How do you hold onto who you are when others are telling you differently?

I'm fifty-three and so when you ask me how do I hold onto my sense of self when others are telling me differently, I would say that with age comes a comfort in knowing who I am and who I want to be. I feel moral comfort in who I am.

I would definitely say that when I was younger I was much more influenced by others, both professionally and personally. That makes me wonder why? Why was I so insecure that I would change. Or was it that I wanted to belong and so I would change.

Now, I'm not so sure I want to belong so I don't change to make it happen. I know my values and beliefs and I'm less likely to compromise to be different. I've become the other person - I'm trying to change other people.

I'm an advocate for better instruction in education, for better assessment practices, for LGBTQ+ rights, for racial equity, for wealth equity, for the environment, and for sex equity. That means I'm always messaging and challenging to change things. And I do this because I finally think I know who I am.