The mental framework we were programmed with in childhood (usually by parents) is a huge factor here too. My parents were super critical and judgemental, and pr

The mental framework we were programmed with in childhood (usually by parents) is a huge factor here too. My parents were super critical and judgemental, and pretty much taught me not to trust myself. It took years of work on this to kind of "reprogram" my mind, getting to a point where I'm totally authentic with people and rarely phased by their opinions! It's a really nice place to be. The sad part is you come to realize there are actually some people out there who feel severely threatened by authenticity, and will actively try to tear you down; make you less. That can really hurt when you're not prepared for it. People are really odd sometimes.