“Who am I?”

The greatest question of all time. When posed with this question, some might just lapse into silence while others can answer without hesitation. So what is the secret behind this?

After a period of change, people often find themselves lost. After a breakup, after a graduation, after a loss of a loved one. Again and again in life, we inevitably meet with changes. Change cannot be avoided or simply handled. Many a time after a drastic change in our lives, we often find our identity in jeopardy. Today you might be a student, the next day a graduate. Today you can be someone’s spouse or someone’s son/daughter, and the next you’re not. At times like these people get their world thrown into disarray as they scramble to find their identity.

“Who am I without my parents?”

“Who am I without my boyfriend/girlfriend?”

“Who am I?”

Now, one of the most important things in life would actually be to consider this: Why is it so important to know who you are? The answer to this million dollar question is…it isn’t. Every single day we experience new things, we meet new people, and we encounter new environments. Every single day we are changing. Just as change in our life is inevitable, we ourselves are actually just as prone to change. Who we are one month ago can actually vastly differ from the current us.

Even in different environments we can be really different. At work, with friends, at home. We take on different personas, different identities. And who is to say which is the real you? My take? They all are. Everyone has multi-faceted identities.

Rather than trying to pin down who you are, focus on knowing what you want. Rather than being fixated on what is and what has been, focus on what will be. Who you are is who you want to be. It is a choice.

So the next time you ask yourself that question, remember: It’s alright to not know who you are.