Why does honesty hurt sometimes? Like any muscle that’s been underused, we grow accustomed to telling little untruths to ensure we look good, sound good, feel good. It doesn’t always feel good to look truth in the eye, especially when we try so desparately to hide it.

Truth has consequences. It means you blast open your soul for all to see. You are vulnerable in a way that is scary and unfamiliar. And you think in being that honest you will somehow lose everything.

When we unchain ourselves from those little white lies, we start to unearth our true selves. For fear that we will be judged, we try hard to keep a lid on our thoughts and feelings. We’d rather harmonize on the outside and agonize on the inside than ever, ever show what is real about who we are.

Why?

It starts early in our development. I see it in my own children. As their true selves start to emerge, they are confronted with the need to fit in and be a part of the group. It is frightening to feel as if you might be cast outside the city walls, banned forever and left to die without shelter or care.

We often think if we reveal our inner being that we will somehow die in the process.

Nothing can be farther from the truth.

When we truly open up to another person, we give them permission to do the same. Without judgment. With love.

Authenticity plays a big role in showing that side of ourselves. When we are authentic, we act from love, that timeless, omniscient state of beauty and grace.

The truth may be painful, but if, as in sports, you practice enough, it will hurt a lot less — in time. And all that energy you placed in hiding what is true about you can be freed up and put back into your life – that fabulous, magical life you truly deserve.