The Pearls of Life:
101 Simple Ways to Health and Happiness
Know Yourself
“Knowing yourself is enlightenment.”
—Lao Tzu
Who has the
potential to know yourself the best? You!
Sometimes we may
think that our partners, families, or friends know us best. However,
nobody else but you spends so much time with you. No one else but you
knows all your life stories. No one else but you has lived all your most
private thoughts, desires, and dreams.
Why
self-knowledge? Without it, you would be going through your life like a
robot, moving and propelling with a program written by someone else.
Without self-knowledge, you may be caught in unknown beliefs and endless
internal dramas that lead you nowhere.
Self-knowledge
allows you to know the reasons for how you have come to be who you are.
Self-knowledge allows you to choose with more clarity where you want to
be in your life. And self-knowledge allows you to choose the optimal
time and method for getting there.
In short,
self-knowledge allows you to write the program for you own life. It
allows you to live optimally—resulting in a fulfilling and happy life.
- Ask yourself how you have come to be where you
are socially, emotionally, spiritually, and financially. Are you happy
where you are, or do you prefer changes, and why?
- Ask yourself where you are in your career. How
did you ending up there? Are you happy where you are, or do you prefer
changes, and why?
- Ask yourself
what your personal values are. What are your greatest strengths and your
weakness? How have you come to possess these values and capacities?
- Imagine yourself
as another person, and try to understand yourself as this person.
- Ask your
partner, friends, and family about yourself. They can give you helpful
perspectives.
- Consult
counselors and therapists if you wish. Professionals may offer valuable
input.