I am putting the finishing touches to a free mini course, How to Look Amazing Every Day with Minimal Effort, where I address the issue of identity and dress.
Our self identity is so important because it is a vital part of ourselves. To give that identity away, or compromise it, is to deny who we are and supress all that is unique about us, in fact to supress that part of us which is what attracts other people to us, our real, authentic self.
We can give this identity away without realising: conforming to what other people think, what other people think of us, or what we think other people are thinking about us are classic examples of how we can compromise our identity.
Being truly ourselves, acknowledging our identity and living it out is an act of daily courage.