The real McCoy is an idiom and metaphor for “the real thing” or “the genuine article”.
I’ve googled who the original McCoy was, but there are so many different claims to his origin it’s basically impossible to tell. But most of us are familiar with the phrase.
Are you the real McCoy?
The genuine article?
Are you the truest, most authentic version of yourself?
Or are you a slightly wobbly copy of someone else?
We all have a self-image. This is usually a hybrid of:-
- who your upbringing conditioned you to be,
- what society dictates you should be and
- who you fear you have to be, because if you’re not that, you won’t be accepted.
The problem is our self-image may be nothing like our real self. I might very well see you as a completely different person to how you see you.
People who have healthy self-esteem live as the person they TRULY are.
They don’t worry too much about other people’s judgements, or about following trends that are not really for them.
They’re happy to embrace their tastes, preferences, quirks and foibles, even if they’re different to everyone else’s.
They don’t feel the need to be “mainstream” or follow what society or their family of origin dictates, if that’s not who they truly are.
They might have their own style of dress, hair, career or hobby.
They embrace their uniqueness and are comfortable with being their own person.
They are grounded in who they are and happy to be themselves just doing their own thing in the world.
Because of this they can come from a very genuine, sincere place in all their interactions and relationships.
They have no problem with intimacy (in-to-me-see) because they have nothing to hide.
For people who have low self-esteem it’s a different story. They’re often not even sure who their real self is.
If you look up the opposite of real it says false, phony or dishonest.
These words seem a tiny bit harsh to me, but ask yourself, deep down are you being any of these?
People with low self-esteem are often frightened to live as the person they TRULY are because their parenting/background/conditioning has made them believe that who they REALLY are is flawed, wrong, bad or unlovable.
They can’t reveal their real selves because they believe that no-one would like them if they knew who they REALLY were.
Most of the time, in my experience, the complete opposite of this is true.
When I meet a new person I can usually tell pretty quickly if they’re wearing a mask. Their energy tells me.
Emerson once said “Who you are is shouting so loudly that I can’t hear what you’re saying”
Being someone/something that you’re not takes so much effort, it’s exhausting.
Conversely, hiding the real you is equally difficult. It will always “leak” out to anyone who is watching carefully.
So your interactions and relationships are not going to be genuine or sincere, because you’re not being genuine or sincere. Not deep down. Everything is being filtered through the mask that you’re wearing.
This is a sad state of affairs.
If you’re ever going to be truly happy you have to be confident enough to throw off your mask.
I believe that TRUE fulfilment comes from knowing your real identity and living in it.
I harp on about this all the time.
ANY step you take toward your core consciousness – your ground state – your true self will alleviate some of the unhappiness in your life.
Take enough steps and it will lead you to your GENUINE happiness.
How will you know if you’re being your genuine self?
Your body will tell you.
Your body can’t lie (unlike your mind).
When something is in harmony with your true self your body will feel light and uplifted, like you have balloons on your shoulders.
When something is not in harmony with your true self your body will feel heavy and constricted, like something is pushing down on your shoulders.
One of the best things you can ever do is learn to listen to your body.
Every time you escape some of your old conditioning and live as your true self you are creating new neural pathways in your brain. New POSITIVE pathways.
I struggled with this for years as it’s not an easy thing to do. But it IS possible and I can show you how.
When you shift your identity from your self-image to your TRUE self you’ll find happiness that no-one can take away from you.
I REALLY want that for you.
The world needs YOU in your fullest, truest, most authentic essence, not a dodgy copy of someone else.
You are here on the planet right now to be YOU, the REAL you and nothing but the REAL you. That’s where your true happiness lies.
I’ve said it before, but in the Art or Antique world an original is always worth far more than a copy and that’s true here too.
It’s time to fall in Love with the REAL you!
Much Love
Christina xx
P.S The image is Farmhouse in Provence by Vincent Van Gogh – what do you think – is it a copy or the real McCoy?