Are You Being Self-Aware?

Let me let you in on a little secret. A secret that will open your eyes and create that initial step to change, and help you to continue on that change. It is very powerful, and many psychologists and neurologists agree that this one little thing can change the structures of your brain and how you view the world around you. So what is this “little” thing? It is called self-awareness.

Most people live their day-to-day life on auto-pilot. Their days are filled with behaviors and habits that they’ve created over many years and sometimes over a lifetime. Sometimes they want to change those behaviors and habits, but don’t know how. This is where self-awareness comes in. It is the very first step to change. Perhaps you’ve heard of it and perhaps you’ve even done it. But if you have not, then I highly recommend you try it. Most people that start practicing self-awareness feel like their eyes opened for the very first time.

So how do you practice self-awareness? A good start is what I call Notice and Naming. For example, notice how you feel and then name what you feel. That’s it, very basic and simple. But it will start opening up your eyes to everything around you. You can do it for just about anything. If you are aware that you are hungry, bloated, or craving something and you name what it is, what are you going to do about it? What is causing the hunger, bloating, or craving? You can also notice and name when you are mad, stressed, etc. and then figure out what is causing that anger or stress. How can you change it? You can’t change it if you didn’t notice it in the first place, right?

Another trick to help you get better at self-awareness is meditation. You can download a free app on your phone like Headspace and practice meditation and self-awareness every morning. Just learn to be present and sit with your thoughts. What are you feeling in your body, what are you thinking? You can even focus all of your attention on your breath (this is for all you yogis out there!). And as your day goes on, notice and name things around you, especially how you are feeling and what is causing that feeling. It can be anything, just play with it!