If you want to go through life in the best possible way, it’s important to truly know yourself. We might say that we have a good idea as to who we are, but do we really? What part of our being is our true self and what part is who we want others to think we are?
Do you ever feel as if you’re playing a part and not being yourself? If you said yes, you’re not alone. Many people spend their days doing what others want to please them. During that time, you lie to yourself thinking that this is what you want to do and the person you portray to others is who you are. But, that’s often not the case.
You may be wondering how to find out more about yourself. But you don’t want to keep acting a certain way and not being who you are and should be. When you figure out who you are, your entire life will change. Remember: only you can determine what your values are!
What is Self Identity?
Self-identity is where you recognize your qualities and potential as an individual. It’s who you are and what you have to offer to other people. When you know exactly who you are, you’ll be more confident and sure of yourself when you’re alone as much as when you’re surrounded by friends, family members, and even strangers.
When you have self-understanding, you can forge a successful path to move your life forward. You have a direction and know that you can succeed in whatever you may do daily.
Benefits of Uncovering the True You
There are many benefits to learning who you are and embracing this path to self-discovery. Once you uncover who you are, you will enjoy the following benefits:
- Achieve happiness by expressing who you are and what you want out of life
- Experience less inner conflict when what you want and who you are line up
- Make better decisions and get to know what you want to do
- Show self-control by preventing bad habits shown through past occurrences
- Better understand others once you know yourself better
- Spend time on your well being
- Feel more alive with your self-awareness
- Practice self-care by knowing who you are
- Improve your mental health
- Improve your daily life
There are so many wonderful benefits of finding out who you are. So, how do you discover yourself through all of this?
How Do You Discover Your Self Identity?
To realize your self-identity, you need to embark on a self-discovery process. To find your true self, you have to be your own inner critic to pursue self-knowledge.
If you’re ready to discover who you truly are, here are some ways to do so:
Embrace Peace and Quiet
As you dive into discovering your true identity, do so with peace and quiet by your side. When you are on the path to self-discovery, do so on your own. Don’t be afraid to sit quietly and think about who you are. You may be surprised how easy this is to do!
Know You May Not Be Who You Thought You Were
You might not even know you need to identify who you truly are. All this time, you may have thought you were a specific type of person with set characteristics. However, when you take the time to unearth your true identity, you may be someone different than who you thought you were.
Perhaps you’ve been trying to fill certain roles through the years, thinking that was your calling. However, you may be completely different! Your goals in life may be completely different as you’re another person with various skills, talents, and positive attributes.
Uncover Your Skills
As you start to uncover who you truly are, you can begin the journey to discovering your skills. There are no right or wrong answers as to your skills as a human being. Finding out your gifts and talents is a good starting point. When you uncover your skills, you can put the pieces of the puzzle together and see who you are.
Maybe you’ve been pursuing a career for years that hasn’t met your skillset. Once you uncover your true skills, you may find it’s time for a change in your position.
You might have what you thought was a dream job. But, when you start identifying who you really are, you may discover the role you have doesn’t align with your values. When you determine what your skills, core values, and feelings are, you can find out if you’re doing what you should be doing at this point in your life.
Discover Your Passions
In addition to uncovering your skills, you want to discover your passions at work, at home, and in everyday life. Skills relate more to job roles while passions are more in keeping with hobbies and preferred pastimes. Following the passion of any kind is a good thing, and you need to pay attention when it comes because it shows an area of life that you need to pay more attention to. Once you learn exactly what makes you tick, you’ll be unstoppable.
When you focus on your passions, you’ll start understanding yourself better. When you’re passionate about something, you’ll put more effort into everything you do and have fun in the process. And with the best effort, the sky’s the limit for what you can achieve.
Look Closely At Your Relationships
Who you think you are may have a lot to do with close relationships. This includes your relationship with your friends, family, or co-workers. If you aren’t who you thought you were, the people you hang out with may not be the right friends for you. You may have nothing in common when you discover who you really are.
It can be helpful if you understand the other people around you. If you don’t know the people around you, then you can’t really know yourself. Take the time to assess each relationship and see what you can learn from this discovery.
Ask Others What They Think
As you travel the path to self-discovery, ask others what they think of you and what type of person you are. Are you quiet and reflective? Are you loud and outgoing? What is the public’s perception of you as an individual? Talking through it with someone close to you or asking for positive feedback can help you put the pieces together.
Questions to Ask to Understand Your Sense of Self
You should also ask yourself some questions to find out who you are and uncover the real you. Once you understand yourself, you can take steps to pursue new avenues in your career, personal life, and relationships.
Here are some questions to ask yourself to find out who you are:
What Do I Like to Do?
The first question relates to your likes and dislikes. Think about what you like to do in your free time and answer the question of whether you’re doing it or not.
If you like to do certain things, or dislike other things, see if you’re pursuing your interests. If not, you may want to make some changes in this area.
Am I Good at What I’m Doing Now in My Career?
Another question to ask yourself deals with your career. You should ask yourself if you like what you’re doing for work. You can also ask if you’re in a positive work environment.
If you find that work daily is either boring or not something you’re good at, maybe you’re in the wrong job role. Think of your skills and note whether or not your career and skills align.
Are My Friends and Personal Relationships Right for Me?
It’s important on this journey that you receive support; people around you like a friend or family member are important. If you’re a different person, maybe the people around you aren’t right for you.
This isn’t to say you should break off relationships. It’s just another way to look at yourself and find out who you are, especially if you uncover a negative person is affecting you. Negativity can become an overburden you don’t need in your life.
Is There Anything I Want to Change About Myself?
You should also ask yourself whether there’s anything you would change about your personality or traits. When you evaluate yourself, pay attention to the things that make you feel uncomfortable for more insight. Pay attention to your inner voice. If you feel you would change certain things about yourself, maybe that’s because you are different than how you feel you might be.
In this process, you may have to tackle your biggest fears. But remember that people are constantly changing! It’s important to reflect on our desires, beliefs, and values every now and then.
You can also look to who the most important person in your life is for inspiration. What about them inspires you? Who are your greatest role models and why?
As you ask yourself these questions you’re taking the necessary steps to uncover who you are. Find your true self as you complete short-term goals and long-term goals.
How Do You Find Yourself Again?
The hardest part is finding the courage to uncover the true you. You’re taking the right steps to ask yourself who you are and once you find your answers you can work at being who you’re supposed to be.
- Look at the answers to the questions above and see what you should change
- Take it a step at a time and work on uncovering the real you
- Don’t turn your back on your friends simply because you might be a different person than you thought
- Embrace your life changes
- Reflect on your biggest failure and success
How to Find Out More About Yourself and Embrace That Knowledge
When you take the necessary steps to uncover the true you, make sure you embrace that knowledge. Once you find out more about yourself, you can get to work putting the new you out there for all to see and appreciate.
