Do You Know the Person in the Mirror?

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2082

Abstract

s.com/@fauxels?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels">fauxels</a> from <a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-pen-on-top-of-notebook-3183170/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels">Pexels</a>.</figcaption></figure><p id="41bd">The first line described who I am: “You are most like The Commander! it said. Commanders are driven to achieve goals through determination and holding themselves and others to high standards of performance. They tend to be driven and demanding leaders who are pragmatic and results oriented.” Yep, that’s me. So, was it worth it — spending more than an hour answering questions to which I not only knew the answers, but also knew what the results would be. Invariably, the answer to that question is, ‘of course.’ Otherwise, I wouldn’t even be writing this.</p><p id="c1ac">Most assuredly, we know the person in the mirror, whether the people around us know that we know ourselves or not. A more pointed question might be, ‘do the people around us really know us?’ Are we getting from them what we really want from them and if not, why do we continue to engage in those relationships? We cannot discontinue the relationship with ourselves and moreover, we do to not want to. But are we getting the value from those who we share our time with or are we settling in life?</p><p id="1d6a">If we know ourselves, which is the premise of this writing, then why haven’t we made the changes our inner-self is yelling at us to make? Knowing yourself is one thing, but acting upon that knowing is quite something else.</p><figure id="12f8"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*CLqXFYrBG9HmXd4yaZfykQ.jpeg"><figcaption>Julius Evans just before looking in the mirror, photo taken by Susan Hudson-Evans.</figcaption></figure><p id="804c">As humans, our psychology doesn’t allow us to take certain steps that our sixth sense tells us that is what we should do. Yet, our natural ability to know and feel things well before they come into existence shoul

Options

d be enough to prompt us into action. So why don’t we take that action? I think it is because most humans aren’t generally narcissists or narcissistic.</p><p id="3712">What’s most interesting about the topic is how this paper has delved into many other singular topics that all intertwine with knowing one’s self. Therefore, I must conclude that knowing one’s self isn’t sufficient in today’s society if we have connections and relationships with others. We owe it to ourselves to better know those with whom we have relationships, in order to reach greater fulfillment in life and in our relationships. Because, knowing our self is the start of knowing whether we can have success in knowing others.</p><h2 id="144c">About the author</h2><p id="4486">Julius Evans has a Master of Arts degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the U.S. Naval War College, Newport, RI; a Master of Arts degree in Strategic Communication and Leadership from Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ; a Bachelor of Science degree in Mass Communication and Journalism from City University, Bellevue, WA and an Associate of Arts degree in Liberal Studies from Central Texas College, Killeen, Texas.</p><p id="40b2">Read every story from Julius Evans (and thousands of other writers on Medium). Your membership fee directly supports Julius Evans and other writers you read. You’ll also get full access to every story on Medium.</p><div id="f1c1" class="link-block"> <a href="https://medium.com/@juliusevans/membership"> <div> <div> <h2>Join Medium with my referral link — Julius Evans</h2> <div><h3>As a Medium member, a portion of your membership fee goes to writers you read, and you get full access to every story…</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*tyIa0xL_CpcmZtip)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

A Short Venture into Self-discovery by Asking Yourself a Few Important Questions

Man in a mirror. Photo by Lucas Pezeta from Pexels.

What’s the first thing you think of when you think of yourself? Are you blasted with negative thoughts or does your mind float away with all the successes you have experienced? How we think of ourselves is how we project ourselves to others. But let’s examine this further.

When was the last time you completed an online personality profile assessment? After receiving the results, did they match your view of yourself? Look at another aspect. What information did you use to influence your opinions? For this discussion, we will use the results of the personality profile I finished last night. It was from Principles.com. It took more than an hour to complete the questions and the voice in my head kept asking, “Are you really going to keep answering these questions?” I did. It actually took about 90 minutes to complete. The Olympics were on and Simone Biles was back in the competition.

I accurately anticipated the results. I took care to answer honestly. For the questions to which I had no response, I clicked the neutral radio button. I wanted an honest assessment. But in all actuality, after taking so many of these personality profiles, I had a ‘sixth sense’ of what my results would be.

Written survey. Photo by fauxels from Pexels.

The first line described who I am: “You are most like The Commander! it said. Commanders are driven to achieve goals through determination and holding themselves and others to high standards of performance. They tend to be driven and demanding leaders who are pragmatic and results oriented.” Yep, that’s me. So, was it worth it — spending more than an hour answering questions to which I not only knew the answers, but also knew what the results would be. Invariably, the answer to that question is, ‘of course.’ Otherwise, I wouldn’t even be writing this.

Most assuredly, we know the person in the mirror, whether the people around us know that we know ourselves or not. A more pointed question might be, ‘do the people around us really know us?’ Are we getting from them what we really want from them and if not, why do we continue to engage in those relationships? We cannot discontinue the relationship with ourselves and moreover, we do to not want to. But are we getting the value from those who we share our time with or are we settling in life?

If we know ourselves, which is the premise of this writing, then why haven’t we made the changes our inner-self is yelling at us to make? Knowing yourself is one thing, but acting upon that knowing is quite something else.

Julius Evans just before looking in the mirror, photo taken by Susan Hudson-Evans.

As humans, our psychology doesn’t allow us to take certain steps that our sixth sense tells us that is what we should do. Yet, our natural ability to know and feel things well before they come into existence should be enough to prompt us into action. So why don’t we take that action? I think it is because most humans aren’t generally narcissists or narcissistic.

What’s most interesting about the topic is how this paper has delved into many other singular topics that all intertwine with knowing one’s self. Therefore, I must conclude that knowing one’s self isn’t sufficient in today’s society if we have connections and relationships with others. We owe it to ourselves to better know those with whom we have relationships, in order to reach greater fulfillment in life and in our relationships. Because, knowing our self is the start of knowing whether we can have success in knowing others.

About the author

Julius Evans has a Master of Arts degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the U.S. Naval War College, Newport, RI; a Master of Arts degree in Strategic Communication and Leadership from Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ; a Bachelor of Science degree in Mass Communication and Journalism from City University, Bellevue, WA and an Associate of Arts degree in Liberal Studies from Central Texas College, Killeen, Texas.

Read every story from Julius Evans (and thousands of other writers on Medium). Your membership fee directly supports Julius Evans and other writers you read. You’ll also get full access to every story on Medium.