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. Like sleep, nourishment and having a roof over your head is.
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 plant it, it is something that happens when you are open to let life flow through you. And this cannot be forced. It is just something that naturally happens and has something very very true to it.
Expression comes from being
Here’s the thing: to self-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. Its 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
Who am I, really? What drives me? What am I passionate about? What do I want to wake up 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. And if you spend a lifetime only adapting, only functioning, only surviving… It can not only make you really miserable but give you the feeling of being off track.
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? In my perspective, self-expression is the natural next direction. Not as a luxury, but as the next layer of being human. And yes, we’re trained from a very young age to adapt: to family systems, school systems, social systems. We learn what gets approval, what gets punished, what gets ignored. We learn to become “good“ and to fit in. I’m not saying life shouldn’t have challenges. But I am saying that many of the modern 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. Especially in the “modern West”. We’re set up to exist and perform, but not to fully live. If we as a species want more than just existing, then self-expression 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.
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 massively rejected, is underrated and buried. Especially where I am from. It the part of you that holds your inner fire, your passion. The part that makes you feel alive and connected to yourself and to life. Sure, religion can offer a frame for some people, but it’s still institutionalized and to be frank history tells the rest of the story.
Self-expression 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 live and fully experience life and not just function like you are told.
Anything can become expression! Self-expression doesn’t have to look like art. 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.
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 so far I haven’t found a way that feels fully aligned. Not because I don’t have anything to say, but because the “what” and the “how” are two different things. The WHAT is quite clear I would say: I’m into ancient wisdom, design & aesthetics, day-to-day tools for alignment, new paradigm solutions and generally positive impact creation. 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 do it consistently without forcing it?
And honestly, I think my inconsistency is connected to not having found that container yet. Which means the only real way forward is… to keep experimenting. To try. To test. To collect data from my own nervous system.
A simple invitation (if you feel this too)
If you’ve been feeling blocked, unmotivated, inconsistent in terms of expressing yourself, or like you’re “not doing enough”… it might not be because you lack discipline. It might be because something true in you hasn’t found a clean channel yet. Or maybe some clarity around who you are is missing.
Here’s a tiny experiment you can try:
For the next 7 days, express one true thing per day in one medium. It could be a voice note, a short video, a sketch, a move, a paragraph. Anything.
Not to build a brand overnight, or to prove something, just to learn:
What feels like me?
What feels like performance?
What gives me energy?
What drains me?
Because I generally think self-expression isn’t something you just “figure out” once. It think it’s something you return to. The more you return, the more you become and the more you gain clarity and space for the expression to naturally flow through you. It’s a game, it’s figuring out how to play it as being you by using all of your features.