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Principles of Self-Awareness: Discovering Who You Are

Updated on August 27, 2015

Have you ever ask yourself "who am I?" You might be thinking about your name, position and social background. No, your background is where you find yourself to be. Our environment often affects our way of life and this often has to do with us having the ability to adjust and fit into every situation. It's a human trait that is wonderful but also pull us into the required reality. Success and achievements around us are always attractive, but we often find ourselves wanting to be like those successful people. Thus we forget ourselves in pursuit of success by following there principles and adapting to their lifestyles, believes and attitudes. The question here is still unanswered. Who are you?

In psychology we're made to understand that the brain is empty from birth. Just like a plain sheet of paper. As it stays and starts experiencing things from sight and hearing, it records. And the recorded activities, attitudes and lifestyles are the ones to be disposed in terms of physical interaction with its environment. So obviously, different things can make different people. These are the things that make you who you are? No!

Discovering who you are has to start with your taste, feeling, perception, instincts, natural abilities and interests. It has to do with you doing the thinking. It has to do with your body responding positively to your decisions and actions. What matters here is discovering the best you have to offer to your own person--the real you.

Taste

This can never be faked or denied. I was raised in a community with a particular kind of taste and puddings. In my early 20s, I moved to a place with another but unique kind of taste and realized that I like some of their tastes. Initially, being the one that always cares about what tastes good to me, I realized that not all the foods I know where my life started favoured my tastes. So my movement to other places gave me the opportunity to explore different tastes, which I discovered my likes and dislikes to them. Not according to the kind of people that prepare it or the place or is it native or not, but according to my tastes.

So in this case, discovering who you are through self-discovery in tastes require you to discard every superstitious believes about food and embrace nature as it is. And always remind yourself that you're living in a free world. Free to reject. Free to accept. And free to make choices based on your tastes.

You don't have to force something that doesn't taste good. Do not restrict yourself to particular culture. And you don't have to listen to what people say about it. Instead, tell people about yours and expect them to respect it.

Discovering Your Best Interests

As a child is growing, there's a mind of loving everything. A young mind is filled with inquisitiveness and loves to explore everything up to the extent of interest discovery. This is so natural and every growing individual should explore the possible. The common mistakes that cause the tragedy of choices in the future of a dreamer is when he has to explore many things and be left with many options. Usually the person may just make a random choice or allow himself to be influenced by people or the environment. So in discovering who you are, letting your interest to determine your choices gives you a better judgement.

There's money in business but what type of business fits your interests, something you're comfortable with. The money doesn't matter anymore because in the end of the journey many people have regretted the time wasted which cannot be redeemed with the money earned. And the only thing that happens after the wasted years is regret. It is also true that money can bring many things and many kinds of people but it cannot bring total satisfaction regardless how it is used inasmuch as your natural interest is abused.

Discovering who you are is very important so as to avoid regrets in the end of life's journey. Even though it's hard to make a life decisions that suits you and the people around you without hurting any, it is of great importance to note that life doesn't have destiny. Life is a journey that has no end, regardless of where your decisions might take you there's always different ways to go farther and higher. So focus on your present interests.

We never meet great interests, we make things great. Many youths in the past have dreamt about becoming famous actors and musician without the conscience of interest or ability, so they end up just as dreamers. Same time, some other sets of youth discover an interest in mixing foods and cooking, have been working on their interests by making it a dream, then a goal. Now they own one of the famous restaurants around the world.

What is interest? Interest is everything. What you love doing even when you're sad. Your real interest is what keeps you engaged, makes you feel surrounded by living responsibilities even when alone and lonely. Your real interest is that thing you left when influenced by people's thoughts, opinions, environments and situations and find yourself wanting to go back to it at the slightest opportunity. Your interests seem to be part of you, not because people are making it big through the same thing but because you always have peace when doing it.

Choices of interests. It's very natural to be interested in different careers and professions. But if you can ask yourself why you're interested in that particular culture of work and be able answer yourself correctly, there's a chance of discovering who you really are in that field.

Let's have a good example with this scenario of a conflicted interest and hobby: I love watching footballers dribbling in the field. Deep down inside me, my interest tells my mind that it's going to feel good to be there, but who really am I? Watching singers rhyming on stage, good. The same interest arises. This happens to our impulse and response even when we see soldiers on TV or in the street. Using the common mind, this tells us that everything is worth appreciating and adoring only if it's done well. Things cannot be done well if the doer doesn't love what he does.

A doctor wearing that white jacket, or in the theatre room, I'll like to be like that, but who really do I suppose to be! My interest! In discovering who you are, discarding those things you appreciate and embracing things you love and care about is vital. Watch your abilities. Natural abilities have the power to get you to the top. No ability comes in full package. You develop it through learning. But the fact is, your true ability always favours your learning effort. The purpose of life is to do what you love and love what you're doing. Natural ability is what you love, and practicing more of it is a way of loving it. Everything you do about it must be done with affection.

While discovering your true profession by learning from the experienced, being creative along the way is a proper thing to do. Expose yourself to different types of people with different kinds of profession. Do not hesitate to show off your creativity. Through criticism and correction you'll not only discover who you really are but the best you can offer to the world and to your personal life.

Discovering and making use of your inabilities

There’s benefit in self-discovery but the benefit does not allow us to ignore the less -flattering side of our individuality. First off, our inabilities that come as a natural phenomenon are there for our advantages. Although we can change anything if we want to, taking advantage of your abilities while ignoring those things you can't do leaves you in a trance of self-satisfaction regardless of the hustle. We as humans have great abilities and as many as we can't even discover everything. But wait, do we always have to do everything in our lifetime? We surely can't do everything we can. The fact is, whenever and whatever you're privileged to do, do it. Forget your inabilities behind. During proper self-discovery and self-actualization you'll discover how irrelevant those things are or how they can contribute only a little to your life vitality, even if to say you have the ability to do them. When a time comes and that you'll need those abilities, make people or machines do that for you and thank God for technology.

Intellectual approach

What does your thinking says about you? Never ever fear deep thinking as long as you're not worrying about a problem or being negative about an issue. Realistically believe all what your mind says about you except the negative. Respond correctly to your fears. Do not allow depression to take over your mind, your ability to think correctly. Your sight of making right decisions can be blurred in depression, anxiety and anger. Discovering who you are is easier when you're healthy psychologically and you know it, and when majority of your dispositions do not attract opposition from people or your conscience.

Your personality traits make a clear self-portrait regarding your behaviours around people and then when alone; your attitude towards particular type of people but different social background; and your lifestyle entirely. Give it a self-portrait that describes the person you should be if not for the present environment. In doing that you'll discover who you are. Whether you're abusing the privilege to be ugly, or you're just living life according to circumstance. The effort is to help you discover who you really are in order to let the real you live the life, not the assumed you. It's as clear as knowing what you've been missing and what you really deserve thus giving you the power to disconnect yourself from the current flow of both the known and unknown influences. A wise man said "only dead fishes go with the flow" so you need to be alive right within before you can create the positive change that you and the people around you deserve. Disconnect yourself from those people that will always try to make you change your decisions in order to make their opinion legitimate and professional regardless of your qualification in dealing with a project or problem.

Discovering who you are can make you bold and assertive enough to follow your instincts strictly and be able to thrive without being aggressive all the time. Relax and have confidence in using your opinion. On earth, you always need to be controlled by others who have higher knowledge and dignity. Let yourself be corrected. Learn to listen. Avoid excessive self-will and chauvinism. It can lead to anxiety, psychological stress and then distraction from the peaceful zone which is made just for people with proper self-discovery.

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