I don't believe in just being yourself.
Be stronger than yourself, because that strength will take you to places you never imagined you'd see.
And if in the end you're stripped of that strength, then you can be yourself. Technically you haven't lost anything, and that's not bad at all.

It's just like owning a pair of sandals with rhinestones on them. When the rhinestones fall off, the sandals still look decent, and you don't have to replace them. Maybe you'll even be inspired to redecorate them?