Why Self-Expression Is a Basic Human Need
I have been thinking about this a lot. To me, self-expression isn’t a “nice to have.” or a bonus feature for the people who already have their life figured out. I genuinely think it’s a basic human need and part of our purpose. To me, self-expression is what happens when something true inside of you gets to move through you and into the world. It is not strategic, you can’t really plan or force it. It is something that happens when you are open to let life flow through you.
Expression comes from being
Here’s the thing: to express myself, I first need to be. And by “self” I mean the part of me that exists beneath programming, roles, survival strategies, and the constant adapting we learn early on. It’s the part that will never disappear just because it seems like it doesn’t have a place in this world. It’s your essence, your core and true nature.
If I’m a passionate cartoon artist in my heart but I deny it because “how on earth would I ever make a living with that,” then nothing actually changes. I can suppress it, sure. I can become “reasonable” and “realistic.” But the passion doesn’t magically dissolve. The talent doesn’t vanish. That part of me remains what it is. So aligned self-expression isn’t just “do the thing.” It’s a process, and for me it has a few parts:
1) Knowing
To know myself I first need to connect with myself. I need to make room for introspection and reflection. Who am I, really? What drives me? What am I passionate about? What do I want to be known for? Why?
2) Accepting
This one is uncomfortable because it removes negotiation. It’s basically: this is what I am, this is what brings me joy. And whether I like it or not, I can’t change the core truth of myself by arguing with it or suppressing it.
3) Allowing
Allowing myself to explore it, to give it space, to create from it. To let it move, without needing it to be perfect or profitable. Your soul didn’t come here just to manage life, it came here to experience itself.
It’s not a side quest!
Of course, we need food, sleep, safety, a roof over our heads. But once those basics are covered, what’s next? Scrolling through social media? Another Netflix series? Buying more stuff? I don’t think so. A human that is mostly consuming, working, and busy with endless to-dos (without space to feel themselves, introspection and proper rest) slowly loses touch with their inner signals, their aliveness, and what actually matters to them. And without that connection to self, self-expression and human creativity get muted. We start living from outside noise and expectations instead of truth. We become restless, numb, distracted. Life seems to happen on autopilot, and we call that normal.
Especially in the “modern West.” We’re set up to exist and perform, but not to fully live. We’re trained from a very young age to adapt: to family systems, school systems, social systems. We learn what gets approval and what gets punished. We learn to become “good” and to fit in. Many of the structures we live in make it harder than it needs to be to live a life that is actually in tune with who we are.
If we as a species want more than just existing, then self-expression, creation, and exploring who we are at the core and what wants to come through us isn’t a side quest. It’s part of the point. Self-expression is the natural next direction. Not as a luxury, but as the next layer of being human.
The spiritual body (the one we keep ignoring)
In Mayan cosmology there’s the idea that a human is only healthy when the four bodies are in balance:
the Physical Body
the Mental Body
the Emotional Body
and the Spiritual Body.
The Spiritual Body is the one that gets usually ignored and rejected. Especially where I am from. It is the part of you that holds your inner fire, your passion. The part that makes you feel alive and connected to yourself, to life and something greater. Self-expression, when it is aligned, is deeply linked to the part in you that makes you you, its linked to your spirit, your essence and soul. It comes from the part of you that wants to fully experience life and not just function like you are told.
Anything can become expression! You don’t have to be an “artist” to express yourself. It can be how you speak, how you move, how you build a business, how you design a space, how you create experiences, how you write, how you dress. Anything can become a channel if it’s connected to your truth. The question is: is it really you or is it a version of you that learned to fit? Essentially, self-expression in its bigger sense is a way of fully being yourself in alignment with your core, letting your life reflect whatever is true for you, not just what’s expected of you.
Where I’m at (and the “format” question)
I'm personally at the stage of dipping my toes into a more visible form of self-expression. I've tried different things, and for a long time, nothing felt fully aligned. Not because I didn't have anything to say, but because I was missing crucial clarity.
For years, I've tried to narrow down my passion subjects. Again and again. I'd get close, then second-guess myself. I'd try to separate my business and freelance work from my more metaphysical and spiritual interests, thinking they needed different containers, different audiences, different voices.
But something shifted recently.
The WHAT finally clicked into place in a way that feels more on point than ever: ancient wisdom, spirituality, design & aesthetics, day-to-day tools for alignment, new paradigm solutions, and positive impact creation. And here's the key: I'm no longer separating these worlds. My business work and my spiritual exploration aren't two different things, they're expressions of the same core. This integration changes everything, because now I can communicate the same themes across all my channels without fragmenting myself.
The WHY is also clear: I want to offer people an alternative way of seeing reality, shifting perspectives and energy, helping them align with their inner truth, so we can actually build the new paradigm. But the part I'm still navigating is the HOW: What is my format? How do I communicate in a way that feels like me? How do I show up consistently without forcing it?
And honestly, I think my inconsistency was connected to that earlier lack of clarity. When you're trying to juggle separate identities, everything feels harder. But now that the foundation is solid, the only real way forward is… to keep experimenting with the HOW. To try. To test. To collect data from my own nervous system and see what format lets this integrated version of me flow most naturally.
Two simple invitations (if you feel this too)
If you’re in a similar place and your question is “What’s my format as a creator?” here’s a simple way to explore your “how” without turning it into pressure. For the next days, try to express one true thing per day in one medium. It can be a written down thought, a voice note, a short video, a sketch, a movement, a sound … anything. Then reflect:
What feels like me?
What feels like “this is how everyone is doing it”?
What gives me energy?
What drains me?
The goal is to discover a way of expression and format that actually fits you. Let it be an experiment in coming home to your voice.
If you’ve instead been feeling blocked, unmotivated, or inconsistent when it comes to connecting with yourself and expressing yourself, it might be because something true in you hasn’t been fully seen yet, or because your expression hasn’t found a clean channel.
Here’s a tiny 7-day reconnection practice you can try (10 min/day):
1) Know (3 min):
Journal Promt: “What’s true in me today is…”
Keep going until something appears, e.g. a feeling, a thought, a desire, a tension, a yes/no.
2) Accept (3 min):
Ask yourself (choose one):
“Can I let this be here, exactly as it is, for today?”
“What changes when I stop arguing with this?”
“Can this part of me belong without being corrected?”
Then you answer in one line: “I’m allowed to feel / want / be … .”
3) Express (4 min):
Two-Color Truth Map: pick two colors that represent your emotions. One is the loud part (what’s on the surface). One is the quiet truth underneath. Make shapes/lines/doodles for a few minutes (there is no right or wrong) and then write two lines:
“The loud part says…”
“The quiet part knows…”
That’s it. The point isn’t “pretty.” It’s only about externalizing your inner experience so you can see, feel and connect with it.
Last Thoughts…
I generally think self-expression isn’t something you just “figure out” once. I think we’re playing this big human game as we move through different life stages. You get to know yourself on this self-discovery journey called life, you love yourself more and more, shedding all the false stories that tell you otherwise, and as you go along you become (hopefully) more aligned with the truth of who you are - and you live and express yourself from there. You think, feel, and act in alignment.
As you release the layers that restrict you, you create more space for life to move through you and your truth starts to express itself more naturally. Like I said, it’s a game: figuring out how to play it as the character that is you, and using all of the amazing extra features and you came with.
I see a website as digital self-expression. A structured, aesthetic extension of your essence that helps the right people recognize you, trust you, and feel your work. If this is the kind of presence you want to build, Webalchemy is my process for bringing that into form. Learn more here