History Main / BeYourself

->''"I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them."''

* Yelled repeatedly along with "dude" in the ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'' show in [[Ride/DisneyThemeParks Disney's California Adventure]] park by the genie when Alladin goes to meet Jasmine. After yelling for a good minute, the genie becomes overly embarrassed at how long he took, and then goes off to "[[WesternAnimation/FindingNemo find nemo]]".

If this trope is played well, it can carry the message that you can be worthy of love and acceptance without sacrificing the things that make you who you are and to value your unique traits rather than hide them to fit in. But if done poorly or too often, [[UnfortunateImplications the message can imply]] that ''any'' kind of personal growth is bad and [[StatusQuoIsGod you must never try a new look, pick up new interests, or make new friends]]. Bonus points if a SubcultureOfTheWeek is featured to try to sway our hero to their side.

* ''{{Machinima/Anon}}'': When Dani admits to Ian she wants to be with Hunter, Ian is happy as long as she's happy but reminds her not to change her personality to fit in with Hunter's lifestyle.

Be Yourself is a popular trope, especially in shows aimed at children. One character tries to persuade another character to change their image and not be a loser, geek, etc. After the change goes amiss, FlowersForAlgernonSyndrome almost always ensues, and AnAesop is delivered about how it is better to be true to one's own nature rather than putting on a facade to impress others. Usually, that means being [[BeautyIsBad unfashionable]], [[GeekPhysiques out of shape]], [[KeepingTheHandicap handicapped]], [[FatSlob overweight]], [[ThisLoserIsYou uncool]], a [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption complete and utter failure]], [[NoSocialSkills socially inept]] and that especially means [[http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=That%20Guy being "that guy"]]. Being yourself also requires someone to [[ICouldaBeenAContender live below his or her full potential]]. It's one of the most frequently [[BrokenAesop broken Aesops]], tying in to the StatusQuoIsGod mindset.

** Disney/Pixar's ''WesternAnimation/{{Ratatouille}}'': Be yourself and follow your dream, even at the risk of death.

* ''Manga/OuranHighSchoolHostClub'' does this with Nekozawa and, even more memorably, Kasanoda. Also done with Honey; in his case "being himself" includes being a hedonist who values [[SweetTooth sweets]] and toys above people (even his own family). Haruhi even notes that "himself" isn't that great of a person. This is used for Haruhi herself, as a sort of subversion. She says that she'll "Be herself from now on," [[spoiler: meaning she would leave the host club. Haruhi eventually decides to pursue her dreams and become a lawyer, moving away to America.]]
* A theme in the final episodes of ''Anime/PrincessTutu''. [[spoiler: Ahiru has trouble giving up her pendant, which contains the final shards needed to complete Mytho's heart, because that will end the story and turn her back into a duck. In the end, with Fakir's help, she is able to realize that her true self is a duck, and that's all right.]]
* ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'': [[spoiler:Listen Simon, never forget. Just believe in yourself. Not in the Simon that I believe in; not in the Kamina that you believe in... Have faith in the Simon who believes in you...]]

* Subverted in ''Manga/GokinjoMonogatari'', where the author obviously considers daring to be your eccentric self and going against the current in a society as stiff and homogeneous as the Japanese a sign of bravery and something admirable, but at the same she doesn't gloss over the hardships that being an oddball is likely to bring you. [[spoiler: Like being bullied and expelled from school and having close to no friends until you find more kindred spirits.]]
* ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi'': [[spoiler: Nagi (in Alberio's pactio)]]: You should be yourself.

* ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'': Alphonse Elric once sent Sheska a message telling her not to be discouraged that her best asset was reading and that he respected her for having a unique talent.
* In ''Manga/VirginLove'', Daigo has to reassure Kaoru that it's okay to be a CrazyJealousGuy and that he shouldn't run from relationships because of self-hatred. In turn in ''Manga/JunaiNoSeinen'', Kaoru tells Daigo he doesn't have to try so hard to live up to Kaoru's expectations because Kaoru wouldn't date him if he wasn't already what he wanted.

* [[{{Tsundere}} Mikoto]] teaches [[TheOjou Ritsuko]] this in the ''Manga/ACertainScientificRailgun'' manga. Considering Mikoto is a tsundere who is always hiding her feelings for the guy she likes, she's a ''terrible'' choice to dispense this and ends coming like a BrokenAesop or something. Now, ''Kuroko'', who is ''always'' herself, would have been perfect for this, [[HilarityEnsues and likely funnier to boot]].
* Deconstructed pretty harshly in ''LightNovel/FateZero''. Gilgamesh gives this advice to Kotomine- except that Kotomine's natural inclination is [[EvilFeelsGood to take pleasure from suffering]], and [[EvilMentor Gilgamesh knows it]].
* One of the main themes in ''Anime/ImGonnaBeAnAngel'', where it mainly applies to the heroine, Noelle, but as it turns out, most of all to [[spoiler: Mikael]]
* A major theme in many early ''Manga/AstroBoy'' stories is Astro learning to deal with being different from his human friends (he's much smarter than the average human but he's incapable of understanding art and music and [[FeelNoPain can't feel pain or fear]]) and overcoming PinocchioSyndrome. In one story he gets an upgrade that lets him experience more emotions but the villains of the week take advantage of his new sense of fear. In the end, Astro decides it's better to be the best robot he can be instead of trying to be something he's not.
* ''Manga/MayonakaNiKiss'': [[spoiler:Nono tries to fit into high society by being the kind of lady the wife of the founder of Ichijou Group was but ends up fitting as herself.]]

