Who Am I? – Know Yourself to Unlock More Success & Happiness

If you’re on your journey to becoming more self-aware, you’ll resonate with my story to find the answer to the question “who am I”. 

Back when I was little, I didn’t know who I was. I didn’t know what I liked and had no idea where I was going. Despite having everything one can wish for, life was stressful and uneasy.

Because of those feelings, I spent hours of my time playing video games and trying to make a quick buck in poker.

I thought I was enjoying those things, but in reality, I only used these to distract myself.

Rather than looking inside myself, I found activities to cover it up. I neglected the journey that really matters. The journey everyone should travel. 

Your journey to answer the question: “Who Am I?”. 

Because once on the journey to answer this question, I could start living my authentic self. 

When you know yourself, you no longer need to try to become like others. Because once you get to know yourself insideout, that’s when your life starts to change in a big way.

The only way to live your life is by getting in touch with who you are and what makes you unique. And the recipe for personal freedom is to live your authentic self unconditionally.

Sounds pretty good right?

It’s that powerful. So, let’s dive in!

Why You Should Learn About Yourself

Too many people never take the time to learn about themselves. And even if they do, it’s often at a later stage in life. 

And that’s not surprising.

The world is a hectic place and there are many variables that influence your life. Your parents, your peers, and the cultural and social norms around you impact your beliefs and decisions.

And before you know it, you’re an adult. You’ve to make your own decisions.

But how much are those decisions yours? And how much of these decisions are projections of what your parents want you to do?

But life is different today than 20 years ago.

The internet has changed everything. There’s more opportunity to create your own journey. To live the person you’re really meant to be.

At the same time, there’s so much noise. Everyone knows exactly what you should do with your life. And if you don’t figure out who you are, someone else will tell you.

That’s why it’s so important to embark on the journey to find out: Who Am I?

When You Look Inside Yourself

Living a great life isn’t just for members of the lucky sperm club.

And from observations, you can tell that some of these members aren’t always happy either. They have a different set of problems.

Let’s see what’s going on in the life of a happy man. 

Brain scans revealed that Buddhist Matthieu Ricard is the happiest man on earth.

Buddhists practice the art of Enlightenment so that they can live a happy and meaningful life. This practice includes meditation to increase self-awareness, understand suffering, and to get control over their minds.

What’s interesting is that Buddhists focus on what’s already within themselves. 

Not how much money they earn.

And funny enough, not even the number of likes they get on their Instagram.

Instead, they follow the journey that leads to self-awareness. 

Who Am I?

When you start living the answer to that question, that’s when your life starts to become fun.

Before I understood that, I thought I wanted to be more popular. And since all the popular kids were extroverts, I wanted to be an extrovert too. 

But there were 2 things wrong with my approach. 

First, I’m not an extrovert. And trying to be like one, made me look like a fake. This had the opposite effect of what I was trying to achieve.

And second, I don’t like the center of attention. So what the hell was I doing?

Here’s the truth: I just wanted to enjoy social interactions.

Then I found my answer to the question: Who Am I?

And when I stopped trying to be like everyone else and started to live my truths, life became much better. And so became my social life.

Know yourself and you’ll unlock more freedom and happiness.

Get to Know Yourself in 5 Easy Steps

Are you ready to lift your life to the next level? 

It’s time to become self-aware.

To know yourself, you must know what makes people unique in the first place. So let’s work through each of these elements:

1. Personality
2. Strengths
3. Interests
4. Values
5. Dreams

Step 1: Personality

Describing your personality is a big part of getting to know yourself.

Because your personality covers many aspects of your personal life. Think about elements like:

• How you replenish energy
• How you react under stress
• Communication preferences
• How you behave in groups
• And much more…

When you know your personality, you can get amazing insights into how you think, feel, and act.

But how do you get to know your personality?

Fortunately, there are many psychologists and experts who bend over this question. 

And as a result, there are many free personality assessments on the market. These pinpoint your personality type based on your answers to the questions in the test. 

And although this isn’t rocket science, the results often reveal interesting insights. 

I love these tests and have used many to help me understand myself better. And I happily pay for the paid versions too, as they provide great practical day-to-day strategies. 

And the self-awareness I got from these is priceless.

What I recommend is that you do at least all the free versions that are available. All these tests differ slightly and when you combine the answers, you get the best insights.

On top of that, I recommend that you pay for 1 of the results too. The 16-personality test is probably the most popular test out there. The results of the paid version come with practical tips that you can use in your everyday life.

Some of the best tests on the market are:

• 16-Personality Test (Myers & Briggs Test)
• Big 5 Personality Test
• DISC Assessment
• The Enneagram Test

Remember to keep an open mind when you do these tests. You may not always 100% identify with the outcome. Rather than doubting the test, try to understand why you got this outcome. 

Also, don’t attach your self-worth to the report. These insights help you to increase your self-awareness so that you can become a better version of yourself. 

Step 2: Your Strengths

Do you know your strengths and weaknesses?

And I don’t just mean a strength like: “I’m good at math”. 

What I mean is that you can pinpoint specific skills and roles that you’re good at or would be good at. 

Maybe you’re a great strategist. 

Or perhaps you’re better at making human connections and influence.

When you pinpoint these strengths, you better understand the question: Who am I?

You understand the roles in life you would be good at. 

Fortunately, there are some helpful strength assessments as well. And again, both free and paid options are available. Or, if you prefer self-assessment tools, you can also try the personal SWOT analysis.

The free versions give you a high overview of your strengths. And the paid versions go one step deeper and provide you more meaningful insights and practical strategies.

