A man should be upright, not be kept upright.

There is a difference between standing straight and being propped. Rules, supervision, and the fear of being caught can hold your behaviour in place, and they only work while someone is watching and the rules still apply. What you do when the supports are removed is the part that is actually yours.

Look at one thing you do well only because you are being monitored: the deadline with a manager behind it, the honesty enforced by a receipt. Try holding it for a week with the check removed. Where it collapses, you have found something to build from the inside rather than a failing.