Self-Awareness — A Mighty Tool

Self-Awareness is the first step towards personal growth. As Jude Dholah, a PGI certified Life Coach in Canada says — in the pursuit of personal development, knowing oneself tops the chart. Self-Awareness empowers individuals to navigate life with clarity, confidence and meaning.

We may name our favorite books and movies at the drop of a hat but we may be less inclined towards discussing deeper self-awareness topics like emotions, thoughts, strengths, weaknesses and our overall identity. However, if we want to be happier and lead a contented and purposeful life, it is important to build self-awareness. This keeps us on target to be the best version of ourself.

Self-Awareness

As per the dictionary, self-awareness means conscious knowledge of one’s own character, feelings, motives, and desires. In simple words, we can say self-awareness is self-knowledge, how well do we know ourselves, how emotions, thoughts, actions feelings and how objectively do we use these. Highly self-aware people are factual and objective-driven and not emotion-driven.

Types of Self-Awareness

1. Private self-awareness — This means individuals are aware of something about themselves that others might not know. This comes from introspection and reflection on internal state.

2. Public self-awareness — This means individuals are aware of how others see them. They tend to follow the societal norms and are conscious of their image in public. However, getting deeper into it would lead to self-consciousness which is a negative state. A kid of say 4–5 years and less will have no public self-awareness.

A Mighty Tool — Significance

Having and strengthening self-awareness has lot of benefits, specifics may depend on the individual.

1. Better Clarity

It helps individuals understand their strengths and weaknesses. They know what drives them and what are they seeking in life. In many cases, seeking help from a Life Coach is beneficial. A Life Coach will help attain clarity and make goals smart, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-oriented. You can easily prioritize your tasks, channel your energies, keep a record of things and track your progress.

2. Increased Self-confidence

Self-awareness leads to self-esteem. Once individuals are aware of their strengths and weaknesses, they would play them for their gain, success and positivity. This leads to developing confidence in decision making and taking charge of things. One gets a better understanding of values, beliefs and priorities.

3. Better Personal Development

As mentioned earlier, self-awareness is first step towards personal growth. It is a catalyst for growth that leads to personal and professional fulfillment. Self-Awareness make individuals capitalize on their strengths and work on their limitations.

4. Enhanced Emotional Intelligence

Self-awareness makes the foundation of emotional intelligence. Individuals who are self-aware are better equipped to recognize and understand their own emotions, leading to improved self-regulation. This heightened emotional intelligence fosters healthier relationships, effective communication, and a more empathetic approach to interactions with others.

5. Better Stress Management

Self-aware individuals would know their stress triggers and also stress busters. Thus, taking proactive steps and decisions can prevent the negative impact of stress on mental and physical well-being.

6. Effective Leadership

Self-aware individuals make good leaders. They are aware of their values, motivation, strengths and can inspire confidence in others because they are themselves confident and can lead with determination and vision.

7. Improved Relationships

Self-awareness make individuals happy and they can take charge of their emotions, mostly. This results in fostering happy and meaningful relationships, both personally and professionally. These individuals know their values, beliefs and personal boundaries. It is also a key to effective communication, empathy and collaboration.

Read More: 5 Ways Life Coaching Can Help Entrepreneurs

Self-awareness is a journey. It brings the best out of an individual. It acts as a compass to navigate through life’s different scenarios. This empowers an individual to build a meaningful, authentic life.