Buzzwords Unpacked: Authentic

Ok here we go… Welcome to the final installment of our Buzzwords Unpacked series. In a culture that often prizes image over substance, authenticity has become a buzzword that’s both overused and misunderstood. Let’s dig beneath the surface.

What Is Authenticity?

At its core, authenticity is the alignment between your internal truth and your external expression. It means showing up as your real self — not your curated self, not your masked self, not the version you think people will most approve of.

True authenticity doesn’t mean saying everything that’s on your mind or refusing to grow. It means that your actions, words, and choices reflect who you actually are — not who you think you’re supposed to be.

What It Means to Be Authentic

Being authentic means living in a way that feels congruent. Your values match your behaviors. Your “yes” is honest. Your “no” has integrity. And even when it’s uncomfortable, you honor your truth without apology.

Authenticity is quiet. It doesn’t scream, overshare, or perform. It shows up consistently — in how you navigate conflict, how you make decisions, and how you relate to yourself when no one’s watching.

Who Should You Be Authentic With?

While it’s ideal to bring your full self into every room, authenticity doesn’t mean full access. You can be real without being raw with everyone. Choose wisely. Authenticity is about being true, not being transparent with everyone at all times.

The most important person to be authentic with is yourself. If you’re performing for others but abandoning yourself in the process, that’s not authenticity — that’s survival. And you deserve more than that.

Affirmations to Anchor You

• I don’t have to perform to be worthy.

• I am allowed to take up space — without explaining who I am.

• My truth doesn’t need to be loud to be real.

• The people meant for me will meet the real me — not the edited version.

Final Thought: Closing Out the Buzzword Series

Over the course of this series, we’ve peeled back the surface of cultural buzzwords and reclaimed their original purpose — not as trendy mantras, but as grounded tools for living with more presence, intention, and peace.

• We unpacked “Protecting Your Peace” — not as avoidance, but as alignment. It became about listening to your nervous system, honoring your boundaries, and walking away from chaos without apology.

• We reframed “Motivation” — not as a mood to wait on, but as a movement you can build. We let go of the myth that success is always driven by passion and embraced the power of consistent, meaningful effort.

• We explored “Discipline” — not as punishment or perfectionism, but as self-respect in motion. It became the quiet, reliable structure that supports your values when inspiration fades.

• We defined “Authenticity” — not as radical transparency or rebellious oversharing, but as the courage to live in alignment with your truth, even when it’s quiet, even when it costs you approval.

• We named “Crash Out” — not as weakness, but as the aftershock of long-ignored needs. We stopped calling it failure and started hearing it as a whisper: You need rest. You need support. You need space to breathe.

• We expressed “Narcissism” — not just as a character flaw, but as a cultural distortion of self-worth, often rooted in deep shame and masked by overcompensation, control, or withdrawal.

• We redefined “Hot Girl/Hot Boy Summer” — not as performance or external validation, but as unapologetic embodiment, presence, and joy. We made it about ownership — not aesthetics.

• We examined “Accountability” — not as punishment or public apology, but as the sacred act of returning to your integrity. It’s how we repair, how we rebuild, and how we reclaim trust with ourselves and others.

• And we held “Emotional Responsibility” — not as suppression or blame-shifting, but as the art of owning your inner world. We made space for feeling fully without expecting others to fix or carry the weight for us.

Here’s what lives underneath every buzzword:

Your nervous system.

Your values.

Your story.

Your healing.

This work was never about language. It was about you.

Your relationship to yourself.

Your capacity to grow.

Your permission to pause.

If you take one thing away, let it be this:

You don’t need to earn rest.

You don’t need to chase clarity.

You just need to keep choosing the next honest step.

Buzzwords fade.

But self-trust — that’s yours to keep.

With deep care and gratitude,

Michi Nogami