Socrates said “An unexamined life is not worth living.”
That’s an interesting thought. In the previous post I had written on self-awareness, and Scott’s TED talks also touched on self-awareness.
Where does this self-awareness or being an expert on self comes from?
I believe it comes from taking time out to reflect, and to examine oneself. Perhaps that’s why many successful people keep journals. The habit of keeping a journal forces one to recollect what happened in the day, and wrap one’s thoughts around it. In short, it is a form of reflection.
The reflection then is based on one’s experiences (what else do you reflect on?). And how that reflection is done defers from person to person. And the self-awareness builds on itself. For example, I have a friend who had taken the StrengthsFinder 2.0 after joining our StrengthsFinder Singapore Network Meetup group and had a new awareness of himself. It gave him a way to articulate his natural thoughts and feelings, and to be aware his own natural tendencies. Using that awareness, he is now better able to understand his own feelings and behaviours, and be able to manage himself better, whether it be at work or at home.
The self-examination is an important process. I’ve seen many people who have taken an inventory assessment – whether it be StrengthsFinder, MBTI, DISC or otherwise – and totally forgot about it soon after. What a waste!
Imagine how much more one would gain from the impact of self-reflection when using these inventory tools. It’s like being given a large mirror with “zoom-in” capabilities, and then not using it at all. All the potential for growth and development just waiting for you, yet you just passed it by. That’s a huge waste, don’t you think?
Reflection is only one of the facets
Be careful not to get stuck in doing reflection, and nothing but reflection. We need something to reflect on. Reflection and experience (living your life) are two elements that feed and build into each other.
When we glean our learnings from our reflections, we then need to translate it to an application in our lives, and go out into the world to live it.
How are you living and examining your life?
