide away parts of yourself just to be accepted. Show the world who you really are, sexy, wild, and all and they’ll accept you for you. There’s no judgment here.
Here’s what I’m challenging you to do today: Take out your journal or just take time to think about what parts of you you’re keeping under lock and key. How can you bring out those personality traits? How can you incorporate them into your daily life? Why are you hiding them and what are you afraid of happening if you let yourself be fully you? When do you feel comfortable enough to let it all out? How is it affecting you to keep yourself as two separate people? What does it feel like when you embody each of your personalities? Really take a while and think about it. Write down whatever comes to mind. And remember: don’t judge!