The Hidden Benefit of Being Self-Aware
How paying conscious attention to our thoughts, motives, and actions can propel us into happiness
One day, I was talking to a close friend who said something that caught me off guard: “These days, you’re usually very negative.” I paused. I didn’t think of myself as a pessimistic person. In fact, I had just recently started posting uplifting thoughts on Instagram. I viewed myself as an optimist at the core, and I really wanted to share some of my positivity with friends and family.
I tried to brush my friend’s comment off as a superfluous one. My self-perception was so different from her comment that I wanted to prove her wrong. I figured I would collect some evidence and share it with her. I decided I would try to be aware of my attitude and objectively categorize my statements in my conversations as “optimistic” and “pessimistic.”
After a week, this is what I discovered:
My own data showed that I was missing an obvious pattern in myself! I definitely had spent the week having and sharing more negative, pessimistic thoughts than I had thought I would! Maybe my friend’s…
