What can you gain by knowing how you are “doing” and perhaps how you “function” or what “drives” you in the present moment?
There is a whole science and sciences which key focus is on analysing, categorizing, putting the pieces together to understand human behaviour, motivation, happiness and so on. There are plenty of books, videos and articles about it on the internet (I might also share some in another post) and in the library. Therefore, my intention with these couple of exercises is to introduce and to provide you with some practical tools which I and many others found very helpful to support you navigating and managing your life for greater fulfilment.
By completing the below you can gain understanding and awareness and by creating awareness you are creating choices to yourself. Choices to carry on doing the same thing or perhaps change it and do things differently in a way which will bring you more joy, meaning, happiness or the qualities you would like.
The below will provide you with points of views, perspectives on looking yourself and each other in a more sophisticated way, understanding what drives you and others; which will help you to do what is best for you and let others to do the same.
It will open up possibilities to doing what is good for you, without wanting to be different or apologizing or blaming who you are and seeing this uniqueness in others.
These will help you in areas such as career choice, relationship with yourself and others, decision making, more fulfilled and joyous daily activities.
- Getting an idea about your Personality Type
I`m not sure how you are with this, but I have always been quite sceptic about personality typologies and putting someone into a box, and I still don`t agree with it, as it can limit us. However, what I find amazing about these ideas including Enneagram and The Big Five, that I am able to embrace and being able to see how beautiful and excellent I am in my own way, which also helps to do the same with other people. It is able to provide you with a slight clue of the different aspects of how we human beings are working, that we are not the same in many way, which is a key to hold and embrace in every moment. This will tell you what are each personalities strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats and how we can embrace all these.
Hold this information lightly though, maybe taking tests in different circumstances, taking them frequently then leave gaps in between. It`s become there is a lot of things influences your answers, like your mood, current activities you are involved and more. So in order to get a real picture the best is to take these elements in count, unless you are going to a professional who can help you with it, instead of you figuring it out.
The other reason to hold them lightly as this is not black and white, it is more of a continuum; it could be that 2 people having exactly the same type, yet they are so different in many ways, it is maybe because due to life, different strengths developed or perhaps not developed, so it`s influenced by many things.
Yet, as a results to have a clue about the various personality type, perhaps finding out yours you will understand why you might like analytical jobs rather than people job, so you will not beat yourself up, but embrace it. And also, you will have the chance to instead of using your weakness as an excuse for not to doing things, but to stand up and maybe improve it.
2. Know your Values
Values are like internal signalling system, when an airplane would like to land, in order to do it right on a big airport they need to have their own lane with signals on to know where to land.
Values for us are the same. Values are signals, beliefs and principals, things which are important to us, we are making our actions, decisions based on them, without knowing it. If we honour our values we feel more content, fulfilled and happy; if we suppress our values and maybe honouring someone else’s, we may feel unfulfilled or unhappy and not aligned with who we are, and not living, walking our path.
Therefore, having awareness, knowing our values in life and in all areas in life, can allow us to make the choices “right” for us, right for You, for yourself; making decisions and actions aligned with them will help you live a more meaningful and fulfilled life.
This is about what right for you; understanding and embracing the beauty and uniqueness of who you are and letting others, supporting others in their own fulfilment. Embracing our uniqueness, knowing that each of us has it`s own place in the puzzle; and if we all know it, then we are able to work together, according which is best for everyone.
Of course, sometimes we might need to sacrifice one or more of our values in the short term to gain a long term contentment, but planning it consciously will provide the benefit of being in control (we are only able to control our own decisions, attitudes, responses; this is another topic again), knowing that it is our choice. We can even experiment if we are unsure.
Our values are influenced and effected by many sources, and it is fluid and dynamic; what is important for us in hour teenage years or young adulthood, might be and probably will be different when we have a family with children, so then we might need to re-evaluate and reflect on it again; just keep having an open awareness about it.
So the following exercises are here to support you in finding out your values and signalling system. I am using these exercises in my coaching, as they are very important to know, if we feel unhappy, if we would like to find a work-life balance, and what is “right” for us in every aspects of life”. It is important to note that there is know right or wrong values as such, it is not a place of judging; it is what it is, embrace it.
One of the exercises I personally find very useful, is when you are not choosing from a list, but when you are actually reflecting our your past life events, decisions and choices you made, which exercise was extracted from the Co-active coaching toolkit, you can find here.
I very much a fond of the www.positivepsychology.com website, it is full with really good resources. I found two articles which helpful in value clarification here and here.
If you are still more curious, there are more and more articles you can find online, which I am happily sharing as we are different, so possibly for you a different approach will bring understanding; all has a legitim existence, as we are so many. So, please find useful information on Mindtools and on the website of Psychologytoday.
3. Knowing your Strengths
Knowing what your strengths are, will support your wellbeing, life satisfaction, a good and happy life. By applying your strengths you have the possibility to be at your best for the benefit of your own and for all the others around you while it is also effecting the things you do in a positive way. This awareness will allow you to make better decisions and shape your work and personal life, aligned with who you are; use your full potential by using more of your strengths and working around your weaknesses.
Here you can find a free basic survey and more if you wish, which will help you getting to know your strengths.
If you would like to know more, I am recommending this article to read.
Now, by completing these three basic exercises maybe just asking yourself:
How is this awareness will support me to create the life I want? How is this will benefit me and others? How and where can I apply what I learned moment by moment, starting now? What do I need to be or do, to make the best use of this awareness, information and knowledge?
So how did you find this article and exercises? Leave your comment below to share your answer with us, to support and learn from each other.
Gabriella Barta Coaching & Mindfulness 