I know, you’re probably thinking that this is pretty basic stuff. Everybody can write.
Most people hate writing. I understand why. In many cases, writing seems like a chore or some sort of task that you’d rather not do. But let me tell you, when you write about yourself, who you think you are, and what you think about certain things in your life, you start uncovering the real you.
Unfortunately, a lot of people think they know who they are. They just think it. This is not really true.
Why? Most of the time, we simply assume our identity. We become what our parents want us to become. We try to live up to other people’s expectations. We feel that there is some sort of role that we have to grow into or somehow act out.
At first, you have a lot of self awareness about this. But as you outgrow your teenage years, things start to click. And before you know it, you feel that your roles (and there are many of these) are the truth.
What if I told you that they are just masks that you can put on and put off? It all boils down to your power of choice.
Please understand that behind those masks is a real person. Unfortunately, if you continue to confuse the mask with your identity, you’re not doing yourself any favors. You’re continuing the lie. And the more you believe the lie, the more unhappy, frustrated and upset you become.
This is how you live a powerless life. This is the precise opposite of self awareness.
Accordingly, simply writing down what you think about who you are, what you’re capable of, the big mistakes you made, or what your hopes and dreams are, can give you some clues as to who you really are.
Because most people don’t ask themselves that question. Most people would rather focus on chasing after the next dollar to pay the rent. Most people would rather think about the food that they’re going to eat or the food that they’re going to put on the table to feed their families.
There’s nothing wrong with that, but if you truly want to live your life at the highest level possible, you have to also devote some time to examining deeper and more profound questions.
Let me tell you, the next dollar you earn is not going to make you a happier person. It’s going to be replaced by the need for the next dollar, and the next dollar after that.
When you pay the rent this month, what do you think happens next month? That’s right, the rent will be due. Instead, focus on the deep questions of your life because a little bit of self awareness can go a long way.
Let’s face it, there are many different people on this planet. We have different IQ levels. We definitely have different emotional intelligence levels. But what we all have in common is our ability to respond to questions.
So when we ask ourselves really painful, deep personal questions, we start to chip away at the false idol of identity that we may have set up for ourselves. This is how you get closer and closer to deep personal truths.