“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.” – C.G. Jung
To know oneself is critical to flourishing. To see oneself objectively and honestly and recognize our shortcomings and consciously make an effort to change for the better is time and energy well invested. While we are sculpted by our upbringing and early experiences we are capable of change. Our personalities are not static. We can mitigate our realities with consistent effort and gradual change. We must look inward to identify and eliminate any resistance built from undergoing painful experiences throughout our personal history. Think and do something different the next time a reoccurring life situation arises and at the very least reflect on your behavior and thoughts afterward. To practice self-awareness in the spur of a moment is difficult; however, as with anything else practice makes better.
Identify core beliefs: ideas of what constitutes good and bad and just and unjust. Disassociate false connections between beliefs and external fears. Fear has helped us for survival purposes; however, similar to stress it is only helpful as a short and temporary state and turns into a bad thing if allowed to linger permanently. We cannot allow fear to control our thoughts, emotions, reactions, and behavior or contribute to our vices. Retrain the mind and take action in order to change point of view as needed. Condition the mind in order to affect perception. Dance with the fears, insecurities, negative-talk, and the infamous ego in order to understand their source by which you can utilize to abolish them. Get comfortable with feeling uncomfortable while getting to know your areas for improvement. Consider open-mindedness, when analyzing oneself and considering possible change. Peel off the layers like you would an onion.
Be honest but fair with yourself. Do not assume the task will be simple; work is needed. Anything worth getting good at is worth the work requirements. Forget the timelines and enjoy the ongoing process. After all who we are today is different from who we were 5 years ago and who we will be 5 years from now. Work on developing self-awareness to gain the benefits of knowing yourself to the core. Achieve the personal power by listening, editing, and mastering your self-narrative.
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