Self-Reliance: Foundational Skills 1

(Monday)

Context:

  • In order to be successful in life and in the workplace, you’ll need to be self-reliant.

  • Self-reliance is the product of three foundational or cornerstone traits and qualities of self-awareness, self-appreciation, and self-acceptance.

  • These three keys, or foundational skills are essential to successfully developing all necessary durable skills that employers are looking for in graduates and new employees.

What it is: Self-reliance is the capacity to trust in yourself and your abilities to accomplish any task, overcome any obstacle, and reach any goal.

The foundational durable skills of self-awareness, self-appreciation, and self-acceptance will allow you to believe in yourself, and rely on yourself, yet understand the need to constantly improve and develop.

Why it’s important: In the MindSage approach, it's crucial to develop core foundational skills. These skills are like the building blocks that lay the foundation for you to develop positive mindsets, attitudes, traits, and qualities, which are often referred to as durable skills. Without these foundational skills, it can be challenging to see yourself in a positive way and, as a result, hinder your ability to grow and succeed.

Just like a house needs a strong foundation to build upon, without developing the three cornerstone qualities and traits, you might encounter challenges in developing durable skills, as they are inextricably linked to how you view yourself.

Building the Foundation: We’ll focus on one core building block skill on each of our lesson days. Today we’ll focus on the first foundational skill: Self-awareness.

Primer Questions

  1. What do you like most about yourself?

  2. What do you think your friends and family like most about you?

  3. Do you care more than you should about what others think of you?

Write down your answers and observations in your journal.

“

Look outside and you will see yourself. Look inside and you will find yourself.

”

– Drew Gerald

Two types of self-awareness.

This is where it all begins. The more you understand how your mind operates, and its impact on your actions and feelings, the easier it becomes to develop the next two essential skills: self-appreciation and self-acceptance.

Watch the video to identify the two types of self-awareness

Questions for reflection

  1. Which of the four archtypes of self-awareness are you currently? Explain.

  2. How do you think becoming more self-aware can help you in every day life? In your relationship, or in reaching your goals?

Write down your answers and observations in your journal, or discuss them with others.

Ask for feedback.

To be truly successful in all levels of life, you should actively cultivate both internal and external awareness by seeking feedback to comprehend how others perceive you. Be sure to seek and accept feedback regarding both your positive and negative qualities or attributes.

Would you leave the house without looking in the mirror?

Most of us wouldn't leave the house without checking ourselves in the mirror. Why? Because we can't see what we look like without a mirror. We don't want to go out in public with food between our teeth, our hair a complete mess, or smudges of dirt on our faces.

Just as we use a mirror to check our physical appearance, external feedback helps us see our behavior, emotions, and how others perceive us more accurately. Like a mirror reveals flaws in our appearance, feedback reveals areas for personal growth in our interactions and relationships.

The power of asking ‘What’ for introspection.

Many people often wonder 'Why?' when they want to understand their thoughts, emotions, and behaviors better. However, it's also important to ask 'What?'

For instance, instead of thinking, 'Why am I scared of public speaking?' you can ask, 'What specific things about public speaking make me scared?' This shift in questioning can help you figure out practical steps to overcome your fear of public speaking.

Limiting ourselves to just 'Why?' can sometimes lead us to focus on our negative qualities, traits, or mindsets, whereas asking “What?’ helps us identify ways to improve and grow.

Try formulating “What?” questions with something you’re currently dealing with.

Do you want to learn from past experiences?

Contrary to common belief, we don’t always learn from past experiences. Some people make the same mistakes over and over again. Is that true of you? Also, research shows that experience doesn't always guarantee success. Interestingly, feeling highly experienced can sometimes discourage us from seeking more information or questioning our assumptions.

In addition, experience can also give us an inflated sense of self-awareness. To truly grow and develop durable skills, it's essential not only to be self-aware but also open to change when we identify areas that need improvement.

Do you take the time to learn about your strengths or weaknesses from past achievements or mistakes? Write about one or two experiences where you learned something about yourself. What happened, and what did you learn?

Thought of the day.

“Few of us make enough time for self-awareness. But by observing our thought patterns, emotions, and behaviors, we can get to know ourselves better than anyone else ever could.”

-www.happierhuman.com

Metacognitive Goals

From now until Wedneday, take a moment to notice how aware you are throughout the day of how you feel, and what emotions you feel. At the end of each day ask yourself, “Was I happy most of the day?”, “What was the dominant emotion I felt today?”, “Is there an interaction or situation that caused me stress, or anger?” , “Did I do or say anything today that was motivated primarily by what I was feeling at the moment?”

If you feel this is a stupid or useless excersize, try to determine why. What makes you not want to try this exercise?