Be Who You Are: Lessons from the Transgendered Community

On the heels of the recent Bruce Jenner interview on 20/20, I feel compelled to speak out about a topic I’m truly passionate about…

Being who you are!

Bruce referenced this phrase multiple times in his interview with Diane Sawyer. He said he is only becoming who he has already been. WOW. If that statement doesn’t make you stop and take pause, I don’t know what will.

Regardless of what you believe about gender identity, I think you can appreciate the gravity of that statement.

Transgender. It’s a topic that has touched my life, both personally and professionally. A good friend of mine transitioned several years ago, becoming the woman she always knew she was. I got to see her journey, from telling the ones she loved most, breaking up with her fiancée at the time, dealing with company policies at her Fortune 500 employer on which bathroom she was allowed to use, surgeries, hormone treatment, therapy, and finding new love.

Having seen my friend’s journey up close and personal, I have MAD RESPECT for anyone going through it. Based on everything they must endure, I’m going to say that people who transition from one gender to another are wicked strong and brave.

Let me say it another way…being who you are is the strongest and bravest thing ANYONE can do. But most of us don’t wear it on the outside for everyone to see like in the transgendered community.

As someone who has worked with clients of different races, religions, sexual orientations and identities over the years, I can tell you that being who you are is a struggle we all share. It just looks different for each of us based on our own stuff.

For some, it’s about gender. For others it’s about abuse, or trauma, or discrimination, or poverty, or religion, etc. The struggle isn’t about the THING we struggle with as much as the process of the struggle, how we are affected by it, and how we overcome it.

But there are so many things that get in the way of us being who we are, aren’t there? Things like:

• The opinions of others
• Thoughts of losing respect and love
• Lack of support and/or understanding
• Fear of rejection, change, and the unknown

These are experiences we ALL have that get in the way, regardless of our gender identity.

As Bruce mentioned in the interview, MOST people do not wake up with a daily struggle with their identity as male or female. But most people DO wake up with struggle, with something they don’t like, with something they are hiding from, running away from, or avoiding. Most people are afraid to be who they really are.

Anyone who is brave enough to stand up and stand out in order to be themselves is amazing in my book. The world needs more people willing to be who they truly are.

So my questions for you are:

• Who are you?
• What are you willing to do to be who you are?

Leave your comments below. I’d love to hear them.