They say that you who you are and you want to be are influenced by your friends. Assuming that within your friendship group you are into the same genres of music and similar clothing styles.
This of course, isn't apparent with all friendships. For example, me and my best friend are completely different in both of those areas - we're similar in humor and maybe small things such as the type of movies we enjoy but other than that we're complete opposites. But that is okay because we're staying true to ourselves, being who we want to be without the fear of being rejected by each other. As the old saying goes "opposites attract".
But what is not okay, is changing yourself to fit in with a group of friends or someone. To change everything that you love just to be accepted. And this does happen as I have personally witnessed with an old close friend of mine.
People will completely change styles, likes and dislikes, personality traits even to be accepted. You shouldn't have to change who you are to be accepted by somebody. If they were your true friend, or you want them to become a true friend they need to learn to accept you for who you are. That's what true friendship is about. Not pretending to be someone your not - because would that even count as a friendship if they don't know the true you?
Obviously, these minor changes only seem small in comparison to the complete picture - but sometimes the small things are the things that matter the most. People can fall in love with the small habits and things you do - like the way you can only wear black on Tuesdays. Or how you cry when your favorite song comes on on the radio. Or the way you're not afraid to tell people how you truly feel.
Music can be a prime example in all this. The type of music people listen to can define a person greatly - it tells someone what that person is like, how they feel, what stories they have been through and where they are going. If suddenly that music is ripped from someone just so they can be accepted within a group then they are deprived of a definition, right?
When I personally witnessed this myself it upset me quite a lot. Due to the fact that we were so alike I felt like perhaps a part of me had gone off and betrayed everything we stood for. For what seemed like eternity we would laugh about people who weren't true to themselves, or joined cliques just because it was the "cool" and "trendy" thing to do. And in the end she fell for the "norm" among teenagers my age.
I guess what I am trying to say is. There is no shame in being who you are. You should be proud and happy to be able to walk around in clothes you want to wear, dance around to the music you love and most of all be around your true friends despite whether they are doing the exact identical to you or the complete opposite.
We need to remember not lose ourselves along the way - because it all starts with us. Not anybody else.
So, stay true to you. Forget anyone else - be comfortable in your own skin and your friends, if they are true friends, they will love you no matter what.
This of course, isn't apparent with all friendships. For example, me and my best friend are completely different in both of those areas - we're similar in humor and maybe small things such as the type of movies we enjoy but other than that we're complete opposites. But that is okay because we're staying true to ourselves, being who we want to be without the fear of being rejected by each other. As the old saying goes "opposites attract".
But what is not okay, is changing yourself to fit in with a group of friends or someone. To change everything that you love just to be accepted. And this does happen as I have personally witnessed with an old close friend of mine.
People will completely change styles, likes and dislikes, personality traits even to be accepted. You shouldn't have to change who you are to be accepted by somebody. If they were your true friend, or you want them to become a true friend they need to learn to accept you for who you are. That's what true friendship is about. Not pretending to be someone your not - because would that even count as a friendship if they don't know the true you?
Obviously, these minor changes only seem small in comparison to the complete picture - but sometimes the small things are the things that matter the most. People can fall in love with the small habits and things you do - like the way you can only wear black on Tuesdays. Or how you cry when your favorite song comes on on the radio. Or the way you're not afraid to tell people how you truly feel.
Music can be a prime example in all this. The type of music people listen to can define a person greatly - it tells someone what that person is like, how they feel, what stories they have been through and where they are going. If suddenly that music is ripped from someone just so they can be accepted within a group then they are deprived of a definition, right?
When I personally witnessed this myself it upset me quite a lot. Due to the fact that we were so alike I felt like perhaps a part of me had gone off and betrayed everything we stood for. For what seemed like eternity we would laugh about people who weren't true to themselves, or joined cliques just because it was the "cool" and "trendy" thing to do. And in the end she fell for the "norm" among teenagers my age.
I guess what I am trying to say is. There is no shame in being who you are. You should be proud and happy to be able to walk around in clothes you want to wear, dance around to the music you love and most of all be around your true friends despite whether they are doing the exact identical to you or the complete opposite.
We need to remember not lose ourselves along the way - because it all starts with us. Not anybody else.
So, stay true to you. Forget anyone else - be comfortable in your own skin and your friends, if they are true friends, they will love you no matter what.