Self and Self-Awareness Archives – Page 7 of 32

Self-Awareness and Getting Rid of the Negative Messages in Your Head

December 7, 2023 - The Self-Awareness Guy

Self-awareness can help you get rid of the negative messages in your head because, when you get to know yourself well and understand your strengths and areas for improvement, you’re able to make adjustments to move in a more positive direction.

Have you ever met someone who seems to have strong self-esteem but depends on someone else for his or her happiness or behaves in ways that don’t lead in a positive direction? We all do things on an unconscious level that keep us from succeeding. The messages you learned early in life can hold you back and keep you from achieving what you want. The good news is that you can change those messages by following some basic steps.

Identify the message. Ask yourself, “Where did this message begin.”
Ask yourself if the message is true. For example, do you really not deserve to succeed?
Think of the opposite of the message and do that instead. Make it a positive message that gets you where you want to go.
Every time a negative, limiting message comes into your head do these steps until it is gone.

It will take you some time to get good at changing your messages but you will do it if you stick with it over time. Plan on spending at least 30 days practicing the new behavior and then check in with yourself to see how you’re doing. You may be very happy with the results. If you’re not, it looks like you have another message to work on. What will you do to build your self-awareness and get rid of the negative messages in your head?

Cheers,

Guy

Using Self-Awareness to Overcome Your Fears

November 27, 2023 - The Self-Awareness Guy

You can use self-awareness to overcome your fears because, the more you understand your emotions, thoughts, and actions, the easier it is to not be scared of things.

Fear often keeps us repeating the same patterns, even to the extent of repeating behaviors we dislike. We get stuck doing the same thing over and over and don’t see a way out. Overcoming fears is a challenge we avoid because we tend to hang on to the familiar rather than the unknown.

The paradoxical thing is that the unknown can often lead us in new and wonderful directions we couldn’t even imagine when we started out. Facing your fears is a matter of finding out what they are, where they come from and taking action to move in a different direction. Here is what some smart people have to say about the subject.

Bonaro W. Overstreet

Perhaps the most important thing we can undertake toward the reduction of fear is to make it easier for people to accept themselves, to like themselves.

Don Miguel Ruiz:

Death is not the biggest fear we have; our biggest fear is taking the risk to be alive — the risk to be alive and express what we really are.

Dorothy Thompson:

Only when we are no longer afraid do we begin to live.

Eleanor Roosevelt:

You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do. What will you do to use your self-awareness to move beyond fear?

Cheers,

Guy

Using Self-Awareness to Improve Relationships

November 22, 2023 - The Self-Awareness Guy

You can use self-awareness to improve your relationships starting today because, when you understand how your emotions, thoughts, and actions affect your interactions with others, you’re better able to connect with them positively and understand where they’re coming from.

It’s easy to focus exclusively on our own perspective in relationships. We tend to think of our relationship issues in terms we are familiar with and this often means we keep repeating the same patterns and acting the same way we always have. This works well if we get great results but what happens if our behaviors always lead to less than satisfactory relationships.

We all know people who lack self-awareness and never quite resolve their differences with others, and we watch them repeat the same pattern over and over. I’ve noticed that it is helpful to let in some new information and get a fresh perspective. When we let new information in it’s like opening a window in a stuffy room, we can breathe better and think more clearly. Think about some of the following ideas next time you feel stuck in your relationship.

1. Who can I turn to that is not involved in my situation and can give me impartial advice?
2. Am I willing to let an outside person offer me advice?
3. How open am I to talking about personal issues with an outside person?
4. How open am I to doing the work necessary to move in a different direction?
5. What actions will I commit to doing?

Think about these questions and keep in mind that none of us has all the answers but we all have the ability to improve our self-awareness and acquire new information if we are open enough. Let some air in, enjoy a fresh perspective and start moving in a new direction. What will you do to increase your self-awareness so you can improve your relationships?

