Mindful Monday Word-Self-Awareness
Self-awareness is quite the eye opener when you stop to think about it. Does anyone really know who they are? If you do, I’m sure you’ve gone through a lot of growth, stepped out of your comfort zone a time or two and even reflect back often on who you are or who you want to be. It’s safe to say that we are not the same person we were yesterday. For better or worse, we learn from our mistakes, our actions, and the choices we make on a daily basis.
I think this sums it up rather nicely on what it means to be self-aware: “Self-awareness is the ability to focus on yourself and how your actions, thoughts, or emotions do or don't align with your internal standards. If you're highly self-aware, you can objectively evaluate yourself, manage your emotions, align your behavior with your values, and understand correctly how others perceive you” Think about your own personality, your personal values, your habits, your emotions and the other needs that bring out our own behavior. Frankly, I think when we were younger we tried to be someone we were not. What I mean is this, think back to when you were dating. Were you honestly yourself, or were you trying to be the person you thought your date wanted you to be. We all did I think. However, now that age and wisdom have crept up on my own being, I know that there is no one person that you should be truer to than yourself. YOU are the only one who knows you inside and out, what triggers your behavior, what inspires your behavior and what aligns with your behaviors.
If we make poor choices, we know it doesn’t feel right. This is because it doesn’t align with our beliefs of who we are. At some time in our lives we were probably enticed into doing something we didn’t agree on, whether it was from peer pressure, the hopes to impress someone or just being a dare devil and wanting to try something new. Deep down, you know who you are, you know right from wrong and you want to be the best version of yourself, especially if you have a family. It’s important to remember that your family, your children and your spouse are watching who you are, and your children probably want to be like you when they grow up and your spouse is with you because they love who you are. Speaking from experience, when you pretend to be someone that you’re not, you have to many ways to disappoint not only others, but, yourself. When you are self aware of who you are, you put on the same face everyday, you have the same values everyday, you know what will inspire you, what will disappoint you and even how you will handle a situation. When you don’t have this self-awareness, life will fall apart! You won’t have a foundation to build on, a foundation to grow with and a sense of who you are. This could lead you down the wrong path for sure. With a strong foundation, you have a stronger sense of who you are and how you want to grow into a better person. After all, no one is perfect and we all have room for improvement.
How do we teach our children to be self aware of themself so that they are not pressured into being somebody they are not?
How do we teach our children to be self aware of themself so that they are not pressured into being somebody they are not?
I was able to always use the characters in the classes where I taught. Teaching children to be responsible for their actions is powerful. Not easy, not embraced, but a skill that should be taught to our children at a young age. When they understand that when they make a poor choice, there are consequences, they will want to do better the next time. This could be not doing their homework, cleaning their room, doing their chores, minding their manners, etc. When a child is aware that their actions have consequences they will want to become more aware of making better choices, and doing the right thing. This helps to build self-awareness. As an adult, we become more aware of our awareness as to just who we are, what we can accomplish, our emotions and our behaviors. As a child, we need to guide them in the right direction to find themself. Giving them opportunities to grow and to have self-awareness so that they find just who they are and can then share their greatness with others! Just how do we teach a child to become more aware of who they are?
Tips to improve self-awareness:
Set ground rules, guidelines or boundaries, whatever you choose to call this, but a child needs them in order to become grounded and form a foundation in which they will thrive on, grow with and accept who they are. Be clear in your communications of this so there are no misunderstandings. If the ‘rule’ is should you be late to an appointment, there is none. Should you fail your test, your study time will increase. If you neglect your chores, there is no allowance. Whatever fits your family best is how you should set these boundaries. This way, your child become aware of them, aware of the consequences and will learn to accept them and find a way to improve the outcome. Awareness is important.
Keep an open mind as your ideas and your child’s ideas will be different. They may not understand the ‘punishment’ if they step out of the boundaries. However, we know that they are set in place for a reason, to teach them. Can you imagine if you didn’t have boundaries set in place? Your home would be a free for all and even more chaotic. Stay focused on the outcome you are striving for. When your child is clear on these rules and guidelines, they will do their best to follow them because they are aware of them. They are then able to work on the outcome knowing that they are responsible for them.
Remember, to be self aware includes knowing our personality, our values, habits and our emotions which drive our behavior.
Years ago, I taught an after school group of young boys. To discuss our behaviors was a daily occurrence, both good and not so good happenings in the classroom or playground. By doing engaging activities and having open discussions on our behaviors brought a great awareness to the group of boys. Soon, they began to internalize and understand that they were the ones who were responsible for their actions, the choices that they made and the words that they used. Responsible Rabbit did play a part in the discussions and activities, too! Click here to print out I Am Responsible and use this with your own children or students as a visual reminder. Color and make it a journal cover or even a sticker chart. Click here to print out the Responsibility Check List. Here at Characters of Character, building a firm foundation is part of our mission. We hope some of these suggestions will support you in all you do with your children or students to guide them in the right direction.
TELL me and I forget, TEACH me and I remember, INVOLVE me and I learn. Benjamin Franklin