Is Awareness Over Rated?

- A 7 Benefit Series; #3: Understanding -

This is part of a 7 benefit series in the exploration of gains to be had through the development of our awareness and consciousness.

Benefit #3: A refined understanding of beliefs we hold.

We first inherit beliefs from our parents, then our immediate community. These serve us well for a while until we begin to think for ourselves about the issues at hand and learn to develop more personal points of view. We learn to make choices for ourselves.

Some of the different levels of beliefs are:

• Surface belief: every day opinions, no major issues
• Social belief: circles we tend to socialize with and with whom we share certain common beliefs / ties -dietary, spiritual, business aspects, cultural, voluntary organizations, etc.
• Core belief: deeper spirituals, fundamentals of who we are, unshakable, principles to live life by and the likes.

As we grow and expand out horizons, we encounter new, sometimes conflicting, beliefs. Various things can happen at this point: our current stand on any particular issue might be reinforced and become stronger; it can be influenced and altered, or grow into a new variation if you will; or it might be completely shattered and will have to be replaced altogether by new views we can take on suddenly or form over time.

Why do you think this or that about XYZ?…

Do you have strong opinions about certain things? Where do these opinions come from? Have you ever stopped and really explored why you think that way? Often time, opinions are adopted from parents or social circles without giving it too much thought. That’s what we grew up with, or that’s what we are regularly exposed to through our socializing, and soon these views become our own.

When we explore the deeper reasons and meaning of our belief system, we come to better understand our own values. Critical analysis of what we hold to be true need not be viewed as threatening. It can be a very enlightening process that will lead to better understanding of our self and others, as well as a more thought out, honest opinion, to say nothing about possibly new insights regarding the issues themselves.

It’s important to note that views also evolve over time as we too evolve, and just because we espoused a certain opinion in the past, it does not mean we cannot change our minds in the present and future.

Next; Benefit #4: Become Pro-Active

This article is copyright 2008 Christine Pointeau and for entertainment purposes only. Christine Pointeau is the artist, author of the series A Cappella and Stray Tales, and a published personal development author. For articles and more, visit http://www.ChristinePointeau.com

Is Awareness Over Rated?

- A 7 Benefit Series; #2: Choice -

This is part of a 7 benefit series in the exploration of gains to be had through the development of higher awareness and consciousness.

Benefit #2: Gain new options in changing or nurturing specific traits.

In Benefit #1, we talked about building insight regarding our personality through observation and interaction with other. As these mental notes build onto themselves, we gain increasing awareness of what makes us do as we do, which brings us to Benefit #2: Choice and Responsibility.

Choice is a beautiful word, isn’t it?

Its twin is, off course, responsibility, a term not always as appreciated. Some would cry out they want choice for themselves, but when the time comes, point fingers elsewhere rather than accept the responsibility that comes with it. Unfortunately, these two go hand in hand and one cannot be without the other, and are therefore considered here as one item.

Shall we put all this knowledge to good use?

Once we get to better understand what makes us do as we do, we can consciously choose new options. If a pattern emerges through recurring situations, then in becoming conscious of that pattern, we can recognize it as it is happening, or even better, catch it before it happens, and work to gradually improve and change the behavior.

Knowing our trigger points can also go a long way towards behavior modification. For example, if I am aware and recognize that I tend to have junk food cravings at a particular time of day, I can anticipate that time and be prepared with a better option. Or if I know that certain friends have a negative influence on me, then I can choose to spend less time with them and explore new avenues with groups that display the behaviors / results that I wish to attain.

Off course, we all possess admirable qualities that we might choose to exercise more often. Think of a situation where you did something or said something that was really thoughtful and supportive when a friend needed it. Maybe there are small gestures and/or random acts of kindness that you do on a regular basis that really shows a caring aspect of you. Recognize these and give yourself credit. It’s not bragging. It’s simply acknowledging the positive facets of who you are.

Let’s re-cap:

• Knowledge and awareness give us options.
• Options give us choices.
• Choices come with responsibility.

And all three points combined empower us to change and/or nurture various aspect of our personality for the better.

We can choose to become and be the person we wish to be.

This takes time off course. We cannot expect to become an entirely new person overnight, though incremental changes implemented on a persistent basis will go a long way.

Now that’s power!

Next, Benefit #3: Understanding

This article is copyright 2008 Christine Pointeau and for entertainment purposes only. Christine Pointeau is the artist, author of the series A Cappella and Stray Tales, and a published personal development author. For articles and more, visit http://www.ChristinePointeau.com now.