* In ''Webcomic/HetaliaAxisPowers'', when Canada tries to stand out and goes overboard, his brother America at first teases him but then tells Canada that he's fine the way he is. Canada doesn't buy it, but the end of the strip states that [[PetTheDog America meant what he said.]]
-->'''America:''' ''[about Canada]'' He has [[NiceGuy a rare personality that can get along well with everyone]], and he actually wants to change it? He seriously doesn't know how blessed he is.
* ''Manga/BloomIntoYou'':
** Learning a variant on this lesson is a major part of Touko's CharacterDevelopment. She'd originally started out as a shy girl with mediocre grades and few friends, but after her older sister's death, she started to emulate her and change for the better. Eventually, she learns that [[spoiler:her sister was, in actuality, a bit of a slacker who only pretended to be a model student]], and is deeply shaken by it, but can't give up on her desire to emulate her sister. However, Yuu finally gets through to Touko by helping her realize that everyone who likes Touko sees her as herself, not as a copy of her sister.
** In the SchoolPlay, the main character is a high school girl who lost her memory (and is played by Touko, so it plays into her character development above), and hears three different accounts of herself from her schoolmate, her brother, and her girlfriend- respectively as TheAce, an AloofBigSister and a surprisingly needy crybaby. In the original ending, she "chooses" to become the person her girlfriend saw her as, but in the revised version, her nurse convinces her to remain true to the person she became after waking up in the hospital.

* ''Manga/GrannyGirlHinataChan:'' Hinata is a kindergartner who retains the memories, personality, and mannerisms of her past life as a grandmother. After an attempt to see her old self's grandson ends in disaster, Hinata resolves to be more like a normal six-year-old. She trades her tea for juice, tries playing more video games, and tries watching childrens' television instead of her preferred sumo. Hinata's mother catches on to her behavior and tells her it's okay to be her usual self and she will be loved no matter what. The experience gives Hinata a greater appreciation for her mother.
* Iris from ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'' starts off being this pompous, haughty jerk towards Ash by trying to assert her supposed "[[HypocriticalHumor maturity]]" towards Ash by teasing him about the petty mistakes he makes. She eventually learns to be herself by embracing and learning from her childish mistakes (she even calls herself a kid a few times), respecting Ash a lot more as a trainer, and becoming a lot kinder to not only him but others as well.
* In ''GO-GO Anime/{{Tamagotchi}}!'' episode 10, Lovelin is worried about not sounding good enough when she goes to sing with hitomitchi and practices with Melodytchi and Pianitchi by playing rock music and wearing matching clothes. Near the end of the episode, she loses her confidence, realizes she wasn't being herself and regains her confidence when she performs with hitomitchi as she would at any Lovelin concert, casting aside the rock music and clothing.
* In ''Manga/AsteroidInLove'', this is what Misa tells Moe as the former leaves for college, [[spoiler:which also serves as an indirect rejection to [[LipstickLesbian the latter]]'s LoveConfession]].
* In ''Manga/DrRamuneMysteriousDiseaseSpecialist'', many of the patients get afflicted by the mysterious disease because of the stress they experience from suppressing their true self.
** "Condiment Tears": Koto has been forced to suppress her own feelings and desires so that her mother could use her acting talent to make herself rich, and the condiment she cries are the manifestation of her bottled-up emotions. Part of the treatment Dr. Ramune gives her is some tea that causes her to speak out her mind.
** "Chilli Pepper Fingertips": Takaharu is actually TheAce, but deliberately holds himself back in order to let his best friend shine. To remove the chilli peppers, Dr. Ramune gives him a magic tool that only allows itself to be used by those it considers "worthy", forcing Takaharu to display his true talents to be considered as such.
** "Popcorn Head": Shun Aona is a talented artist whose father wants him to stop "playing around" with art and start helping out with his business. Shun recovers after his parents agree to let his talents flourish rather than force him to become someone he's not just to keep him nearby.
* Played with in ''Manga/TheQuintessentialQuintuplets''. [[TheBabyOfTheBunch Itsuki]], as a way to cope with her mother's death, often tries to act as the TeamMom for her sisters, which means she forces herself to act more mature than she actually is. [[spoiler:When Fuutarou starts looking for the girl in his photo, Yotsuba asks Itsuki to pose as her, and while she's worried about not being able to act convincingly, Yotsuba tells her to just "be herself"]].

