The Importance Of Knowing Yourself
Alexandre Magno said that – Knowing yourself is the most difficult task because it directly incites our rationality, but it also puts our fears and passions to the test. If we get to know ourselves in depth, we will know how to understand others and the reality that surrounds them.
This Macedonian king was absolutely right because through self-knowledge we learn to develop effectively in life and to face our daily lives in a more peaceful way. Really knowing who we are, what we feel or what goals we want to achieve are capabilities that are associated with interpersonal intelligence.
Having interpersonal intelligence means understanding who we are, knowing how to identify our emotions and acting accordingly. Skills that allow us to regulate our behavior, solve problems effectively, and make decisions. With self-knowledge, we learn to identify our capabilities as well as our limitations. This helps us to plan goals more realistically, avoiding future frustrations. People with interpersonal intelligence know how to master their emotions and adapt them to circumstances.
Is it possible to improve interpersonal intelligence? If you are interested in growing inside, getting to know yourself, you can perform a series of exercises that will help you to enhance this intelligence.
– Control your emotions : this is a skill you need to learn to work with. Controlling does not mean not feeling, but knowing how to act on that emotion or feeling. Learn to identify negative emotions to transform them into positive ones. For example, if you feel angry, analyze why you are angry and try to redirect it. A very effective tip is to laugh at some trivia, this feature will help you turn negative emotions into positive ones.
– Travel to its interior. Erich Fromm said that “self-knowledge begins with self-acceptance. Accept yourself and you will know yourself better” . Make a list of your strengths and another of your faults. Ask someone close to you to do the same to find out what image people have of you. Compare both lists and try to improve what you don’t like.
– Put it into practice. Notice how your emotions influence your mood and look for ways to turn negatives into positives. Write down the behaviors that made you feel bad on a sheet of paper and think about how you could solve them. For example: when you feel sad, what could you do to change that feeling? Talk to a friend? Put it into practice.
– Accept yourself as you are: Jean-Jaques Rousseau used to say that “nobody can be happy if they don’t appreciate themselves” . Analyze what its capabilities and limitations are. Set short and medium-term goals based on them. This will boost your self-esteem and teach you to accept yourself as you are. A great exercise to get to know yourself.
– Understand yourself : take a moment to take note of how you feel throughout the day. When you wake up, at mid-morning, mid-day, in the afternoon and before going to bed. Try to investigate what is the cause of these emotions.
Follow these tips and you will see how, by getting to know yourself, your internal relationships and relationships with others will improve. Because as Jorge Bucay says “only by knowing who we are can we start to be better for ourselves and for others”.
