The Dark Side of Self Awareness

We all have faults. Overcoming these is gratifying and satisfying. 

The flip side to the coin of self awareness is that none of us is perfect, or even close to being perfect. 

This means that practicing self awareness will reveal to us the numerous blemishes, inconsistencies, incongruities, and harmful tendencies that are an inherent part of the composition of our sentient beings.

Unfortunately, as M. Basil Pennington, the Trappist monk and priest who wrote over 60 books in the latter half of the 20th Century, penned, "In seeing ourselves as we truly are, not all that we see is beautiful and attractive. This is undoubtedly part of the reason we flee silence. We do not want to be confronted with our hypocrisy, our phoniness. We see how false and fragile is the false self we project. We have to go through this painful experience to come to our true self."

Remember, when you see the dark side of yourself, it is like looking at the dark side of The Force as depicted in the Star Wars series. Being aware of your dark side ── your human weaknesses and all other negative aspects of your character ── is the preliminary step in being able to control and overcome these.

Of course, overcoming any personal weakness is a particularly gratifying and satisfying feeling; one of the greatest sources of self esteem you will encounter. Aristotle obviously got it right when he wrote: "I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who conquers his enemies; for the hardest victory is over self."

Those who do not win the battle with themselves become lost souls, empty of the self knowledge and understanding, and thus the passions, that make life worth living.

Additionally, being aware of your faults, flaws and weaknesses is also the first step in changing or modifying these. It's your choice ── you can either control these, or be controlled by them.

Likewise, you can continue to exhibit your faults and flaws, and suffer the consequences, or you can take action to change.

As Jim Rohn said, "Unless you change how you are, you will always have what you've got."

Rohn also gave this good advice: "You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself. That is something you have charge of."

This article is excerpted from the Amazon top-selling book Project You: Living A Determined Life, available in paperback and Kindle formats. 

Your Attitude Determines Your Altitude

Your Attitude Determines How Well You Succeed 

Some final thoughts as we conclude this series of blog posts on attitude. 

Albert Einstein said, "Out of clutter, find Simplicity. From discord, find Harmony. In the middle of difficulty lies Opportunity." 

You do not need to let events, heartaches, disappointments, and worries control your life. 

John Maxwell uses a sailing analogy to demonstrate this: "The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change. The leader adjusts the sails."

No matter which way the wind is blowing, you can always sail in your desired direction. As Maxwell adds, "Our attitude at the beginning of a task will affect its outcome more than anything else."

Highly successful college football coach Lou Holtz puts it another way, "Ability is what you are capable of doing. Motivation determines what you can do. Attitude determines how well you do it."

You have probably come across the phrase "your attitude determines your altitude." Although the origins of the phrase are in dispute, there is no arguing the merits of the quotation and the thinking behind it.

This is not to suggest that simply having some wide-eyed, highly optimistic attitude will get you what you desire, or is the only tool you need on the path to success. Joe Paterno, the winningest coach in college football, probably said it best: "The will to win is important, but the will to prepare is vital."

There are two key aspects to a winning attitude: 1) not being afraid to fail, and 2) thinking positively. 

Michael Jordan, the greatest basketball player of all time, has spoken about both of these aspects:

I never look at the consequences of missing a big shot. When you think about the consequences, you always think of a negative result.

The bottom line is, while you may not be able to change the world, or the events in the world directly or indirectly impacting upon you, you can always change yourself, and your likelihood of success, by adjusting your attitude and your thinking. 

This article is partially excerpted from the best-selling book Project You: Living A Determined Life, available at Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats.