The Art of Knowing Yourself
“The more you invest in knowing yourself, the closer you will be to contentment”
We have often been told by philosophers and thinkers that we should get to know ourselves. They cite many a reasons to do so and while they are right, not all of us are equipped with the tools and techniques that are required to introspect, examine and analyze our personality. So how would you know yourself? Well, the answer is, by exploring yourself!
You will need to understand that there is more to yourself than just the sum of all that you have been. Hidden strengths, latent power, unpolished skills to name a few.
While in the western side of the world a lot of emphasis is given on personality, which is more about working on the exterior, the need is to look deeper within and work on the inner character.
The way to do it would be through Introspection. Introspecting involves going beyond your reactions to the incidents in life and analyzing the reasons for those reactions. One key factor for people to know and understand is that most of the times they are governed by subconscious patterns and have no control on it. Hence, they lose the power of choosing to respond and become a slave of their inner idiosyncrasies and react unknowingly.
It is a step ahead of gauging life’s successes as it deals with taking out time to know your strengths and weaknesses. It is the courage to accept those weaknesses and the will to work on them. It is a combination of going deep into your own personality and localizing the things that matter to you the most. This art of knowing yourself will involve certain compelling questions, such as:
- What makes you really happy?
- What are you passionate about?
- Are the things that you do giving you a sense of happiness?
- What counts as success to you?
- What are you good at? What do you suck at?
- How comfortable are you with your personality traits?
- What do you really want from life?
- What kind of situations do you run away from?
Along with these questions, you should also identify your fears, worries and roadblocks along the road of success. After all, knowing yourself in the truest form is the first step towards self-acceptance and development. With this knowledge about your personality, you will be able to leverage your strengths, work on your weaknesses and push yourself to overcome the hiccups in both personal and professional lives.
Remember, the best part of getting to know yourself better is that it frees you from the burden of trying to be somebody else and it also opens the door for endless possibilities!
