Self-Discovery

Self-Discovery

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Self- Discovery

A human being is one of the most complex creation on the surface of the earth. It is machinery that works by its principles and logics. To excel in life, it is mandatory to learn about one's self which is the product of different components. The same mechanism holds for my personality as well. Certain events in my life led to the process of self-perception and personal introspection which became an eye-opening process for me ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"mRa0vr4D","properties":{"formattedCitation":"(\\uc0\\u8220{}MBS Direct: Social Psychology,\\uc0\\u8221{} n.d.)","plainCitation":"(“MBS Direct: Social Psychology,” n.d.)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":767,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/ZD9MNZ2P/items/U7AS5C6C"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/ZD9MNZ2P/items/U7AS5C6C"],"itemData":{"id":767,"type":"webpage","title":"MBS Direct: Social Psychology","URL":"https://mbsdirect.vitalsource.com/#/books/9780134700762/cfi/6/80!/4/2/4/2/2/2/2@0:0","accessed":{"date-parts":[["2019",7,29]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Aronson, 2018). It is often stated, "when life throws you lemons, make lemonade". This maxim has an inherent sense of self-discovery as Stephen Cover says, "it is in the inside chambers of souls that the hardest battles are fought." In this vein, when I went through the hardships, I found out the real meaning of self. Moreover, with this introspection exercise, I assessed that I usually fall into the trap of self-justification when someone asks or give an opinion about my personality. This social comparison theory never helped me in any sense. As a result, I stopped giving justifications when it was not necessary at all.

I had an interdependent personality before as I used to depend upon what others think about me. I was an epitome of “Looking Glass Self Theory “by CH. Cooley. Instead of self-awareness and self-perception, I was more considerate to others’ opinion about me and often took pride in being an interdependent personality. Nevertheless, my culture readily offers me the prospects of the American Dream which is the trademark of a progressive society. With these vibrant cultural patterns, I am now more confident, more assertive and more pragmatic when it comes to important aspects of life. Since I have become a rationale in my life, this is the factor that I am more focused and determined in my life. Consider one personal example, I used to be very interdependent and stereotypical in my thoughts and beliefs about other people as my group wanted me. It is no escaping the fact that this closed personality of mine embarrassed me as well. This thing, however, changed when I utilized introspection and realized that everyone in the world is unique and no one should be degraded for his unique characteristics. This is the thing that makes me more diverse and adaptable in this globalized world. This contemporary situation is unlike as I used to view things subjectively with a narrow lens. As for now, my way of life has completely transformed for the better as I feel more open, helpful and more connected with the diaspora.

My role as an employee is something very important for the society I live in because, society is nothing but the collection of individuals. In this vein, the process of self-discovery is very important for every individual. As an immature employee in the past, I used to consider all opinions about myself seriously especially those which were coming from my managers. Some of them acknowledged my talent and some were offensive. At that time, I felt compelled to justify my actions to those who never acknowledged my potential and remain apprehensive about me. My view of things and the views of those around me were a continuous source of dissonance for me. I was habitual of justifying efforts to everyone in the organization instead of pondering over it. This cognitive dissonance where I was acting against my own beliefs was much troubling for my personality. Finally, I opted for the trap of self-justification and rationalized my actions according to my personality. Previously, I used to be attentive to their comments and feedback on my work. Later, I just opted for self-handicapping that this is how things work in this world where talent is not easily accepted amid competition. This reduced my cognitive dissonance and somehow, I took a step forward in the process of self-discovery.

References:

ADDIN ZOTERO_BIBL {"uncited":[],"omitted":[],"custom":[]} CSL_BIBLIOGRAPHY MBS Direct: Social Psychology. (n.d.). Retrieved July 29, 2019, from https://mbsdirect.vitalsource.com/#/books/9780134700762/cfi/6/80!/4/2/4/2/2/2/2@0:0