Here are some of the tests:

• HIGH5 Test
• VIA Character

Have a look at these, try the free versions when you can, and get some valuable insights! And once again, I recommend that you get one of the paid tests too.

Step 3: Interests

Perhaps you already have a good idea of what your interests are. But if you don’t, there’s a great way to discover new passions.

Experiment!

It’s pretty basic. You make a list of the things you like or want to try, and then you try it. 

Sitting on the sidelines, thinking you won’t like it, is not a good strategy for life.

Here’s one interest that I would’ve never found alone: climbing. Or bouldering to be more specific. 

My colleagues do this type of exercise and asked me to tag along. What the heck I thought, why not give it a try? 

I never expected it to grow into something I would do many times a week. But I do.

What if you don’t like it?

You quit and try something else!

What if it’s a great experience? 

It definitely makes life more interesting to try stuff. And that’s very valuable if you ask me. 

Step 4: Values

Values are the things that you believe are an important component in life.

Some examples of values are authenticity, contribution, growth, honesty, kindness, and optimism.

You already have a set of values. But are you aware of those? 

Because if you’re not aware, you may be violating your own values. And when you violate your own values, this may cause you to feel upset or stressed out with yourself.

Your values are the rules you should prioritize in your life.

Besides, if you’re aware of your values, you can communicate these to others. Because often we get upset because other people violate our rules. But what we tend to forget is that your rules aren’t equal to other people’s rules. 

The more self-aware you are about your values, the better you can navigate through life.

How do you know your values?

1. Take a piece of paper and write every value down that comes to mind
2. In addition, you can do a quick Google search to “list of values”
3. Once you have the list, rank these values from most to least important to you
4. The top 5 values on your list are your core values

Step 5: Dreams

Dreams are exciting because they often project the bold and big future you deeply desire.

And your dreams give you tons of energy, meaning, and freedom.

Unfortunately, there’s no mandatory system in place that teaches you how to live your life to the fullest. There’s no class that teaches you how you can chase your bold dreams.

Nor is it likely that your parents inspired the adventurer inside of you. 

That’s because they love you.

They want the best for you. And in their world, the best means to finish your education, get a job, and raise a family.

But life has changed.

Yet, so many of us get caught in the parent’s trap. And when your parents invest in your future, it becomes even more challenging to escape this trap.

So what are your options?

Good news.

You’ve got the internet. And there are now millions of ways to self-educate. 

Look, your dreams are a big part of who you are. And chasing your dreams is something you will never regret. And when you combine your dream, your passions, and your purpose, then you’ve got a great cocktail for success.

At the very least, it makes your journey through life much more joyful.

Future Success: How to Understand Yourself Forever?

Let’s assume that you’ve gone through the steps, did all the free personality and strength tests, and got some of the paid insights too.

You’re feeling amazing with the new insights. And you use the strategies based on your insights to create a better life for yourself.

That’s a great step!

Yet, you aren’t there yet.

Because building self-awareness is like building a muscle. And you know that the moment you stop going to the gym, your muscles start to disappear.

It’s the habit that matters.

Even though you now know yourself, you should make self-awareness a regular practice. 

Because if not, the chaos of life will get a hold on you and slowly drift you away from your true self. It’s easy to get caught in mundane activities that don’t move you forward to your dreams.

Here’s what works for me when it comes to self-reflection:

• Reflect on your journey
• Reflect on your emotions
• Reflect on your dreams

Reflecting on Your Journey

Do you sometimes compare yourself with others to value if you’re good enough?

We all do it from time to time. But there’s a much more important comparison to make.

And that’s the comparison with who you are today versus who you were yesterday.

Your journey matters.

It’s so easy to compare yourself to others and lose sight of where you came from.

Reviewing how you have grown over the years is often a good motivator to keep going. And it’s the only comparison that matters to your life. 

Compare yourself to none other than yourself.

Reflecting on Your Emotions

Emotions are one of your greatest assets in life.

For a long time, I’ve been very upset and unhappy with the course of my life. And I had to get drunk on the weekends or play video games during the day to escape those emotions.

But what I did not understand was that my emotions were signals.

A call to action.

And the action was to stop wasting my life away. To embark on the journey that I was made for. And to discover the truth of who I am.

Emotions are big cues that reveal whether you’re still on track.

When you’re happy, you’re living your life according to your values and desires.

And when you’re unsatisfied with the course of your life, you’ll have to look inside yourself to see what you should change and why.

Listening to your emotions is a great way to increase the quality of your life.

Reflecting on Your Dreams

The third and last thing you should reflect on, are your dreams. 

Where do you want to go?

Clarifying your dreams on an ongoing basis ensures that you stay on track.

If you don’t do this, you allow the chaos of life to drag you off-track. That’s why it’s critical to review your course and make adjustments if necessary.

Final Note on Knowing Yourself

If you’ve followed the steps and done the personality tests, and I hope you did, it will give you a big advantage to your journey to answer the question: Who Am I?

On top of that, keep reflecting on your growth. These 27 questions for self-awareness can guide you in that process. Because self-awareness is a recipe for experiencing freedom and happiness more often.

• Reflect on who you were yesterday, not on who you are in comparison to others.
• Listen to your emotions because these provide valuable insights.
• Reflect on your journey ahead and remind yourself why you do this.
• And also, reflect on the results of the 5 steps to knowing yourself.

There’s real freedom in living your true self. And here are some related articles for you to check out:

• Self-awareness: the definitive guide
• Best books to improve self-awareness
• How to find your purpose?

If you enjoyed this article, please do share it with your friends. Because the world is a much better place when everyone lives their authentic self.