It's Ok to be Human

Many of us were taught to believe that professional meant polished, put together, never too emotional, and that everything personal is managed off the clock. That's wrong. 

Being human with yourself

Let’s start with the relationship you carry everywhere: the one with yourself.

Psychologist Kristin Neff describes self-compassion as treating yourself with the same care and understanding you would offer a good friend. It includes three parts: kindness instead of harsh self-judgment, remembering that struggle is part of being human, and staying mindful instead of getting swallowed by shame or worry. 

Across dozens of studies, self-compassion is linked to less anxiety and depression and more resilience. Instead of needing to be the best, people who practice self-compassion are more likely to take responsibility, learn from mistakes, and keep going. 

When we treat ourselves like a problem to fix, we burn out faster, defend more, and risk less. When we remember that we are human, allowed to be in process, we are more honest with colleagues, more present with family, and more able to say, “I need help” before everything cracks.

Being human with each other

Being human is not a solo project.

Julianne Holt Lunstad’s work on social connection shows that strong relationships are as critical to our health as not smoking, exercise, or a balanced diet. In fact, chronic disconnection and loneliness can increase the risk of early mortality in ways comparable to smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day. 

Our nervous systems are built for “we,” not just “me.”

At work, this shows up in the concept of psychological safety - a shared belief that it is safe to take interpersonal risks: to ask questions, admit mistakes, offer ideas, and say, “I don’t know yet.” Teams with higher psychological safety learn faster and perform better, not because they are perfect, but because they can tell the truth and adjust together. 

Psychological safety is essentially an organizational way of saying, “You are allowed to be human here.”

Authenticity, with nuance

Authenticity is not as simple as “just be yourself.” When we talk about being human at work, we are not asking individuals to overshare or to carry the burden of fixing unhealthy systems with their vulnerability. We are talking about shared responsibility: leaders designing cultures where difference is expected and protected; teams practicing curiosity instead of quick judgment; policies that back up the values printed on the wall.

Questions for real life

As you think about your own context, ask yourself --

Where am I asking myself to be a machine instead of a human being? . . . How does my inner voice talk to me when I make a mistake? Would I talk to a friend that way? . . . In my workplace or community, when was the last time someone could safely say, “I do not know,” or “That did not work,” and be met with support instead of shame? . . . Whose humanity is still being asked to shrink in order to fit in here?

Your Greatest Asset Is Human

Being human comes with limits, feelings, cultural histories, and real needs. But those very things are what allow us to build trust, creativity, and the kind of communities where people stay, grow, and contribute.

At Rooted Sonshine, this is why we care so much about emotional health, culture, and connection. When organizations honor the human beings inside their systems, they do not just feel better. They make wiser decisions, tell truer stories, and create spaces where people and programs can actually sustain.

If you are a nonprofit, a school, a business, or a neighborhood group wanting to design work that makes room for real people and real lives, I would love to talk about what that could look like in your setting.

Because at the end of the day, your greatest asset is not a strategy or a spreadsheet. It is the very human web of people who show up, again and again, hoping that who they are can matter here.