* ''Manga/GreatTeacherOnizuka'': This is Onizuka's message to [[FriendlessBackground Tomoko]], who discovers she has HiddenDepths when he enters her in a beauty pageant. He denies doing anything to make her popular, saying she did that all on her own.
* ''Manga/MyDressUpDarling'': Female lead Marin Kitagawa firmly believes that people should be able to enjoy whatever hobbies they want, and that nobody should judge them for it, no matter who they are. It's this ethos that allows Wakana Gojo, someone's who never been able to share his passion with others, to open up to her and others.

* It's what both Fievel and Tanya learn by the end of ''WesternAnimation/AnAmericanTail: Fievel Goes West'', and it's shown that they've learned it more through action than words; i.e. Tanya washing her make-up off and Fievel turning his hat right-side-in so it's blue again and not a cowboy hat. A rare example of the trope executed in a way that doesn't come off as sappy. Also inverted when Tiger saves the day and gets the girl by going from peace-loving to badass via training montage. Kind of [[BrokenAesop breaks the whole aesop]] if you think about it.

* Music/Prozzak, "Be As," whose bridge features various kids discussing the subject and ending with the trope name.

* An [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqXOhcTkfUw early-1980s cinema advert]] for National Westminster Bank, starring Creator/AdrianEdmondson as a character not unlike [[Series/TheYoungOnes Vyvyan Basterd]], played this trope for [[PlayedForLaughs laughs]]. In his quest to open a bank account, pseudo-Vyv dons an ill-fitting three-piece suit, buzzes his mohawk and has the metal stars on his forehead removed (apparently, they ''are'' piercings). After this, and overcompensating with his [[UsefulNotes/BritishAccents RP]] at [=NatWest=], he is granted an account ... and moments later, the punked-out guy behind him in line opens his own account without a hitch. Our hero doesn’t take this well.

* Subverted in ''ComicBook/{{Lucifer}}'', in which the eponymous protagonist [[SociopathicHero takes this to the extreme]]. He even tells his protege: "Be yourself until you bleed."

* ''Anime/ZombieLandSaga:'' In episodes [[Recap/ZombieLandSagaE06 6]] and [[Recap/ZombieLandSagaE07 7]], [[Characters/ZombieLandSagaFranchouchou Junko]] begins to suffer from an identity crisis as she realizes the idol industry has long moved past the perfectionist ideals she was taught in the 80s. She suffers a HeroicBSOD following a heated argument with Ai over this fact. Eventually [[Characters/ZombieLandSagaKotaroTatsumi Kotaro]] reassures Junko that she can still represent her time-period and not force herself into conforming with the hyper-social lifestyle of modern idols.

* Chapter 54 of ''Fanfic/BlazBlueAlternativeRemnant'' has a twisted take on this trope. After Yuuki Terumi finishes thoroughly kicking Adam Taurus to the curb and calling him out on believing himself a hero of his kind when he's just a delusional psychopath, he then encourages him to stop hiding from the truth and embrace what he really is deep down: a selfish, spiteful monster who only cares for himself.

* Chapter 54 of ''Fanfic/BlazBlueAlternativeRemnant'' has a twisted take on this trope. After Yuuki Terumi finishes thoroughly kicking Adam Taurus to the curb and calling him out on believing himself a hero of his kind when he's just a delusional psychopath, he then encourages him to stop hiding and embrace what he what he really is deep down: a selfish, spiteful monster who only cares for himself.

* "Whistling In The Dark" from Music/TheyMightBeGiants' ''Music/{{Flood}}''.

* An [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqXOhcTkfUw early-1980s cinema advert]] for National Westminster Bank, starring Creator/AdrianEdmondson as [[{{Expy}} a character not unlike]] [[Series/TheYoungOnes Vyvyan Basterd]], played this trope for [[PlayedForLaughs laughs]]. In his quest to open a bank account, pseudo-Vyv dons an ill-fitting three-piece suit, buzzes his mohawk and has the metal stars on his forehead removed (apparently, they ''are'' piercings). After this, and overcompensating with his [[UsefulNotes/BritishAccents RP]] at [=NatWest=], he is granted an account ... and moments later, the punked-out guy behind him in line opens his own account without a hitch. Our hero doesn’t take this well.

Show what you got and just own it\\

* This pops up at the end of ''[[VideoGame/{{Shantae}} Shantae and the Pirate's Curse]]'' when, after having come to identify with Risky Boots somewhat and see a deeper side of her during their EnemyMine, Shantae hopes the pirate will drop the villainy and become a good guy. Risky Boots brushes it off saying that, like how Shantae can talk and dress the part of a pirate but will never truly be one as that's simply not what the young half-genie is, she can act the part of a good guy but will simply never truly be one and that the two of them need to just be themselves.