How Well Do You Know Yourself?

Generally speaking, how well do you feel you know yourself?

Do you feel you know yourself in some areas better than in others? If so, in which areas do you feel you know yourself best? In which areas least?

In general, how do you approach finding out about yourself? Do you rely on introspection? Do you observe your behavior dispassionately? Do you rely on what other's tell you about yourself? Do you use some other method to learn about yourself?

When was the last time you surprised yourself? What led to that surprise?

I know myself very well. I have been with me my entire life. I went to school with myself, I went to college with myself and to work.
The last time I surprised myself was at my birthday, I gave myself a new computer and that was the last thing I expected..

I know things about myself that no one else knows.
But there is one part of each person that only other people know that the person him or herself does not know.

Who is that in the mirror ?

Someone once said that no man could cross the same river twice . Either the man or river would have changed . So knowing one's self is a life long study , as I see it .

Embrace the Chaos ....

I don't know how much I know myself. I mean, the deeper I delve into "I," the darker and more obscure it becomes. I know that "I" am at least the observer of the actions of some defined living matter interacting in the world, but how much that thing is "I," I cannot say.

I think my art is the best way I can get to know myself.

I know my self very well..
I gave up pretending years ago.
It makes life so much easier when you know your personal pro's and con's
It also saves a lot of time and worry... no pretence mean not much to come back at you.
and you don't spend time working on things you are no good at.

I have to admit, I had no idea I was such a staunch, liberal, feminist until I came to RF and started interacting with staunch, conservative, patriarchs. Where I come from, I'm pretty tame. So I suppose I know myself well enough, but I still have the ability to surprise myself.

I ran into myself at the supermarket once, but I didn't initiate a conversation.

I don't think we have that much in common so it probably would have been awkward.

Quagmire said:

I ran into myself at the supermarket once, but I didn't initiate a conversation.

I don't think we have that much in common so it probably would have been awkward.

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Especially in the supermarket. All those people!

I really have no idea. I don't want to know who I am.

Sunstone said:

Generally speaking, how well do you feel you know yourself?

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I know myself well enough to know I really like men and should only have close male friends who are gay.

When was the last time you surprised yourself?

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I really surprised myself by not eating a cinnamon roll that was in the kitchen yesterday. I couldn't believe I passed it up.

Sunstone said:

Generally speaking, how well do you feel you know yourself?

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Pretty well. Not perfectly, but better than average. I have occasionally described myself to a friend to see how well the friend agreed I know myself. I have been told I have an accurate picture of myself.

In general, how do you approach finding out about yourself? Do you rely on introspection? Do you observe your behavior dispassionately? Do you rely on what other's tell you about yourself? Do you use some other method to learn about yourself?

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Mainly by keeping track of my actions, beliefs, and emotions, and trying to relate them to each other. I keep a kind of glorified "to-do" list, a bit like a personal journal, where I have a section devoted to examining how well my day went, what I did, what I felt, etc, and this often serves as a aid to self-knowledge.

When was the last time you surprised yourself? What led to that surprise?

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It was when I threw a surprise birthday party for myself. I never saw that one coming!

Actually, the last time was yesterday, when I managed to come up with some great input in helping my boss write a software application and coming up with ideas for marketing the application. I surprised myself with the quality of my ideas, and it was a nice boost to my self-esteem.

As to where it came from... it came from me in the presence of the right sort of opportunity! I was very much "on" yesterday. I can't explain it any better than that. All I can say is that it stretched my perception of what I can accomplish.


eudaimonia,

Mark

UnTheist said:

I really have no idea. I don't want to know who I am.

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What are some of the disadvantages to knowing who you are?

Sunstone said:

What are some of the disadvantages to knowing who you are?

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I just don't care about who I am. I don't think it will enhance my life any.

UnTheist said:

I don't think it will enhance my life any.

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What will?


eudaimonia,

Mark

eudaimonia said:

What will?

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Doing things that I like to do.

I have discovered, never claim to fully know yourself until you have been put into situations that will test your character to the fullest. Even then, you still change.

UnTheist said:

Doing things that I like to do.

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The better that you know yourself, the better you will know what you like to do, what it is that you most enjoy doing, what energizes you to do more of what you like to do, and how to succeed in doing all this over time.


eudaimonia,

Mark

I think I get along with myself pretty good.

I know who I am and what I am. I understand that others will see me differently than I do and I think that I am becoming more sensitive to their perspectives of me, which is teaching myself about me too.