Self-awareness: the meaning according to psychology and how to increase it
Self-awareness: We often hear this word used, but what is its true meaning according to psychology? Let's try to understand together what emotional self-awareness really is and how to increase it to live more peacefully with ourselves and with others, also thanks to the theories of psychologists such as Goleman, who has spoken extensively about it.
Self-awareness, in purely scientific terms, indicates the ability to recognize one's own existence and that of others. From a psychological point of view, however, it refers to the ability to understand oneself and to be able to monitor one's feelings even when there we find ourselves in a real emotional whirlwind, without losing control.
Being able to always have self-awareness is not easy: in fact, it is a matter of exercising a sort of "vision from above" on ourselves that allows us to observe ourselves from the outside, objectively, even when it would be difficult. Only in this way could we learn to manage every situation in the best possible way.
Being self-aware, for example, means realizing that we are about to be taken by anger: when we become aware of our emotions, we are also able to control them, thus avoiding losing our minds and saying things we would not want to say. Self-awareness means learning to know yourself in depth and therefore to manage your emotions in order to improve yourself and consequently attract better people. If, on the other hand, you happen to always attract the wrong ones, this video might help you understand why:
What is the meaning of "self-awareness according to psychology?
According to psychology, self-awareness therefore serves to recognize one's feelings and emotions as they arise, allowing us to monitor them and react in the best possible way.
The American psychologist John D. Mayer has identified three different types of self-awareness, which distinguish three different types of people in which it will be easy for us to recognize ourselves. The first type is that of the so-called "self-aware", who has reached and acquired the quality of self-awareness to the highest degree. The self-aware person is able to perceive and process their emotions, managing them in the best possible way and gaining security and self-confidence, with a consequent better psychological health.
The second type, on the other hand, is that of the "overwhelmed", who can hardly cope with difficult situations from an emotional point of view because he is a slave to his own emotions. Where does this slavery come from? Precisely from the lack of self-awareness: failing to manage his feelings, he lets himself be overwhelmed.
Finally, the third type, that of the "resigned": it is about those who actually have awareness of their emotions, but do nothing to manage them effectively, abandoning themselves to them with resignation, in fact, and condemning themselves to a certain unhappiness.
Self-awareness and emotional intelligence according to Goleman
Psychologist David Goleman spoke extensively of self-awareness with regard to emotional intelligence, of which it would be at the base. Goleman writes that emotional intelligence is given by the set of five different characteristics: self-awareness, self-management, "empathy, motivation and social skills.
Self-awareness, or self-awareness, is described by Goleman as knowing and expressing one's feelings with openness and assertiveness. Being self-aware means knowing one's weaknesses and strengths, understanding what can be improved about oneself. and what instead must always be accepted in a constructive and critical way: Those who possess self-awareness acquire self-confidence and therefore have a greater chance of finding their own personal fulfillment than those who do not possess it or cultivate it.
Self-management derives directly from self-awareness: it has to do with self-control, the ability to manage one's emotions without becoming slaves to them. After understanding them, you also learn to direct them towards constructive ends.
Empathy is the next step: first you learn to understand yourself and then you can also understand others and their emotions, putting yourself in their shoes and learning to change perspective. Motivation is what guides you with commitment and positive charge to achieve your goals, while social skills are what can help you manage relationships with others: if you increase your self-awareness, you will also learn to behave and act in the best way in a social environment.
How to improve your self-awareness
After understanding the meaning according to the psychology of the term "self-awareness", let's try to understand together how to increase our own, developing as much as possible this fundamental quality for our personal fulfillment.
The first step to become more self-aware is to train yourself to observe our own thoughts, considering them for what they are: just thoughts. We are not our thoughts: if we learn to observe them with detachment, we will be able to free ourselves from pre-established patterns that risk leading us astray or providing us with alibis for our behavior.
There are thoughts that can affect our emotions in a negative way and that, however, arise automatically. How many times does it happen, for example, to say to ourselves "I don't know how to do anything!", Or "It's too difficult for me!"? To develop self-awareness, we need to pay attention to our thoughts and capture them as they come to mind. So ask yourself "why am I thinking this"? Developing an internal dialogue between you and yourself can help you eliminate all these automatic thoughts that are disempowering you, instead taking note of what your true emotions are.
Self-awareness breaks all our mental patterns: learn to listen to your true voice by getting rid of all those rules or judgments that come from outside. Seek your truth, because only you know it! You just have to stretch your inner ear and learn to listen and understand yourself, as if you had a little girl to take care of inside of you. By improving your self-awareness you will become a better listener not only for yourself but for others as well. Of course, it is not an easy path, but it is worth following!
