Self Awareness

Who am I? Who are you?

Figuring out who you are is called Self- Awareness. Self-Awareness is an essential part of emotional intelligence. You are trying to understand how you feel, what you think, what you like about yourself, and even what you dislike. Self-discovery is a long process that begins in childhood. When a child first discovers that they are a boy or a girl, they are learning self-awareness. Then they start to learn what types of things they enjoy doing, who they enjoy spending time with, and also what they don’t like to do or who they don’t like to be around. Once a child is old enough, they will need to be self-aware of their emotions. What is triggering happiness, sadness, anger, frustration? Once you become aware of the feelings and how your body reacts to those feelings, you can begin to decide what you want or need to do about them. In addition to feelings, a child might discover their strengths and weaknesses in different areas. Finding their strengths may help them build their self-confidence. Finding their weaknesses can allow them to figure out how to persevere and work through something that may be tough for them.

Personal Story

Self-awareness is always something that is growing in each of us. My own recent self-discovery has been finding ways to enjoy myself and to be alone. Growing up in a large family of 6, I was mostly surrounded by people all the time. Having my own bedroom let me have a safe haven from all the commotion that comes with a large family. Knowing myself then, I enjoyed being alone and doing my own thing because I always knew I would have someone to do something with any time I wanted company. However, after being married for 17 years with two kids, I find myself in a much smaller family and not wanting to be alone as often. My husband and two kids are all extremely introverted and very content being alone. I struggled with the idea that I was also destined to feel lonely even when surrounded by others that enjoyed being alone. Through my self-discovery over the best month or so, I have changed my mindset. I can choose to feel lonely, or I can choose to be WITH myself and enjoy my own company. While connections with others are extremely important and vital for my well-being, connecting with and being with myself alone is also extremely important because I am an individual. Learning to enjoy myself by being alone is a blessing that can help me cope and understand things when I don’t always have the availability of another person.

Activities for Self-Awareness

Mediation- Check in with yourself for five minutes. Sit in silence allowing yourself to breathe in and out. Asking yourself how you are feeling and reflecting on your progress.
Curious cube- Create a cube out of paper (there are tons of free printables). On each side of the cube, write your interests and hobbies. Roll the cube with a friend that is doing the same thing. Share your interests and hobbies with a friend or family member.
Self-Portrait- Draw a silhouette of your face. Cut out pictures of different qualities from magazines that represent your characteristics. You can also research a list of characteristics. Write or cut out various words that describe yourself.
Piece of the puzzle- Find a small puzzle at the dollar store. Paint each piece different colors. Write with markers on each piece: people, places, things, and feelings that make you unique.
Take a walk- Take a walk or spend 20-30 minutes with a family member you admire. Share with them memories, events, traditions that you have enjoyed with them.
Building blocks- Take some blocks or any stackable object. Share with a family or friend one thing you are good at for each object until you create a tower.
Yoga- Do a downward dog yoga move that makes your body look like a mountain. This symbolizes something hard for you. State one thing that you need to improve. Then as you slowly drop down to an upward dog (your body is down and your head is looking upward), think of something you can do that would help you to improve that skill. Repeat three times.
Compliments- Say a compliment to someone else. Find someone who has a common characteristic that you share. As you become self-aware, they will also.
I AM- Make a circle with your name in the center. Coming out of the circle, write I am statements to increase your self-worth.
Discovery Values- https://psychcentral.com/blog/8-creative-activities-to-discover-your-values/
Community Map- Create a map with the various communities you are involved in. School, home, friends, extended family, doctor or nurses, church, youth programs, sports programs, etc.
Learning Style- Take a quiz on your specific learning style. https://www.how-to-study.com/learning-style-assessment/
Journaling- Write about how you define success. If you could be a successful person, what would that look like for you?
Charades- Play a game of charades by acting out different emotions and allowing another person to guess. Then switch places.
Random Act of Kindness- Do something kind for someone else or think of a time someone did something kind to you.
Growth Mindset- Talk with someone about a time that you worked through a hard challenge and overcame it. If you can’t think of something, ask someone close to you if they can remember when you did something like that.
Quotes- Find a quote about overcoming mistakes that is helpful to you and post it in a place you will see it often.
Power of yet- When you overhear yourself or someone else say negative things about not being able to do something, help them by adding “yet”. Embrace the idea that you can accomplish anything within time.
Something New- Try something new and take a risk. Think of something that puts you out of your comfort zone and start doing it.
Positivity- Think about a negative thought you’ve had recently and reword it in a positive way.

Additional Resources

https://www.amazon.com/Activities-That-Build-Communication-Self-Discovery-ebook/dp/B001MJ0E68

https://learningworksforkids.com/skills/self-awareness/

https://nickwignall.com/self-awareness/

Blog Post: 2/14/22