Sami Greenbury
Technology, Teaching & Travel

Don’t be Proud of Who You Are

Nobody’s Perfect

Everyone has things about themselves that they’d like to change, that’s not a bad thing. That’s what makes good people good.

We hear a lot that we should be proud of who we are, that nobody’s perfect and that’s OK. In fact it’s often said that it’s a good thing, we should surround ourselves with people who accept us for who we are.

Load of rubbish, I say.

I say surround yourselves with people who inspire you to be a better person, good friends love you for who you are – great friends love you for what you do and how you do it.

Everyone has dreams

When I was younger, I had lots of dreams. Some were realistic – I wanted to be a chef. Some I knew would only ever be dreams – how could I be a rock star if I couldn’t play music and sing/think/tap my foot at the same time?

Over time, these dreams changed. I realised that what I really wanted, was to make the world a better place. None of this “world peace” or “free Tibet” style better, I’ve never felt qualified for those.

The handy thing about a dream like “make the world a better place” is that is got quite a lot of scope, but it’s quite simple to do. At the end of the day I realised that the best way to do my bit for world peace is to become a better person.

This has the added advantage of being rather handy in my day to day life too.

Change Yourself

So I set about becoming the Sami I wanted to be. This started in Israel, where I knew nobody and could be whoever I wanted – I could ‘try out’ different behaviours, senses of humour, and see which I felt most comfortable in. That’s not to say I wasn’t comfortable before I went, but I was certainly more happy being the post-Israel me.

That was the most important thing I’ve ever learned – that it’s OK to change. You’ll make and lose some friends along the way, but that’s going to happen anyway (because change is OK, remember?).

Ever since then, I’ve thought about who I want to be, and how I want to get there. I’ve become comfortable as myself – step one. Over the past couple of years I’ve become more organised – step two. Next up, to become work-organised (a mysterious concept known as ‘having free time’) and to become healthily-organised. That last one’s a bit of a drag, I’ve never enjoyed exercise when it’s not a by-product of the quickest way to get to the train station.

But it’ll make me a better person, which will (in it’s own tiny way) make the world a better place.

So don’t be proud of who you are, be proud of who you have made yourself – and of who you want to be.

Category:

2 thoughts on “Don’t be Proud of Who You Are”

  1. Just a few comments:
    “I’ve become more organised” – I can’t even begin to imagine what you were like before!
    “a mysterious concept known as ‘having free time’” – Meaning you’ve chosen to have next to none?!
    “to become healthily-organised” – How did that morning bike ride go this morning then?!

    1. “I’ve become more organised” – You have no idea!
      “a mysterious concept known as ‘having free time’” – Meaning I need to do less (except do more paid work which could be higher).
      “to become healthily-organised” – As good as it could go, I always forget that Monkey Bars can be actually quite fun. I discovered they have a Leap Frog things too… which is going to be painful sooner or later.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.