Self-knowledge is an important key towards making your life good, and the only way to acquire self-knowledge is to practice honesty. It may be easier for you to acknowledge your character strengths, or it may be easier for you to admit your character defects. Either way, it will be essential for you to understand both if you are to live well within yourself.


When something is going wrong, look to your part. Avoid shifting the blame to others. Other people won't like it, and you won't learn anything.
Talk to people you trust about your situation. Many times, a good friend will have insights into your motives that you yourself cannot discern.
 What do you want from your life? What are you doing to achieve what you want?


Make a list of qualities you would like to emulate in your life. Then, make a list of ways you can practice using these qualities in your daily life. Aristotle wrote, "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not a virtue, but a habit."If you want to be a kind person, do kind things.
Learning to be honest about what you want is a difficult practice. Many people prevent themselves from having a good life by overemphasizing the things that they want but don't feel they can have because of other life circumstances - such as finances, family obligations, economic pressures, etc. This only perpetuates the myth that the person is a victim, a belief that is corrosive to happiness at all levels.
If you don't know the big things of what you want out of life, start with smaller choices. Developing a sense of control and power over what you have in your life is essential to having a good life., Knowing the situations that you're afraid of will allow you to better see how these fears are constraining your life in ways that may not be immediately apparent. For instance, a fear of being called stupid may mean that you're not speaking up for yourself in your workplace, thus not being considered for a promotion.


Seeing your fears in writing will sometimes help you realize how useless it is to worry about things that aren't within your control.
Sometimes a fear will be based in circumstances that are no longer present. Many people develop fears in childhood, when much was beyond their conscious control. But as an adult, the person has more autonomy and more power over their choices. By becoming more aware of the fears that drive your behavior, you can make more conscious decisions about the actions you take.
 No one is perfect. We all have short-comings, we all make mistakes and do things we'd rather not do. Mark Twain said, "A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval."

A good life isn't a result of making perfect choices, but of accepting the reality of who we are, including our limitations.

Self-acceptance is a discipline of honesty. It means that the person isn't denying their actions or inactions, or their consequences.Self-acceptance is a practice of self-care. Much like any other expression of self-care, accepting yourself is a practice that must be consciously learned, and relearned as your characteristics change over time.
 To focus on the present, a practice sometimes called mindfulness, is a discipline that research studies have proven directly increase one's quality of life.

Notice when you are worried about the future, or regretting the past. Turn your attention to your breath. Count 10 breaths. Even as simple an exercise in mindfulness as this one can start to show positive effects in your life, when practiced over time.
Cultivate daily habits, rather than setting distant goals. For instance, include exercise every day, rather than deciding to complete a triathlon in a month's time. Rather than deciding to lose 20 pounds, make a decision to eat healthily today. If you do decide to set a goal, break it down into manageable daily decisions.
Practice honesty within yourself.
Examine your desires.
List your fears.
Cultivate self-acceptance.
Practice mindfulness.
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