Reflect On This!

My world changed significantly when I made the courageous decision to be more aware of myself and how I show up in the world. You may wonder why I describe awareness as “courageous” and I’m happy to explain.

Choosing to be more aware of how I think, how I act, the words out of my mouth, how I respond/react, what I am feeling, my non-verbal communications, my work ethic, what kind of friend I am and so much more, requires me to open up, take total responsibility and decide how I am going to respond to what I discover.

Choosing to SEE, take responsibility and ACT on my findings is courageous!
Knowing that what I find out may require me to delve a little deeper into my emotions, experiences and beliefs, can be intimidating. Even though I know it’s going to be challenging and sometimes frightening, I make the decision to forge ahead because I choose to be the best ME I can be, and this is why it’s courageous! Putting myself out there, facing my past and the stories I have believed, so that I can more fully share who I am at my purest level, is noble, faithful and brave!

Self-reflection can be a very simple process when focusing on dealing with my own "shitola", learning what I need to learn and moving forward as a little better version of myself.

Generally speaking, I can self-reflect throughout the day or do it at the end of the day, but for me, it works best when I have developed the daily habit of checking in with myself.

Here are a few questions I might ask myself at the end of the day –

1. Overall, how was my day?
2. Did I experience any feelings (strong emotions) I need to take a closer look at?
3. Did I respond to others appropriately today? If not, why not?
4. Did anything happen today that brought up sadness, anger, jealousy, or any other “negative” thoughts or emotions? What might have been behind it?
5. What did I say, do, feel today that exemplifies growth on my part? What can I do to encourage myself to continue on this path?
6. What, if anything, would I change?

WILDD Hearts, self-reflection brings upon self-awareness. It’s often small adjustments like when I became aware, as a very young adult, that I was chewing with my mouth open. Oops, I made some changes rather quickly.

But sometimes, it's something big, like when I realized that I was a little too self-absorbed and seemed to bring EVERY conversation to ME, no matter what. Making that realization required me to put more focus on my discussions, my thoughts and on my relationships. Who wants to be around someone who is that self-centered all the time?

Over the years, I have learned so much, am deeply connected with my self and who I am, what I believe, and why. I have gained understanding, empathy, and desire to learn more and connect more deeply with others. Self-reflection is an amazing tool that remains efficient, even after all these years.

If this is a topic you are interested in or would like to know more about, please check out the 10 Questions for Getting To Know Yourself Better.

Knowing ourselves best, learning to appreciate who we really are, and treating ourselves with dignity and respect is exactly what we need to heal and live fully.

Love Is ALL There Is,

Diana and Sylviana