Are you ready to up-level your life? The first step to get there is awareness. In this post I’m going to give you some tips on how to become more self-aware so that you can begin to gain clarity for your future and manifest the life you deserve!
When it comes to curating the life of your dreams, the first step (in my opinion) is having self-awareness. How would you even know what you truly want without it, amirite? Self-awareness matters in all aspects of life because when you have it, it means you understand yourself deeply. When you’re self-aware you’ll become more powerful because you’ll know your abilities and skills as well as your triggers and tendencies. You can’t improve areas of your life without knowing the areas that need improvement.
What is it and why is it important?
Self-awareness is the “conscious knowledge of one’s own character, feelings, motives, and desires” according to the Oxford dictionary. It is important because having it makes a positive difference in your life. When we are self-aware, “we are more confident and more creative. We make sounder decisions, build stronger relationships, and communicate more effectively. We’re less likely to lie, cheat, and steal” according to Harvard Business Review. When we are self-aware, we have a greater advantage to navigate life.
How to become more self-aware
First, I want to note that becoming more self-aware is a process. It might have come easily to some but it IS possible to develop it as an adult. We all have the power to improve the most important relationship we have: the relationship with ourselves. At the end of the day, we are the only thing we have so learning about ourselves is vital. These are some ways to become more self-aware.
Decide
Seems simple but the first tip is to decide you want to become more self-aware. When you do this, you’ll begin to look for evidence and the wheels will start turning in your brain. Be curious about who you truly are, without judgement. Decide that you want to know yourself objectively. Decide you want to be conscious of your thoughts, feelings, emotions, triggers in your daily life but also decide to be conscious of how others view you too.
Self-reflect
When you take the time to reflect on your day, you’ll gain self-awareness because you’ll begin to learn about yourself. You’ll begin to recognize patterns involving your emotional state. Reflecting after interactions with others is a great way to learn about yourself, especially after troublesome moments.
- Meditation -It is something so simple yet so powerful (and oftentimes overlooked). The purpose of meditation is using silence to communicate with your inner voice. Taking the time to listen to your thoughts will develop self-awareness because you’ll begin to understand yourself better. You’ll connect with your higher self and learn what triggers you, what you enjoy, what you want, etc.
- Journaling-Another tip that can help you with self-reflection is journaling. If meditation is not for you, journaling can help. By “free writing” your thoughts and feelings, you’ll develop self-awareness because you’ll see what comes out of your mind on a tangible thing (on paper). You can also use writing prompts as a guide and write your responses. Finally, you can jot down your feelings after certain moments (or triggers) throughout your day and then look back on your list at the end of the day 9or week) to look for patterns.
- Talking it out-You can also process your thoughts by talking with someone (a coach or a friend for example). Asking for feedback is such a powerful way to gain self-awareness because we are learning about ourselves from how others see us objectively. Make sure you trust this person and try not to take things personally when they’re giving you feedback. The point is to learn about yourself whether you like what you hear or not.
Ask the right question
According to Tasha Eurich, PhD (an organizational psychologist and researcher) asking a “what” type of question as opposed to “why” will be more beneficial when working on becoming self-aware. People tend to ask themselves why something happened and look for facts or excuses when in reality they should be asking a “what” type of question. For example, instead of asking why a situation keeps happening at work, ask what are some things you can do to improve the situation or outcome. The reason for this is because “‘what’ questions help us stay objective, future-focused, and empowered to act on our new insights” according to Dr. Eurich.
Final Thoughts
I hope you found this post useful and will implement some, if not all, of my tips on how to become more self-aware. As a reminder, try not to judge yourself when you’re in the process of learning about yourself. By developing your self-awareness, you’ll be closer to managing your emotions or reactions the way you prefer, with practice. It is never too late to become more self-aware. Always keep learning! You only have positive things to gain with this practice.
Let’s work together!
- If you’re really ready to create the life you want
- If you want to increase your happiness and feel more confident in who you are
- If you want to trust yourself more and live on purpose
I can help you! Schedule your clarity call to work with me HERE and follow me on Instagram!
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