How many times have you found yourself thinking, “Why did I say yes?” Or wishing “I should’ve just said no” or “I wish I had stood up for myself when it truly mattered”?

Or at the very least wondered why I didn't say what I truly felt?

Have you ever stayed silent when your heart was screaming? When every fiber of your being is hurting, begging and pleading for you to speak up, stand tall, and do something for yourself, but the choice doesn’t fit the world’s ‘right’ box?

Have you felt what it’s like to cheat yourself every single day, all while hoping the world will be honest with you?

It could be about following a path someone else chose for you, like a career, a course, or an opportunity you never really wanted. Perhaps you were told that a career was not for you, but deep down, you knew it was meant for you. Or maybe it was as simple as the way you wanted to dress, speak, or live your life, or even something as small as saying you don’t like a certain food when it’s actually your favorite. We do this because we often feel the need to justify our choices, as if we actually need permission or a reason to be ourselves. This constant self-deception makes us our worst critic and takes away all our authenticity.

But why is it so difficult to be true to ourselves? Why is it so hard to speak up against the masses? Why do we assume we must be wrong just because everyone else seems to be echoing the same thing, or because no one else has ever raised their voice? From the moment we enter this world and begin to speak, we are taught to fit into a mold, not to question or challenge, because “this is how it has always been.” We are so well trained to avoid making tough decisions for our own lives, even as we are constantly told that we should be tough to survive life.

Most of the time, we hold ourselves back, not because the world stops us, but because we’ve been conditioned to believe others more than we believe ourselves. These small moments of self-doubt slowly turn into lifelong habits, and eventually, a life full of regrets.

The ache that follows becomes inseparable from who we are, because we never stood up, never fought, never even answered for ourselves. Those voices that once said “no,” “impossible,” or “you can’t” may have long moved on, but you’re left carrying the same old dreams, the weight of never trusting your own voice, and the regrets that came with it.

Every time you stop yourself from doing what you truly want, you lose a piece of your identity. Over time, those pieces pile up. The silence begins to take shape as regret, disappointment, and self-doubt. You start questioning your self-worth, not because the world doubted you, but because you abandoned your own voice.

Ever given this a thought? Why is it that every breakthrough happened because someone refused to listen to the world? Why did they win the bet? They played only on themselves? Why did they never stop for the world or worry about what it thought, despite every piece of evidence telling them their dreams were crazy, foolish, or impossible?

How many times must the world have told them their dreams were unrealistic? But everything was, is, and will be impossible until one person bends the rules and changes the game. They kept going relentlessly, often alone, laughed at, and misunderstood.

These individuals prove that when you follow your calling, yes, the entire world can be wrong and you, the one being called crazy for your “crazy” dreams, may become a history maker.

This isn’t just for history makers. It’s for all of us who want to live and lead our way, to keep reminding ourselves that the crowd never creates history.

It’s about telling ourselves that our thoughts, ideas, and dreams are valid, and that we don’t need anyone’s permission or explanation to live our truth.

Because each time you choose yourself, you build yourself.

We often hear that we are all going to die someday, and no one will remember us for long. Life will go on regardless of our presence or absence. So why are we so scared of billions of people who don’t even know we exist or understand what we feel inside? No one can truly understand our dreams the way we do. No one can grasp what our life’s calling or purpose is because it might not sound normal to them. Doesn’t it feel chilling that we sometimes sacrifice our deepest dreams just because someone else thinks they are not the “right” dreams? But isn’t it even scarier to think that you knew your purpose here, yet left it undone? Is regret easier to carry just because the world says it wasn’t meant to be? Ask yourself the question: whether it was meant to be or not, you abandoned yourself. You didn’t trust yourself. Because you realize the world might feel bad for you and console you, but no one is going to come and save you if you cannot stand up for yourself. The world is not waiting for you, not stopping for you, but your life is passing by every second.

I once read: “Kisi ke itne bhi mat ho jao ki apne hi na raho.”

And it perfectly captures what losing yourself for others can truly cost.

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