About this quote

Being unmistakably yourself makes choices easier and saves you time spent pretending. Stop shrinking to fit other people’s expectations; pick one small thing that shows who you are and do it more often. Ask yourself what odd little habit or view only you have, then lean into it. When you act like yourself, the right people and opportunities stop being a guess.

When to use it

• Job interview: I told myself to answer honestly about my weird side project — the hiring manager smiled and said that kind of thinking was exactly what they needed.
• Parent-teacher night: I reminded my kid to talk about the comic books he likes, not what other kids like, and the teacher loved his passion.
• College presentation: I used my quirky slide style instead of copying classmates, and my professor complimented the original angle.
• Small business pitch: I dressed a little differently from the usual vendors and pointed out our unusual process; the client chose us because we were clearly our own thing.