Self-Awareness Skills

Self-awareness means how each of us looks at ourselves and how we feel based on the view we have of ourselves. In other words, self-awareness is the ability to know and be aware of one's characteristics, weaknesses and strengths, desires, fears, and aversions. Self-awareness means awareness and knowledge of the components of our being, the recognition of components such as physical characteristics, emotions, thoughts and beliefs, values, and our goals.

The importance and necessity of the self-awareness skill For most of us, describing our moral and behavioral characteristics to others is a hard and difficult task. Often we can introduce ourselves to others only to the extent of saying what our first and last name is, what our education and job are, and we do not have sufficient and proper knowledge of our personality and behavioral characteristics. The more you know yourself, the better you can accept or change what you are. When we have no knowledge of our inner self, we surrender ourselves to the environment and those around us, and as a result it is these external forces that shape our personality and determine our mold and structure. Developing self-awareness helps a person realize whether they are under stress or not, and this is usually a necessary precondition for effective and empathetic social and interpersonal relationships. The formation of the self-awareness skill, everything begins with awareness and recognition. Awareness is the first step in creating self-awareness. If you increase your awareness, you better understand why you have this feeling, what thought is passing through your mind right now, and what the cause of your behavior is in various situations. Try not to think of yourself as more than you really are, and do not have a perfectionist and idealistic attitude toward yourself; instead, adopt a moderate view of your capabilities.

The fundamental elements for acquiring the self-awareness skill are:

1/ Awareness of physical and bodily characteristics Having a realistic image of yourself is one of the effective factors in self-knowledge. To this end, you can stand in front of a full-length mirror and review your physical characteristics once again. All of us have both positive and negative characteristics side by side.

2/ Awareness of your strengths All people may be unaware of some of their strengths, such as talents, abilities, skills, and capabilities, etc. Identifying these strengths helps you gain more self-confidence and self-belief and to bring your potential talents to fruition.

3/ Awareness of your weaknesses Some people deny their weaknesses because they do not have the ability to face them; some also magnify their weaknesses to such an extent that they consider themselves weak and possessing many negative characteristics. Neither group will be able to truly know themselves, and they are incapable of achieving self-awareness.

4/ Awareness of your thoughts What shapes feelings and behaviors is our thoughts and inner dialogues. We act based on what we think. By correctly recognizing these thoughts, you can replace them with rational and realistic thoughts and take the inner control of your feelings and actions into your own hands.

5/ Awareness of your beliefs and values Our beliefs include the principles we have inwardly accepted and hold, and values are the criteria and standards by which we evaluate our own and others' thoughts and behavior and everything that happens in the environment. Becoming aware of one's thoughts, beliefs, values, and mental structure, as well as becoming aware of the fact that our beliefs and mental structures are flexible, has a great effect on knowing ourselves better and cultivating self-awareness. It is natural that everyone pursues goals for themselves in life. Planning and being purposeful in life and being aware of these goals are necessary for achieving self-awareness and bringing people's potential to fruition.

6/ Awareness of goals It is natural that everyone pursues goals for themselves in life. Planning and being purposeful in life and being aware of these goals are necessary for achieving self-awareness and bringing people's potential to fruition.

 

∴ Factors effective in achieving self-awareness

One of the factors in achieving self-awareness is "self-acceptance." Self-acceptance means that a person accepts and loves themselves with all the positive and negative characteristics they have. To this end, one must accept that sometimes they make mistakes, sometimes they cannot accomplish a task, sometimes they cannot be the way they or others would like; you cannot keep everyone around you satisfied and act according to their wishes, so you should not blame yourself. Another factor that helps in reaching self-awareness is that, in addition to yourself, you should also love others and accept them as they are. People who have good self-awareness are responsible toward themselves and others.

∴ Obstacles to achieving self-awareness

Sometimes certain characteristics cause a person to be unable to step well along the path of achieving self-awareness and correct self-knowledge. One of these characteristics is pride. Second is excessive expectations and demands of oneself, which divert a person from achieving self-awareness. Third is perfectionism and wanting everything at its utmost desirability. By striving to achieve self-awareness, try to discover all your potential talents and step toward bringing them to fruition. Fear, doubt, and insecurity divert you from free choice and distance you from your inner self.