3 Ways to Become More Self Aware

Leaders in the business world must be self aware. By being attuned to their own inner thoughts and feelings, they are able to make better decisions, have better relationships and communicate more effectively. There are two types of self awareness: internal and external. Internal self awareness is about knowing your own thoughts and feelings, while external self awareness is about how others view you. Self awareness is key to job satisfaction, personal control, happiness, and less anxiety, stress, and depression.Self awareness is key in the business world. We can do our jobs better, think clearly, make better decisions, have better relationships and communicate effectively when we are self aware.

Self awareness is not just innate, it is a trait we can attain and get better at. There are two types of self awareness: internal and external. Internal self awareness is associated with higher job and relationship satisfaction, personal and social control, and happiness; it is negatively related to anxiety, stress, and depression. While external self awareness is about how others view us. Self awareness is something that you can cultivate by paying attention to your thoughts and emotions, as well as studying the feedback you receive from others. If you want to be a more effective, follow these 3 ways to become more self aware.

1. Balance Internal and External Awareness

As a leader, self-awareness is essential in order to be successful. You must be able to see yourself clearly, as well as understand how others see you. This takes a balance of both self-reflection and feedback from others. It is important to get feedback from others in order to get a clear picture of how you are perceived. However, it is also essential to be able to reflect on yourself and understand your own strengths and weaknesses. Only by having a balance of both self-awareness and feedback can you truly lead effectively.

2.  Seek Feedback

One of the best ways to improve self-awareness is to seek feedback from those around you. When you receive critical feedback, it gives you the opportunity to see yourself from another perspective and understand how others may view your actions or words. Successful leaders know that they need to be constantly self-aware in order to be effective, and they get regular feedback from loving critics in order to improve. If you want to be successful in any area of your life, make sure to seek out critical feedback on a regular basis. It will help you become more self-aware and allow you to make the necessary changes to improve your performance.

3 . Ask What Not Why

To be self aware, we must constantly be asking ourselves 'what' questions to gain a better understanding of our objectives, insights, and empowerment. Instead of asking why we feel terrible, we should be asking what situations make us feel terrible. 'Why' questions create a lot of rumination which doesn't always lead to accurate answers, while what questions drive results. When we spend our time focusing on why questions, we spend more time rationalizing wrong results and this is not good for self awareness. If we want to be successful in anything, we must be self aware and constantly asking ourselves 'what' questions to gain a better understanding of our objectives, insights, and empowerment.

Self awareness is key to being a better leader.

Inspired by Tasa Eurich’s ‘What Self Awareness Really Is (And How to Cultivate It)'