Cheers,

Guy

How to Achieve Goals and Increase Self-Awareness

November 17, 2023 - The Self-Awareness Guy

Here are some practical tips to achieve goals and increase self-awareness:

Pick one issue you want to work on. Define it as specifically and narrowly as possible.
Keep your goal manageable. For example: “I will write one chapter of my book,” “I’m going to work on 50 books.” This sets you up for success instead of feeling disappointed because you took on too much at once.
Monitor your progress and celebrate as you go along. When you accomplish one task, congratulate yourself and reflect on the great work you did.
Keep taking small steps even when you don’t feel like it. You will feel at times that nothing positive is happening. Keep pushing through those thoughts by continuing to take action.

An important part of self-awareness is to keep things manageable and work little by little. It’s the small steps that eventually lead to big results.

Cheers,

Guy

Self-Awareness and Compassion

November 17, 2023 - The Self-Awareness Guy

Self-awareness and compassion are interwoven because, when you understand how your emotions, thoughts, and behaviors affect you and others, you’re able to treat people well and build a better world. Here are some characteristics of compassion:

Consciousness of another person’s distress and the desire to help them.
The ability to understand when someone else is suffering, hurt, struggling, or feeling down.
The desire to help others without any need to be rewarded.
The ability to step outside your immediate needs and tend to someone else’s.
Consciousness that all kinds of people fall on hard times or have difficulties and need help.
Helping people without judging them.

A big part of self-awareness is strengthening your ability to see beyond your own horizons and feel compassion for others; which means that you’ve become comfortable and healthy enough as a person that you can feel other people’s pain and try to help them with it.

A world without compassion is one where nobody helps anyone and everyone just worries about their own desires and needs. As you increase your self-awareness you will find that your compassion increases and you’re better able to tend to others because you’re healthier. What will you do to increase your self-awareness and practice compassion?

Cheers,

Guy

Self-Awareness and What You Put Out in the World

November 7, 2023 - The Self-Awareness Guy

Self-awareness affects what you put out toward others or in life in general because, when you understand your emotions, thoughts, and behaviors, you’re able to spread positive energy in the world.

Think about what you feel, think, and do the next time you interact with people at work or in your personal life. How does the vibe you put out affect what you get back from people? For example, how do you feel when someone does the following?

Frowns.
Scowls.
Speaks in an aggressive tone of voice or shouts.
Doesn’t listen.
Doesn’t look at you.
Is angry or impatient.
Talks over you.
Rolls their eyes.
Always griping or negative.
Lacks self-awareness.

How would you react to a person acting like this? I bet you can think of
many other things that are not conducive to great communication or to
effective interpersonal relationships. It’s amazing how much the energy
we put out affect what we get back. On the other hand, think of how you react when someone does the following:

Smiles.
Listens.
Speaks in a calm tone.
Looks at you.
Talks when appropriate.
Nods and prompts you for more information.
Focuses on positive approaches.
Is self-aware.

What was your reaction to this type of behavior? If you’re like most people
you would likely be more attracted to interacting with this person.
There really is something to the idea that what we put out is what we
get back. What can you do about it? Start today by putting out positive
vibes that the world can pick up on. It will take conscious effort and
practice on your part but, over time, you will transform who you are
and live more in harmony with yourself and others.

What will you do to develop self-awareness and spread positive energy?

Cheers,

Guy

Self-Awareness and Your Perspective

November 7, 2023 - The Self-Awareness Guy

Perspective affects everything you do in life. For example: A person in Bangladesh living in complete poverty can be very happy while a person in an affluent neighborhood in the United States can be miserable. Your level of self-awareness affects your perspective on life because, when you’re comfortable with your thoughts, feelings and behaviors, you’re able to maintain a positive outlook.

Perspective is the way you see the world based on your self-awareness and personal experiences. If you filter out the positive, you tend to focus on the things that aren’t going well. If you filter out the negative, you’re better able to see the beneficial side of things. A great example of perspective is found in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Tiny Tim doesn’t have use of his legs but he doesn’t wallow in self pity, he forges on and is a source of strength for his family.

You’re faced with important choices throughout your life. At any moment you can choose your perspective and that will lead you down a certain path. Try this simple exercise: The next time you feel you can’t overcome an obstacle, consciously tell yourself, “I can handle this,” or some other positive affirmation. This will help you shift from a negative to a positive perspective.

It’s amazing what can happen when you choose a perspective that gives you the power to move forward rather than staying stuck. What will you do to view the world from a positive perspective?

Cheers,

Guy