Tribal

We humans do things in reverse. We want to know who we are by checking off boxes to see if we belong. This is because we are social animals in search of a tribe. 

This is all well and good but there can be a dark side to this approach. If we seek identity through comparison we risk forcing ourselves into schemas that end up being antithetical to identity and individuality. 

In other words we could end up in a cult. 

At the highest levels, finding  commonality is obvious. We are humans with certain basic tenets which govern our existence. However the more we drill into the details the more difficult it becomes to shoehorn ourselves into neat tribal groupings. 

We do this not because it feels perfect but because not belonging feels infinitely more scary. It is the way humans have behaved for millennia 

As I have aged, the concept of being in a pack has appealed to me less and less. Therefore I stay at a higher level and remain in areas which unite us through our common humanity; the themes which elevate our best qualities.

After that, a personal identity can be found through our introspection rather than via seeing what someone else does.

Full maturity beckons.