To thine own self be true. — William Shakespeare · Smartyfair

To thine own self be true.

William Shakespeare1564–1616 · playwright · 1500s-1600s EnglandWilliam Shakespeare was an English playwright and poet widely considered the greatest writer in the English language, author of plays like Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and A Midsummer Night's Dream.23 quotes

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In plain words

Be honest about who you really are inside.

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Where these words come from

How sure this is: 90% sureThese words were traced back to where they first appeared. That source is listed below.
What turned up: William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act 1, Scene 3 (Polonius to Laertes): 'This above all: to thine own self be true.' Written c. 1600-1601, first printed 1603. Verbatim Shakespeare — not an anonymous proverb.
Work: Hamlet, Act 1, Scene 3
Occasion: c. 1600 · Polonius's parting advice to his son Laertes
Sources checked: folger.eduChecked using claude-sonnet-5, 21 August 2026Folger Shakespeare Library text of Hamlet Act 1 Scene 3, confirms speaker and surrounding lines
shakespeare.mit.eduChecked using claude-fable-5, 21 August 2026Second edition text (MIT Complete Works) — 'This above all: to thine ownself be true' confirmed by direct fetch; the Folger citation from intake was also re-fetched and confirmed this pass

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William Shakespeare

More on individuality

To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.

Oscar Wilde Not all who wander are lost.

J.R.R. Tolkien 'Know thyself' was written over the portal of the antique world. Over the portal of the new world, 'Be thyself' shall be written.

Oscar Wilde We will walk on our own feet; we will work with our own hands; we will speak our own minds.

Ralph Waldo Emerson The imitator dooms himself to hopeless mediocrity.

Ralph Waldo Emerson Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.