Part 2: identity isn’t a possession

we’ve been taught to believe that identity is something you collect.
something you prove.
something you maintain.

but real identity isn’t performative.
it’s not the mask you wear in the meeting.
it’s not the version of you that gets applause.
it’s not how productive you’ve been this week.

real identity is what’s left when you stop performing.

you can’t be reduced to your job, your brand, or your “type.”
you’re not a category.
you’re not an algorithm.

and you’re not obligated to stay loyal to a version of yourself that was built for survival.

you get to evolve.
you get to shift.
you get to change your mind.

because you are not the roles you were handed.
you are not the labels that made other people comfortable.
you are not the image that’s easiest to explain.

you are something deeper.
something truer.
and that doesn’t disappear just because the context changes.