Our abrupt answer to this question “Who Defines Us?” is we do. We know who we are. We know what we believe. We know what’s important to us. It’s that simple. Or is it?
I would strongly argue it is life and our interactions in the world that define us.
When life presents us with a challenge, setback or obstacle — how we react defines us.
Our actions around our ideas, beliefs, priorities, and degree of importance — shows others clearly who we are.
The way we spend our time, while not readily seen — gives us the foundation (and explanation) for everything we accomplish or never realize.
How much empathy, generosity, and time spent helping others in need — reveals the size of our heart and what is inside.
What I have learned is that what we think about ourselves matters little when it comes to defining who we are. It is everything around us, outside of us, and either available or hidden from us that molds, shapes, and transforms who we become. How we interface with the world and with what life presents us with is the fertile ground for discovering who we are.