So about two months ago, on about my two-year anniversary with the company, I switched from "Software Engineer" to "Solution Architect" (aka "Biz Dev Engineer"). It means that I now go to a lot of meetings (frequently with clients), where people draw on my knowledge of how our things work, and build a few things on the side. Mostly marketing material.
It's a crazy different experience from actually writing the code, and some of what I've learned and noticed has to do with "just being yourself". Part of that learning process has definitely involved being placed in high-enough stress situations that I was put off internal balance: by gaining familiarity with not being myself, I got a better idea of where myself was and how to stay centered there.
The first realization was that I could label my activities as reactive or proactive. As a software engineer, basically all my time was proactive. Now, most of my time is reactive. But... the original phrase I used to describe the reactive activities, and the way I try to approach them, is "to go be myself at things". The desired outcome is secondary to the experimental juxtaposition.
Another way to put it is, I think: I (like everybody) am a unique snowflake. The point of including me on anything and of sending me hither and yon is to have that uniqueness present and available. Well, part of the point.
It seems to be working. I think (although it's a little early to tell) that I'm more successful at this job than the last. At the least, I'm happier. Your mileage may vary.
As a final note, when applied to personal growth, I think this attitude ends up something like this: Don't aim for results, aim for experiences. Your "higher-self" (whatever that means to you) can't just rewrite your "lower-self" (the thing you're being when you're being yourself), but the former can aim the latter at particular experiences. Go find out what it's like to be yourself at that thing, and you learn a little bit about who you are and who you are changes a little bit. It's an explorative act.