Self-Awareness goes beyond the self Why we are – and all else – depends on circumstances both in and out of our control. All elements of who, what, where, how, and why we are occurred through various combinations of choices made and not made, extenuating circumstances, and/or random happenstance. No matter how it happened – it is changeable. That might feel like it will require the force of moving a mountain to accomplish – or a similar almost unimaginable feat. But nothing about us and our lives is written in stone. All is malleable and changeable. The past is not the present Lots of people identify with their past selves. The past has come and gone. You cannot undo it, redo it, or change it. Living from it makes no sense because it’s past. Behind. Here and now, the present, however, is where, who, what, how, and why you are. To get to truly know yourself in all the ways that you can – you need to be here, now. Mindfulness of who, what, where, how, and why we are Mindfulness in this expression is conscious awareness. It is pausing to be present, in the here and now, and aware of yourself and all these questions. The best way to start this process is by working to be aware of your thoughts, feelings, actions, and intentions in the present. Self-awareness, choices, circumstances, and random happenstance Extenuating circumstances happen. Likewise, so does random happenstance. The Universe tosses stuff at us from various directions – and what happens next impacts who, what, how, where, and why we are. When whatever happens, happens, it simply is. Maybe it’s an exploding pipe in your kitchen, a collision with another car on the highway, an unexpected medical problem, or what-have-you. These are bad experiences – but similarly, good can occur just as unexpectedly. Your crush kisses you, you win the lottery, you get an unexpected promotion at work, and the like. Generally, bad or good, we didn’t see it coming until it arrived. After, there will be a visceral, immediate, reaction either positive or negative – but after that what you do is up to you. Conscious awareness of ourselves – self-awareness, mindfulness of ourselves – is how we can be all that we desire to be. And if we dislike what we find – we are capable of changing it. This week’s Applied Guidance for Mindfulness Tool: This is a refined version of a tool I shared earlier. At least twice once day for the next week, write down these questions and their answers (allow yourself 2-5 minutes time for this) · What am I thinking? · What am I feeling? · How am I feeling? · What am I doing? · What are my intentions? At the end of a week look back and see if you can remember the what, how, why, and where of the answers. Pause and reflect if when you were actively mindful you felt more centered. Bonus challenge – going forward, at least once a day ask yourself these questions – and see how being consciously self-aware in the here and now better informs you of who, what, where, how, and why you are. Author Website: https://mjblehart.com Email: author@mjblehart.com Instagram Twitter Facebook Blogs: titaniumdon.com and mjblehart.medium.com Cover artist Fe Mahoney: https://www.etsy.com/shop/TaliasInspirations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices