If your life depended on the accuracy and authenticity with which you described who you are in all aspects of your life, ...if it depended on your self-knowledge, would you be saved?
It seems to us that we walk through life very sure of knowing who we are, but when we have to answer in detail the question... Who am I? Self-awareness is at the heart of emotional intelligence and is the ability to recognize our emotions, thoughts, personal values and their effects on the way we live.
Knowing ourselves is key to having a full, successful and happy life. What do I perceive with my senses? What do I feel? What do I think? What do I want? and What actions will I take? The ability to answer these questions regardless of the environment or situation we are in requires a good level of self-knowledge.
These are six strategies. Increase your emotional vocabulary. It all starts by recognizing and naming what we feel, by knowing the emotions.
Let's do the following exercise… (included in our program) For two minutes, write down all the emotions you know in the notes on your phone or on a piece of paper. Don't get ahead of yourself in reading and really give yourself the opportunity to do it.
How many emotions did you manage to write?
We generally stick to the six basic emotions: happiness, surprise, anger, fear, sadness and disgust. But beneath each of these are more layers of possibilities.
There are different tastes of sadness, for example, guilt taste, lonely taste, empty taste, etc.
And it is very important to make this distinction because the measures we have to take to remedy each emotion are different. Most people are emotionally illiterate. If we do not know emotions, if we do not know what name to give to what we feel, then we cannot design a tailored solution either. It is essential to increase our emotional vocabulary and actively use it with our children.
Reconnect with your body. When we experience an emotion, an electrical signal passes through our brain and is translated into a physical sensation. The physical responses can be varied: contracted stomach muscles, accelerated heart rate, dry mouth, sweaty hands, cold, trembling legs, lump in the throat, desire to jump. Our mind and body are so connected that we can learn to relate physical sensations with emotions. Ask yourself… Where do I feel fear? Where in my body do I feel shame? Where do I feel happiness? When I keep what I really want to say, for example, I literally feel a lemon stuck in my throat and it is difficult for me to swallow; When I'm afraid, I get very cold; When I feel anguish, it seems like I have an elephant sitting on my chest.
Many emotions are unconscious. First we feel them physically and then they pass through to consciousness. Being in sync with our body to identify our emotions is almost like magic. Take pauses to identify what you feel and where you feel it, practice full attention or mindfulness.
Find the link between emotions and actions. Emotions are impulses to action. If we pay attention we are able to connect what we think, with what we feel and what we do. What do you do when you feel angry? Some people shout, others remain silent. Let's try to make connections like: angry-yelling, boredom-biting nails, anxious-drinking two glasses of wine, depressed-spooning icecream, vulnerable-avoiding the world. It is important to link the emotion we feel with the action we usually take so that the next time the stimulus is presented, we can change our response.
Embrace this transformative journey and discover the power of self-awareness with Youlosophy's Self-Discovery Journal, your companion in fostering a profound connection with oneself.