Alot of ppl advocate the idea of being who they are or being the real you. Infact this is considered as liberation of oneself.
Should one be themselves and be proud of who they are (imperfect with a blend of good and bad) or they should evolve into better human beings ie change for GOOD.
What applied/applies for you? The ‘I am who I am’ approach or 'I changed for better one?
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
Why does it have to be one or the other? I believe a person can have both of these beliefes. There may be traits within one's personality that are harder to change...and there are some that can be improved on. For example...someone might be an extrovert ...and that may be hard to change...but they could work on things like how they word their comments, etc. I think some personality traits are inherited.
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
i think the "be yourself" stuff is more about not picking up a fake identity just out of peer pressure. you should do what you want to do, not what others decide is good for you blah blah.
ps: eat badaam, lift weights, whatever for tomorrow's quiz!
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
"The 'I am who I am' approach or 'I changed for better one?"
Of course at this moment I am who I am. But God knows I can use a lot of improvement. So yes, I hope to change for the better. And at each step, I will be who I will be.
Something like thermodynamics - incremental changes, each step in equilibrium with the previous state - but hopefully changing for the better with time.
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
And thie queer guy just has to come in here and raise the curve for theh class with his spot on answer.
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
queerie I agree with the not adopting a fake identity bit. But some ppl also flaunt their mistakes and say 'that is me..take it or leave it.'
Rv I dont think one can have both the approaches simultaneously at one point in time in the 'being oneself' context am talking about. They kind of contradict, no?
At a personal level, my teenage years were marked with the 'I am who I am' way..and I was rebellious. The acceptance to change for a better person came much later in life.
And queer...my brains switched off..you increase your badaam intake too. Counting on you buddy :D
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
**a human must evolve...that is...he must be a lil better person with each passing day...it's called taqwa...be a lil more righteous every day...you have the target to become as perfect as you can...
...i believe that Islam helps us to achieve that goal!
one must remember that one day he has to leave this word and he would want to be remembered as a good person. Allah will question us how good and/or bad we were on this planet earth and then we will eaither be punished or rewarded...OR...punished first and then rewarded...
***...may Allah give us taufeeq to adopt taqwa and better our existence. aameen*
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
Enigmatic, there are some things/qualities about me that will not change or will remain fairly stable......and there are some things that I know I need to work on. And I'm admitting this to you simultaneously....so it can be done, though that may not be the case for everyone.
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
^ @ Enig Looks like you are using "being oneself" too literally. We are dynamic beings. Being oneself and focusing on improving oneself are by no means contradictory.
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
^ Looks like you are using "being oneself" too literally. We are dynamic beings. Being oneself and focusing on improving oneself are by no means contradictory.
True...it can be argued that you have to really look at yourself to determine what it is that you want to improve upon.
I don't think it has to be one or the other for every person. You can be in either state for a while....or you can acknowledge both...that there are things about you that are just part of who you are and there are things you're working upon,
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
^ Looks like you are using "being oneself" too literally. We are dynamic beings. Being oneself and focusing on improving oneself are by no means contradictory.
Yes the context I refer to is the one in which there is acceptance of a weakness and then flaunting over it. Its like this, I admit I smoke, but that's a part of me. If you have a problem, go deal with it yourself.
Am not talking about being oneself in the context of being someone you are not or being 'fake'.
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
With respect, I would call a person who recognizes he has flaws and does not want to improve himself not a very smart person. Nothing to be proud about just accepting one's flaws and not doing anything to get better. Most of us try to hide our flaws because we are not proud of them. But flauntin one's flaws makes no sense.
PS - what is the contest the q guy was referring to - is the science quia finals tomorrow? (I hearI have been banned from that forum for scoring almost below the Mendoza line).
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
^sigh ..yes tomorrows the tie-breaker. :p
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
What time - sorry to derail
glad to help q guy - your measly opppnents are Guac and What's her name
Re: Being ‘yourself’ vs changing for good
and enigmatic has been cramming all weekend like a good girl. not that we need any of that to steamroll our measly opponents.. i dont even remember their names now. 
oh and as for topic, being yourself is only cool if “yourself” is pleasant.
Re: Being 'yourself' vs changing for good
^lol so I see you guys are having the need to 'study up'.................must be facing some fierce competition :D