From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishbe your own man/womanbe your own man/womanINDEPENDENT PERSONto have strong opinions and intentions that are not influenced by other people Hilary’s very much her own woman. → own
Examples from the Corpus
be your own man/woman• The latest reshuffle, immediately following victory, was supposed to confirm, once and for all, that Major was his own man.• You can be your own man.• Stan was intellectual, confident and above all, his own man.• At the same time, both here and in Hawksmoor, Ackroyd, too, is his own man.• But Erlich was his own man.• He turned out to be his own man, and a leader.• He was his own man, after all.• Major's first chance to show that he is his own man has been squandered on favours.• Mobile I was my own man and played the way I believed because we lacked talent in certain areas.• She didn't want to quarrel with him, but made it plain that she was her own woman now, with her own life to lead.• Sheila is very much her own woman. She'll listen to everyone and then make up her mind for herself. 