Self-Awareness Meaning

Self-Awareness and Dating - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

Self-Awareness and Dating

A recurring question my consulting clients ask me about dating is: “Why can’t I find anyone who is a good fit for me?” My response is often something along the lines of, “In what ways are you ready to find someone wonderful?” The idea in dating is to look at yourself and build self-awareness so that you’re as healthy as possible and ready to attract great people. Let’s look at a few dating conundrums and possible things you can do to move in a different direction:

1. I keep going out with bad boys/girls. Different direction: I get myself healthy enough to recognize that it’s OK to treat myself well and go out with positive people.

2. I feel lonely. Different direction: I actively work on things that resolve why I am lonely and emphasize learning about myself before dating.

3. Where can I meet people? Different direction: When you get yourself healthy and do the things you love you move in circles where you attract people who are like you.

4. All men/women are terrible. Different direction: There are a lot of great people out there we just need to learn to accept them into our lives and be healthy enough to encourage good people to go out with us.

Dating is ultimately what you make it because you have a lot of control over where it goes. When you’re aware of how your thinking and behaviors affect your dating approach you’ll be able to connect with amazing people rather than repeating the same patterns. What will you do to build your self-awareness and improve your dating life?

Cheers,

Guy

How to Become Self-Aware - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

How to Become Self-Aware

People frequently ask me how to become self-aware. Here are five things you can do to start building your self-awareness:

  1. Make a list of all the things you do that lead in a positive direction.
  2. List the things that hold you back or lead in a less than positive direction.
  3. List the emotions you most commonly feel. Subdivide this list into the emotions you have an easy time feeling and those you have a difficult time feeling.
  4. Make a list of the things you really want to do in life, only list the things that are deep inside your heart, not the stuff you think you should do or others say you should do.
  5. Write about who you really are as a person, who the real you is and what dreams that person has.

The important thing to remember is that self-awareness doesn’t happen all at once, it’s a process that takes time and deliberate effort. Take the time to thoroughly think about and work through each of these five steps and don’t move on to the next one until you’ve finished the one before it. The areas that you have the most difficulty with are the ones that you will benefit from spending more time on. By completing these steps you will learn about yourself and start identifying who you really are and what you want to do with your life.

Cheers,

Guy

Self-Awareness Helps You Build Self-Esteem - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

Self-Awareness Helps You Build Self-Esteem

People with strong self-awareness feel better about themselves. Self-esteem grows when you are doing things you love and taking steps toward your goals. Every time you complete an action or reach a goal you have a reason to feel great about yourself. The more small steps you take, the more opportunities you’ll have to feel great about who you are. The key is to keep working on things that are meaningful to you and don’t forget to celebrate as you go along.

Here are some things you’ll notice as you build your self-awareness and, by extension, your self-esteem:

  • You feel better about yourself.
  • You move past your fears.
  • You heal the damage inside you.
  • You learn to love yourself.
  • You’re able to list that things that are great about you.
  • You work on being the best version of you possible.
  • You don’t worry about what other people say, think, or do.
  • You follow your own path in life.

Cheers,

Guy

How to Start Building Self-Awareness - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

How to Start Building Self-Awareness

A great way to start building self-awareness is to decide to do it. People often don’t realize that it takes deliberate and ongoing (lifelong) effort to achieve self-awareness. You don’t just wake up one day and decide you know yourself perfectly, you commit to learning about yourself throughout your journey. Here are some ideas to help you start your self-discovery process:

  • Make a list of your strengths.
  • Make a list of your areas for improvement.
  • Brainstorm some ideas of what you’d like to work on to become more self-aware.
  • Pick one brainstorm item to start working on.
  • Do one small thing to work on your brainstorm item.
  • See how things go. Make adjustments if necessary.
  • Pick another item to work on.
  • Repeat.

Increasing self-awareness requires dedication and deliberate, ongoing action. You get to know yourself by constantly working on becoming a healthier, happier, more balanced person. Where will you start?

Cheers,

Guy

It Takes Self-Awareness to Look at Yourself - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

It Takes Self-Awareness to Look at Yourself

There are many individuals who construct idealized versions of themselves to avoid having to look at how they really think and behave and the results they’re getting. It takes self-awareness to look at yourself, admit that something isn’t working and change direction. Here are some questions to ask yourself to stop fighting the facts and live based on what’s actually going on in your life and what you’re capable of doing:

  • What do I do in my life that causes me discomfort?
  • What can I do to let go of the things that cause me discomfort?
  • What would I change about myself to feel more comfortable?
  • What can I do to focus on my own behaviors rather than what other people do?
  • What patterns in my life would I change so I could be happier?
  • What am I willing to do to move in a positive direction?
  • What’s my plan for letting go of the thoughts and behaviors that don’t help me?
  • What will I do to be the same person privately and publicly?
  • What will I do to live authentically?

No amount of fighting the facts can change the reality of how you behave and the results you get in life. Take some time to answer questions like the ones I’ve suggested here and get to know yourself on a deeper level so you can live authentically and happily. Life is much more rewarding when you take a good look at yourself and follow your true path.

Cheers,

Guy

You Decide What Self-Awareness Is - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

You Decide What Self-Awareness Is

Self-awareness is whatever you decide you want it to be based on what’s important to you and how you want to grow. It’s often the process of identifying areas in your life that you want to improve and taking action to make things happen. Self-awareness is most challenging when you’re uncomfortable in some way and genuinely motivated to change your thoughts or behaviors. You have to be ready to address the issue and willing to work on it until you generate positive results.

It’s advisable to approach self-awareness as an ongoing process rather than a quick fix. Deeper change requires long-term commitment and effort but it doesn’t have to be complicated. All you have to do is be willing to take a look at yourself, warts and all. The process of getting to know who you really are is what eventually leads to happiness and fulfillment. A great way to get the process started is to picture what your ideal life would be and pursue one small thing each day to achieve your dreams. If you have emotions, thoughts, or behaviors that get in the way, be willing to examine them and work on shifting them in a positive direction. Self-awareness isn’t something that occurs overnight, it’s a journey of self-discovery where you make all the decisions about where you want to go.

Cheers,

Guy

Self-Awareness, Success, and Gratitude - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

Self-Awareness, Success, and Gratitude

Self-awareness, success, and gratitude are interconnected because you can’t do everything on your own in the world, you need the help of other people. Perhaps you’ve met someone who insists that he (or she) is successful solely because of his own efforts, which conveniently ignores things like:

  • The countless people around him who assisted.
  • The people who made it easier to be successful.
  • The systems in place that allowed him to be successful.
  • The physical infrastructure in place that increased the likelihood of success.
  • The laws in place that allowed for success.
  • The available body of knowledge, often developed by others, so that not every step along the way would have to be invented from scratch.
  • The favorable, chance occurrences that helped along the way.

People who possess a high level of self-awareness understand that, while they play a large part in being successful in their lives, they also rely on an extensive and interdependent system to support their efforts.

The key to living a healthy, self-aware life is to realize that being successful includes being grateful for all the positive support you’ve received over the years from many sources and giving back precisely because it could not have happened without the many people and fortuitous conditions involved. What will you do to express your gratitude for your success?

Cheers,

Guy

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