How to Raise Your Self Awareness

Step-by-Step Guide

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   Step 1: Ask yourself why you are doing or thinking something.

   Here are some questions to inspire you:
   Why do you like the entertainment you chose? Why do you chose to love one person and not another? Why do you avoid doing certain things? What are your values? What do you want? If that's too hard, start with this:
   What do you not want? For example, what would you never want to happen again? How do you feel about lying? Do you have clear character and morals? Are you happy, under stress, or tired, and how does that come across to others? How do others perceive you? (See below.)
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   Step 2: Examine your attitudes.

   Attitudes are based on expectations.
   
   Our expectations are often unrealistic and exaggerated by fear or hope.
   
   Positive attitudes are more helpful than negative because hope tends to give people the strength to deal with any problems that come up.
   
   For example, racism is a negative expectation about other people that often is totally unhelpful in judging how a person is likely to behave.
   
   You might have absorbed this attitude from others.
   
   Another example is negative attitudes about your own potential.
   
   If you limit yourself and say "I can't do that"
   
   you certainly never will.
   
   Everyone is capable of a lot more than they realize.
   
   Sometimes you allow others, like your family and friends, to create a limiting self concept of you in exchange for love and a feeling of security.
   
   People will still love you if you exceed who you used to be and grow.
   
   They may be surprised but they will adjust. , This will help you to realize when some events or attitudes repeatedly lead to others.
   
   Review your log at decided intervals, such as on new year or on your birthday. , It would be stupid to keep butting your head against a wall to knock it down.
   
   But we often do just that in life.
   
   A key is to notice when doing something makes you feel bad instead of how you want to feel. , Ask yourself some basic questions of identity and character, attitudes and desires.
   
   For example:
   Do I carry myself tall or do I slink? Or simply, How do I carry myself? How do I walk? Do I make eye contact with people easily? Do I have a firm handshake? Do I smile a lot or frown? , Remember that witnessing yourself recorded is not for self-criticism but for awareness.
   
   View yourself with a compassionate and an unbiased eye. , Once you have some feedback and a basic awareness about yourself and people's perceptions of you, you can go about addressing them.
   
   You have probably heard of the principle of smiling when you talk on the phone because it carries through the conversation in your voice. , The more you think about the behavior you want to change, the more you will be prompted to apply and practice the new behavior.
   
   What you may find is that focusing on one aspect will usually tie the rest to it, and when you remember to do the one, they will all be involved.
   
   This is the cascading effect, and it is very powerful.
   
   You can change once you identify the behavior you want to change. , This requires developing an attitude of mindfulness, to be present and not on autopilot.
   
   Learn to respond and not to react to other people by practicing mindfulness.
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   Step 3: Keep some kind of log or journal.

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   Step 4: Acknowledge when an action is not bringing the desired result.

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   Step 5: Ask your friends and family how they perceive you.

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   Step 6: Have a friend interview you on video tape.

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   Step 7: Analyze the feedback.

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   Step 8: Take mental notes and snapshots through the day to gauge your progress.

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   Step 9: Be aware of the world beyond you.

Detailed Guide

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