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As you go through life, you want to place yourself in the best position possible to be successful.
This may include landing that perfect job, getting into graduate school, having a positive impact on those around you, or all of the above. The only way that you are going to be able to place yourself in the best position possible to succeed is if you learn more about who you truly are.
In a lot of ways, this can be described as self-awareness. So in this article, we will define self-awareness and talk showcase nine examples of how self-awareness can play a positive role in your life.
Let’s get to it.
What Is Self-Awareness?
When people discuss self-awareness, they usually refer to traits, behaviors, and feelings. Essentially, self-awareness refers to a psychological state in which you are taking a look at yourself, who you are, how you behave, and how different situations impact you.
Self-awareness is very important. When you are more self-aware of who you are, you have a better understanding of yourself.
If you have a better understanding of yourself, you will be able to predict how you respond to certain experiences. You can also place yourself in the best position possible to capitalize on your strengths.
Furthermore, if you are able to increase your overall level of self-awareness, you can also identify your weaknesses. That way, you can figure out where, when, and how you can make improvements.
Ultimately, it is important to discuss self-awareness because being more self-aware can make you a better person.
The video below shows five proven strategies that help increase my self-awareness and aid your personal development efforts.
With all of this in mind, what are a few examples of how you can capitalize on self-awareness throughout your life?
9 Examples Self Awareness Throughout Your Life
There are several common examples of self-awareness throughout your life. Some of the most common examples include:
1. Spiritual: Ask the Right Questions
When people discuss self-awareness, they often tie this to spirituality. It is easy to see why. If you are trying to learn more about yourself, you might be wondering why you came from and what the future holds for you. As you are trying to get in touch with yourself, you need to ask the right question.
You are probably so focused on what is happening in the world around you that you neglected to think about yourself. Being aware of the situation is the first step in changing it.
Some of the questions that you may want to ask yourself from time to time include:
When you were able to step back for just a minute and ask yourself these questions, you will instantly learn more about yourself. It is this type of spirituality that will help you become more self-aware.
If you develop a habit of asking yourself these questions, you will be able to predict how you will respond to certain situations in the future.
All of this is important for your personal growth. Make sure that you take a few minutes every day to ask yourself about the thoughts, emotions, and experiences you are having. This will help you become more self-aware.
2. Personal Development: Dealing with Conflicts and Recurring Emotions
Of course, a lot of self-awareness is going to center around personal development. As humans, we would like to develop a routine. We like to fall into a certain pattern because we feel more in control of the situation.
If we are able to predict what is coming next, we feel that we are able to control it better. At the same time, this does not necessarily mean that these patterns are a positive thing.
For example, if you find yourself experiencing recurrent negative emotions and conflicts, it is important to figure out why. Some of the questions that you may want to ask yourself include:
Ultimately, there are countless reasons why you may be dealing with conflict in your personal or professional life. For example, you may be in a bad relationship with a significant other and you two simply are not right for each other. Or, you may be frustrated with a certain co-worker or situation at work.
Regardless, if you find that you are consistently sinking into a negative pattern, it is important for you to realize it and do something about it.
The first step in addressing this is to realize that you are dealing with conflicts more often than you should. Becoming more self-aware of your negative emotions and situations can help you improve your overall health.
3. Financial: Why Do I Keep Running out of Money?
There's no way around it. Even though a lot of people believe that thinking about money is somehow superficial, it is very important to everyday life.
The reality is that you are going to have a hard time meeting a lot of your goals if you do not have enough cash on hand. Unfortunately, if you find yourself constantly falling short of money, you are not alone.
Now, you do not necessarily have to track every single dollar that you spend. It is difficult to do so and this will only lead to more anxiety. At the same time, you do have to think about your general patterns of spending.
If you find that you are falling behind on your retirement goals, you need to figure out why. If you find that you are consistently missing your bills, you also need to figure this out as well.
Some of the tips that you should keep in mind for dealing with this situation include:
Financial self-awareness involves figuring out why you are spending money the way you are. Then, if you have negative financial habits, you will be able to express them appropriately.
4. Relationship: Are You Aware of the Health of Your Relationship?
An important part of self-awareness is focusing on the quality of your relationship with your significant other. Do you even know if you are in a healthy relationship? Does your significant other make you happy?
Even though change is hard, this does not necessarily mean that you need to stay in your relationship simply because it is familiar. In some situations, you may be in an unhealthy relationship and you might not even know it.
