"I'm going to do what I want to do. I'm going to be who I really am. I'm going to figure out what that is"
About this Quote
The subtext is a life spent under permanent lighting. Watson became famous as a child, which means her “self” arrived prepackaged: brand-friendly, endlessly interpreted, and routinely claimed by audiences who confuse access with ownership. In that context, “be who I really am” isn’t a triumphal reveal; it’s an attempt to claw back interiority from a world that treats identity like content. The line also nods to a generational shift: authenticity isn’t presented as a stable essence, but as a project - iterative, sometimes contradictory, always in draft form.
What makes the quote work is its tonal pivot from certainty to curiosity. It performs independence while refusing the neat, final version of independence we’re often sold. Watson isn’t just rejecting expectations; she’s rejecting the idea that she owes anyone a polished answer about who she is. That humility is the sharpest flex here.
Quote Details
| Topic | Reinvention |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Watson, Emma. (2026, January 17). I'm going to do what I want to do. I'm going to be who I really am. I'm going to figure out what that is. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/im-going-to-do-what-i-want-to-do-im-going-to-be-53569/
Chicago Style
Watson, Emma. "I'm going to do what I want to do. I'm going to be who I really am. I'm going to figure out what that is." FixQuotes. January 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/im-going-to-do-what-i-want-to-do-im-going-to-be-53569/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"I'm going to do what I want to do. I'm going to be who I really am. I'm going to figure out what that is." FixQuotes, 17 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/im-going-to-do-what-i-want-to-do-im-going-to-be-53569/. Accessed 25 Feb. 2026.






