Who am I?

Some of us have mastered the art of self-knowledge, this is when you can confidently share with others the kind of person you are. When you become fully acquainted with yourself you will be aware of your full potential, your areas for improvement, your strengths and in turn you will feel more in control and able to defend yourself against unfair criticisms.

Usually when someone ask us to describe ourselves we tend to talk about our “roles” we have in our personal or professional life, for example a lawyer, dance teacher, nurse, mother or father.

You might feel anxious of what you might find out about yourself, some things might surprise you and some might not. To get started, first ask yourself “what kind of person am I?”

To find out what kind of person you are look at how you commonly behave, feel and think when you are playing certain roles in your day-to-day life. I have given an example of two roles below, one personal and one professional.

1)      Role as a Mother

Behaviour – Looking after others, encouraging others, teaching, listening, learning, cooking, homemaker

Feeling – Warm, caring, loving, protective, frustrated, angry, happy, excited and satisfied

Thoughts – Wondering how other mothers do this, judging rights from wrong, planning for the future, remember those special moments from the past.

2)      Role as a Teacher

Behaviour – Listening, encouraging, teaching, leading others, confronting, giving advice.

Feeling – Caring, warm, excited, interested, relieved, frustrated, satisfied happy

Thoughts – Wondering if I am being effective, looking for different possibilities, planning

From the examples above you there are certain trends that appear in both roles such as caring, comparing self to others and listening.

Why don’t you have a go, list two or three roles which you are currently playing in your life and give honest examples of your common behaviours, thoughts and feelings, then look for common themes to get more acquainted with the type of person you are.