Some of the signs of an unhealthy relationship include:
If you are not aware that you are in an unhealthy relationship, remember that it is not your fault. Instead, you need to seek a healthy relationship, which looks more like:
You need to be self-aware of the quality of your relationship. Then, remember that if you need help getting out of an unhealthy relationship, there are resources available to you. You do not have to go through this situation alone.
5. Physical: Self-Awareness Regarding Your Physical Health
You should have a positive level of self-awareness when it comes to your physical health as well. If you have not thought about your physical health in a while, you are certainly not alone.
There are plenty of people who fall into this category. You have probably gotten into a daily routine and you don't even know if your body is healthy. Some ways that you can improve your self-awareness when it comes to your physical health include:
It is difficult for you to be aware of your physical health if you do not know just how healthy you are. Even though you might not think you have time to schedule all of these medical visits, it is important for you to make them a priority. That is the only way you are going to figure out just how healthy you truly are.
Furthermore, this also provides you with an opportunity to ask questions. For example, if you always feel tired in the morning, this is something that you can address with the doctor.
If you know the signs and symptoms of poor physical health, you will be able to do something about it. That is why it is important for you to be self-aware of your overall physical health.
6. Mental Health and Self-Awareness: Know the Signs
There has been a lot of attention paid to mental health during the past few years. This is for good reason.
For a long time, there was a significant stigma surrounding mental health issues. Now that most people understand that mental health is something that should be taken seriously, something can be done about it.
You need to understand some of the most common signs that you may be suffering from mental health issues. The more self-aware you are about your overall mental health, the faster you can intervene if something is going wrong.
Some of the most common signs of mental health issues include:
If you are able to keep your eyes open for these significant signs of mental health issues, you will be able to address them appropriately. Remember that you do not have to go through these issues alone. The sooner you ask for help, the better the prognosis is going to be.
7. Educational Self-Awareness: A Journey of Lifelong Learning
If you want to learn more about yourself, you have to learn more about the world around you. Therefore, you have to be self aware of what your educational interests are.
If you feel like you do not have any interest in learning about something new, then simply try to read a magazine, read a book, or watch a few TV shows. You should always be interested in starting something new and you should try to figure out why you are interested in certain topics.
A few examples include:
Once you figure out what your educational interests are, you should try to figure out why you like those topics. Why do you like certain topics more than others? What does this say about who you are?
The answers to these questions might be able to inform your next steps and either your career or your education.
8. Diet: Becoming More Self-Aware
If you want to improve your health, you also have to be aware of your dietary choices. There is a good chance that you don't really think about what you eat on a regular basis.
When you're hungry, you have a meal in mind, and you go eat it. Even though there is nothing wrong with this, this is not going to improve your overall level of self-awareness.
Some of the points that you should consider when you sit down to eat a meal include:
If you can take even a few minutes to think about your dietary choices, this is going to dramatically improve your overall level of self-awareness. Of course, this is also going to improve your physical health as well.
9. Thinking About Others: Become Self-Aware of Your Impact on Others
Finally, you also have to become more self-aware of your impact on other people. After all, a lot of who you are has been formed in response to other people.
For example, your friends, your parents, your teachers, and your coaches all had an impact on the person that you are today. Now, it is time for you to think about the impact that you are having on the world around you.
First, pause for a second and think about who spends time around you. Then, ask yourself why those individuals are spending time around you.
Is it because you were having a positive impact on them? Is it because they feel like you are giving something to them? Is it because you feel like you need them in your life?
Ultimately, you probably want to have a positive impact on the world, leaving it a better place than you found it. The first step in accomplishing this goal is having a positive impact on the people around you.
By becoming more self-aware of the people you spend your time with, you can make yourself, and them, better people.
Final Thoughts on Self Awareness
Ultimately, if you feel like you are still working on your overall level of self-awareness, that is okay!
It is important to look at self-awareness of a journey, not a destination. This is not a final point that you are going to reach; however, you should always try to find ways to be more self-aware.
In the end, if you are able to improve your overall level of self-awareness, you will learn more about yourself, who you are, and what you need to do to reach your overall goals. Keep your eyes open for these examples of self-awareness in your life.
And if you want to learn more about self-awareness, be sure to check out these blog posts:
- 19 Self-Awareness Tests to Truly Understand Yourself
- 33 Self-Awareness Activities for Adults and Students
- 141 Questions to Ask Yourself to Find Out Who You Are
