​ Mannish Law #51 Be Authentic

William Shakespeare said, "All the world's a stage... And all the men and women merely players". He goes on to describe how we go from a childish stage to adulthood then revert back to a childish stage in our old age. A few years ago I was sitting at my desk playing the part of a Lean Six Sigma practitioner and thought to myself "what if I never take the opportunity to play the part that is truest to my nature again?". Many of us take on roles that pay the bills or make other people happy but deny and suppress who or what we really are.

At that moment, I decided to be more authentic to who I really am deep down inside. I decided to be a country boy again. To go fishing and camping and hike up the mountain to secluded locales to hear the wind blow through the trees and inhale the freedom in big breaths. Life's been a trillion times more fulfilling since I made the decision to be true to myself. We should all strive to be authentically us and be authentic to each other. Life's just better that way.