The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: #9 Become Self Aware
Do you know what you’re good at? Do you admit your weaknesses? Are you willing to allow others to know your weaknesses, so they can step in, playing to their strengths?
Is it possible that others see you as someone who has no idea of their shortcomings?
Are you defensive when you receive feedback at home of the office?
If you’ve had counseling, therapy, or a candid career coach or mentor, then you’re most likely self aware. You realize the importance of understanding why you feel the way you do, why you behave the way you behave, or why you manage or lead the way you do.
Elephant in the Room
Being self aware reflects that you’re willing to work through your issues that may affect your personal and work relationships. I know of leaders who lack self awareness, being bullies at home and at the office. Their families walk on eggshells around them, while their employees are so scared into submission. Is this healthy? Of course not. I don’t mean to simplify such as a complex problem in this example, I’m trying to demonstrate that our personal limitation in self awareness affects everyone in our lives. Being self aware reflects a commitment to understand and work through our issues, becoming happier people to be around.
Musselwhite perfectly sums up self awareness like this:
If you’re honest with yourself, you’ll admit that really the opposite is true. Because whether you acknowledge your weaknesses or not, everyone still sees them. So rather than conceal them, the person who tries to hide weaknesses actually highlights them, creating the perception of a lack of integrity and self-awareness.
Lacking self awareness is like being secluded in a box. If you have an anger management problem, then it’s most likely reflected in your work life (unless you’re really good at compartmentalizing). People probably hate working with you and you don’t’ even know it. If you don’t care, it reflects you disregard what others think and feel. Unless you evolve, you’re destined to live a lonely life, with people only putting up with you because they have to.
Action Items
If you haven’t worked with third parties or done your own self exploration, then you probably aren’t as self aware as you could be. Why not start today? Start asking yourself questions that will help you discover and define yourself in the following areas: Social, Emotional, Significant Relationship, Spiritual/Ethical, Financial, Career, Personal, and Personal Definitions. As you manage your career, it’s important to be conscious of what you’re good at while acknowledging what you still have yet to learn.
As you become self aware, you’ll honestly assess what knowledge, skills, and experiences you need to accomplish your career and life goals. You’ll treat others with respect and dignity. More importantly, you’ll know when you’re screwing up, so you can course correct and get back on the right track.
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The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management series outlines my rules of personal and work success. After reflecting on my personal values, I made this list, realizing values are my rules of being or life management principles. Based on your experiences, I hope this list inspires you to identify your own rules. Here are the rules to my success that may help you over the course of your journey:
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: Overview of the Pyramid and Its Levels
Level 1: Rules for Our Fundamental Nature
- #1 Find your own spirituality and practice it.
- #2 Know what you want or the Universe (or God) won’t know what to send you: If you don’t know what you want, how can you get to where you want to be?
- #3 Fate or free will? Regardless of what you believe, we all have a purpose to being here. The tricky part is discovering what it is.
- #4 Don’t wait for your future to happen to you, you have to be vigilant in making your future happen.
- #5 Understand your dark side, but don’t give into it or indulge it.
- #6 Aspire to always help and teach others.
Level 2: Rules of Continuous Learning and Modeling
- #7 Watch or read media sources when you need inspiration. Reflect on why you like a certain movie or TV show, so you understand why it moves you.
- #8 Always be learning. Continue learning through books or any source that gives you new ideas on how to approach your work or feeds your passion.
- #9 Become self aware. If you aren’t, then how will you know you’re screwing up?
- #10 Accept responsibility and make peace with your decisions and the consequences of those decisions. They have created the person you are today. The trick is, do you like what you’ve created? If not, then how can you change?
- #11 Keep a lid on chaos. Never let situations or emotions get away from you. Be the calm in the eye of the storm as strength, reflecting confidence for the most vulnerable people in your life.
Level 3: Rules for the Actual Journey
- #12 Stay still and don’t move if you feel lost, so you can find yourself or let the opportunity find you.
- #13 Always be course correcting.
- #14 Surround yourself with trusted and loyal friends. Be prepared to deal with betrayal without ambivalence. But be prepare to forgive (if the person is sincere, I mean really sincere).
- #15 Learn to channel your inner extrovert, if you’re an introvert. Learn to channel your inner introvert, if you’re an extrovert.
Level 4: Rules of Adapting to Environment and Interacting with Others
- #16 Make peace with your weaknesses. We’re not perfect. Even your strengths will turn into weaknesses. The trick is knowing when your strength has become a weakness.
- #17 Master your emotions and body language. Use them strategically in life and work.
- #18 Mentor yourself via the Space Time Continuum. What would your future self tell your present self? How can you get back on track? What have you done well? What more can you do? What would you tell yourself as a child, teen, 20 or 30 something?
Level 5: Rules of Humility
- #19 Never take your success for granted. Always prepare for the worst case scenarios. Be prepared for two steps forward and one step back.
- #20 Be humble. Treat others well, don’t be arrogant, and don’t drink your own Kool-Aid.
Level 6: Rule of Being
- #21 Be compassionate.
Similar Posts:
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: #10 Accept Responsibility for Your Decisions
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: Overview of the Pyramid and Its Levels
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: #4 Be Vigilant in Making your Future Happen
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: #6 Aspire to always help and teach others
