self-knowledge

Self-Awareness and the Common Good - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

Self-Awareness and the Common Good

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When you’re actively building self-awareness you understand how important your mental health and well-being are to promoting the common good. The more balanced you are, the more you empathize with others and treat them with kindness and compassion. Healthy, happy people tend to relate to others well because they don’t have the garbage that gets in the way of positive interactions, such as:

  • The need to control others.
  • The need to dominate.
  • The need to win.
  • The need to be better than others.
  • The need to get the last word in.
  • The need for power.
  • The need to be right.

These types of behaviors create divisions and adversarial relationships rather than mutual caring and collaboration. The key to building a kind community is for its members to be happy, balanced, fulfilled individuals who are able to treat others well. What will you do to be part of the common good?

Cheers,

Guy

Moving Past Criticism with Self-Awareness - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

Moving Past Criticism with Self-Awareness

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When you’re actively developing and practicing self-awareness, you’re able to accurately assess your strengths and areas for improvement, which helps you worry less about what other people say, including if they criticize you.

We’ve all been on the receiving end of criticism and, for some people, it can be debilitating and even paralyzing. The good news is you can be self-aware and learn how to listen to the criticism, focus it in a different way, and use it to become a stronger person. Here is what some smart people have to say about the subject.

David Brinkley:

A successful person is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at him or her.

Elbert Hubbard:

To avoid criticism, do nothing, say nothing, be nothing.

Franklin P. Jones:

Honest criticism is hard to take, particularly from a relative, a friend, an acquaintance, or a stranger.

Henri Frederic Amiel:

We are never more discontented with others than when we are discontented with ourselves.

A significant part of self-awareness is the ability to think and behave positively regardless of what people say. What will you do to move past criticism?

Cheers,

Guy

15 Benefits of Self-Awareness - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

15 Benefits of Self-Awareness

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There are many benefits of self-awareness including:

  • Knowing yourself on a deeper level.
  • Listening to your inner voice.
  • Not having to live someone else’s life.
  • Living the life you want to.
  • Thinking, feeling and behaving positively.
  • Understanding why you think, feel and behave the way you do.
  • Being open to learning and growing.
  • Making your dreams come true.
  • Treating yourself and others well.
  • Living mindfully and consciously.
  • Being proactive rather than reactive.
  • Experiencing deep happiness and fulfillment.
  • Living authentically and meaningfully.
  • Simplifying your life.
  • You get to be the real you.

When you possess a high level of self-awareness, you honor who you really are and live a life where you don’t have to pretend you’re someone else. You also get to enjoy the peace of mind that comes from finally being able to be yourself. What will you do to live a self-aware life?

Cheers,

Guy

Self-Awareness Means Looking at the Difficult Things in Life - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

Self-Awareness Means Looking at the Difficult Things in Life

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A lot of times self-awareness is about looking at the difficult things in your life. These are the areas that perhaps you don’t want to bring up or examine. The challenge is to find a way to deal with the difficult issues in your life so you can move past them and live without their influence. It’s like finally healing a wound that’s been hurting for a long time.

The vast majority of people live their entire lives without resolving the pain from their past. This limits their ability to grow and succeed. Think of how amazing your life would be if you became self-aware to the point that you genuinely loved yourself and were able to live as the real you. Too many people get stuck living a life that they settle for instead of doing the hard work necessary to live a conscious, fulfilling life. Self-awareness requires effort but it allows you to let go of all the junk that holds you back.

If you’re afraid of looking at the difficult things in life, that’s normal. The choice you have is whether you decide to move past those things or you let them dictate what you should do. Self-aware people choose to deal with the challenges so they can live wonderfully healthy and expansive lives.

Cheers,

Guy

Self-Aware Leadership and Developing a Clear Vision for Your Organization - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

Self-Aware Leadership and Developing a Clear Vision for Your Organization

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There are countless leaders who let their organizations drag them along as they hold on for dear life. For them, every workday is another exercise in reacting and trying to manage chaos. There’s a significant difference between letting your organization happen to you and having the self-awareness to make things happen proactively.

Do you have a clear vision at this moment of where you want to take your organization? If the answer is no, then ask yourself these questions:

1. Am I doing what I really want to do in my organization?

2. Do I feel successful and fulfilled when I leave work?

3. Does my organization build me up as a professional?

4. Do I have clear goals for the future of my organization?

5. Do I have a strategy or plan for how I will lead?

The answers to these questions will give you an idea of where your leadership could take your organization. Sometimes the only difference between leaders who succeed and those who don’t is their ability to plan proactively.

When you are actively working on developing your self-awareness, you’ll be able to asses your strengths and areas for improvement, thus making it easier to come up with a plan that moves your organization in a positive direction.

Take a moment this week to ask yourself these questions and to start planning your future success rather than reacting to whatever comes your way.  You’ll enjoy having a clearer vision of your organization’s progress. What will you do to practice self-aware leadership and develop a clear vision for your company?

Cheers,

Guy

Self-Awareness and Your Quality of Life - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

Self-Awareness and Your Quality of Life

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Your level of self-awareness greatly affects your quality of life. The more you’re in touch with why you think, feel and do the things you do, the more consciously and happily you can live. Consider these two examples of people with different perspectives:

  1. Person A goes through life appearing to be confident, is outwardly successful, seems to have everything anyone would dream of having but is deeply insecure and realizes it’s all a mirage.
  2. Person B lives life with confidence, sometimes has doubts and shows vulnerability, but when he (or she) looks in the mirror, he knows he’s looking at a real person who is living authentically.

The difference between these two examples is that one person has to pretend to be someone else. Genuine fulfillment and happiness arise from looking at your strengths and areas for improvement and continuously working on being the real you inside and outside. What will you do to live a quality life?

Cheers,

Guy

Self-Awareness and the Secret to Effective Communication - On Developing Self-Awareness and Being Self-Aware

Self-Awareness and the Secret to Effective Communication

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People often ask me what’s the secret to effective communication.  There really are no hidden mysteries, it just requires having the self-awareness to communicate with people in a way that makes things easier for everyone in the workplace. Try these ideas and you’ll be on your way to communicating more effectively and getting more done with less effort.

  1. Build up your self-awareness so you understand how your emotions, thoughts, and communication style affects you and others.
  2. Think before you talk.
  3. Speak calmly or don’t speak at all.
  4. Listen more than you talk.
  5. Try not to react to what the other person is saying.
  6. Ask open-ended questions.

How many of these concepts do you practice on a regular basis?  Once you master these skills you’ll be on your way to enjoying communicating with others.  Effective communication is achievable, you just have to be conscious of what you’re doing to make it happen. What will you do to increase your self-awareness and communicate effectively?

Cheers,

Guy

The Self-Awareness Guy