Are you relying on self-assured or self-aware?

Are you relying on being self-assured or self-aware?

There is a big difference between self-assured and self-aware. Many find themselves self-assured and highly confident, but they may still find failure when chasing after their goals. Why? Because they lack the necessary self-awareness to complement that confidence. Self-awareness is key to any successful outcome.?

Self-awareness is typically defined as follows: your capacity to accurately understand your strengths, shortcomings, motivations, opinions, preferences, and character in a manner that navigates your conduct, professionally & personally speaking. From Executive Leadership to entry-level professions, we can all benefit from regularly assessing our self-awareness.??

Where to begin with assessing self-awareness:

Start with a confidence boost

Strengths often seem harder to recognize in ourselves. The best way to ensure you've uncovered them is to make a list. Then take that list to a trusted friend, coworker, or mentor and have them include their input on your strengths. Most likely, these individuals will help you realize your missing strengths.?

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Where to improve

Shortcomings come much more effortless. We can all quickly name five things we fall short in. But are these all indicative of the industry or environment you want to pursue? For example, if you struggle in sales and networking but are motivated to pursue website development, then maybe struggling in sales and networking doesn't fall into the shortcomings you need to prioritize. Start by defining shortcomings based on your motivation professionally and personally; the others are still important but will sink lower on your "things to work on list."

Defining YOU

Lastly, tell yourself who you are. What are your opinions, preferences, and character traits? An excellent way to begin is by writing a personal mission statement.?Check out this step-by-step on how to write a personal mission statement.?This self-awareness project will help you focus on all the items you hold to be true and are non-negotiables in any area of life. Remember this mission statement is allowed to evolve with you throughout your life.?

Once you understand these items, you will be equipped with the tools needed for self-awareness management. And, to manage simply requires a regular check-in with each topic. For example, have you added any new strengths or shortcomings, or does your mission statement need to be rewritten to incorporate a new motivation or personal priority? Staying consistent with check-ins is vital to your success with your goals and others around you.?