Is self-awareness a priority in your life?

It is one of my top priorities. I also see it as a privilege because I do not need to worry about having my most basic needs met. This isn’t to say that having one’s basic needs met necessitates the ability to be self-aware, but I would say it impacts the priority one gives to being such.

Probably one of the top three important things to me: the other two being cultivating my children and maintaining a loving relationship with my partner.

It’s on the very top of my list. Self awarness tells you why you feel what you feel and why you behave as you behave. That understanding gives you the opportunity and freedom to change those things you’d like to change about yourself and create the life you want. Without fully knowing who you are, self acceptance and change become impossible.

“Knowing others is wisdom, knowing yourself is Enlightenment.”
– Tao Tzu

It’s very important. I found that in my own life I had more time to devote to self-discovery at the beginning and more towards the end, when my priorities weren’t quite so tied up in child care and sustenance.

That’s nice, too, because this way, in the beginning, we can get ourselves on track for the important roles we will play, then when we have accomplished some of those roles and responsibilities, we can take the time to be introspective and to figure out how it all worked. Then we can re-align our values and goals based upon what experience has taught us.

yes

I agree, I took several years off to navigate some profound and life changing awakenings.

I was in a financial space do so and literally sequesterd myself in my solitude for extended periods of ‘time.’

Whether or not my lifestyle was compatable wouldn’t have made a difference though, when it’s time to wake up nothing can stop that evolutionary pull. lol

I believe that self awareness, psychological & ‘spiritual’ growth is THE reason we are here to begin with.

My peace, my space and my growth are the number one priorities in my life.

I’m tired of being self-aware. I’m much more interested in being aware of my girlfriend.

It’s a work in progress for me and very important quest. Too many questions I have about my life but I did achieve a milestone last Nov and realized the value in living each day like there is no tomorrow and life indeed is too short.

This really intrigues me. Every moment we live in is a result of who we are. So when you look around in every sense what you are seeing is yourself. If you look down and see a fat guy, then its because you ate plenty donuts. If you look up and see the rock of gibraltar from the starboard side of your yacht, it is because of the decisions you’ve made. You’re not just seeing the rock of gibraltar, you’re seeing yourself out there. Wherever you are, you would not be there unless you were you.

So, when I talk to people I am amazed, because they have made decisions, that have put them in my life where I have made decisions to be. My mailman is MY mailman because he decided to stay in this town, and be a mailman. Now he is MY mailman, because I decided to stay in this town and reside where he’d deliver the mail. So the reality I see around me is the reality I have chosen to be a party to. The other players are here too and they are sharing in my little reality.

Flutherites, too.

Over and over I choose to be

Removed by Fluther moderators

For me i think that it is a very important thing to become self aware. i feel that once I’ve become self aware then i can proceed to become more aware of other people. I’ve spend roughly 11 years on this quest, and it has changed my life. I’m able to interact with people on a whole other level even knowing myself to the extent that i do now. Being self aware, being confident in your abilities, and knowing your limit, have no greater value in life.

life is an interesting thing, we look into ourselves so very little and when we do sometimes it surprises even us.

It’s extremely important to me, though I didn’t set out to attain it. Once I had a hold on it, I became very determined to never let it go. Knowing myself allowed me to make peace with myself, which is perhaps the most important thing I’ve ever done for myself.

@Battousai87 “Being self aware, being confident in your abilities, and knowing your limit, have no greater value in life.”
I couldn’t agree more! GA!

Flutherites seem to be overly concerned about self awareness. I’ve seen this question a bunch of times.

The more self-aware I become, the less I like myself. Since there’s nothing I can do to change it, better to stop exploring.

@perspicacious

I would say that a drive towards self awareness is part of an overall pull towards ones psychic and spiritual development.

It is part of the whole maturation process of a human in evolutionary sync, it’s a cause for celebration as this is exactly what it’s going to take to make the world a better place, if not help save it entirely.

There are no accidents and I see any movement towards self and spiritual growth as a catalyst for the growth of the species in general.

I don’t think it is possible to be overly concerned with self awareness, watching our thoughts, catching our moments of unconsciousness, unraveling our programming, doing this type of work, and because we are all students and teachers, and because so many are coming into their own in this area and asking questions should be viewed as an evolutionary leap for all of humanity.

It is exactly this sort of work that will lend a hand in the fate or survival of life as we know it, and certainly enhance the life of the individual and those in contact with such.

It is questions such as this that separate the women from the girls and the men from the boys.

Better ‘too many’ questions on personal growth than too many on ’ how do I pick up boys at the mall’...see the difference in the developmental drive here? lolol

@stranger_in_a_strange_land One of the few things a person can truly change in this life is himself. It’s never to late. Don’t give up and hide from yourself, that is the definition of a wasted life.

There is a very good chance all you have to change is your perception of yourself.

@Silhouette My brain just isn’t wired the same way as normal people. I just have to accept the limitations this places on me, that I’ll never be able to interact socially as others do. Social communication cues that are intuitive to a ten year old are totally opaque to me, despite over half a century of trying to interpret them.

I’ve been reasonably successful in areas not requiring social aptitude, but humans are supposed to be social beings; by that standard of measurement my life has been a waste. The more I dwell on self-awareness, the more depressing it gets.

You’re correct about the perception issue. I only have to convince myself that being asocial is acceptable, something that is out of phase with majority opinion. To stop criticizing myself for things I cannot change and be satisfied with progress in areas where I have aptitude and be of benefit to others.

Thanks for the mind-tweak.

@stranger_in_a_strange_land
” I only have to convince myself that being asocial is acceptable” There it is there! :o)

@Silhouette Thanks for the insight. Now I only have to figure out how to do it. :^)

@stranger_in_a_strange_land

It’s all about acceptance, of self and others, as they are.

I just went round and round with a friend yesterday that is very relationship needy and just can’t fathom that one could actually make a conscious choice to not be in relationship. lol

Knowing yourself does not preclude stretching in ways that might be a bit uncomfortable, but…rule # 1 acceptance of who and what you are is the first step of the 1000 mile journey!

Keep on keepin’ on but honor the parts of yourself that make you who you are and never let others define how you ‘should’ be.

Thanks @Coloma . Great Answer. My late wife was a psychologist; we worked on determining what limits Aspergers Syndrome places on me. It comes down to a point of diminishing returns, taking years of work to make tiny progress. Without Megs 24/7 intensive coaching, I’ve likely made all the progress I’m going to. I’ve actually slipped backwards somewhat since her death. I think my best course is accept what I am in the social area and concentrate on other things to improve myself in.

I’ve really enjoyed reading everyone’s responses :) Self-awareness is my greatest priority, as I feel full acceptance of myself means I can be the change I want to see in the world – another way of saying what @Coloma said. This isn’t a topic that can be over-talked/posted about in my opinion.