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Know Thyself
Assessing Your Level of Personal Knowledge
 The
following questions are meant as nothing more than a mirror for bringing
your attention to these aspects of your life. There is no preset meaning
implied in these questions nor correct answers.The answers you
give are for your own self knowledge.
While pondering these questions, pay attention to two things: First,
the actual answer is what you tell yourself about situation, preference
or relationship. Second, notice your emotional relationship with each
answer. (i.e. is it easy to admit or painful? Are you proud of your answer?
Does the question make you angry? (Note: One telltale sign that something
is getting triggered within you is if you have an extreme rejection of
the question itself. Why is it so offending?)
- How many long term friendships do you have? (Anything over 5 years)
What do you tell yourself is the reason?
- How many people can you tell intimate personal details to?
- How long do you keep a job? (If an employee.)
- How often do you turn over employees? (If a supervisor or owner.)
- How often do you have to go into fantasy or check-out when having
sex? With or without a partner?
- How many secrets do you have, have held, or keep? (One way to determine
this is to ask yourself how many topics are "really private".
Second, what information would you be mortified if anyone found out
about? Do you have qualities or histories that you perceive to be
so awful about yourself, that you conclude you are a sinner, or horrible
human, or substandard, or somehow deserve to be punished or you are
so worthless that you'd be better off dead?)
- How much ease do you have telling personal or intimate details about
yourself?
- Are there any subjects or words or people that you find difficult
to speak about?
- Are there any questions that you would label "inappropriate" or
say "how dare you" or any extreme emotional reaction if
someone merely asked it of you?
- How often do you find that people are angry with you? Are there any
common reasons offered for it?
- How often do you find yourself angry at life or other people?
- Do you consider it necessary to be polite to flatter someone in
return, even if you don't believe what you are saying about them?
- Are you concerned about what friends, neighbors, or people you know,
think about you? How much? Are there some more than others? (It is
useful to make a list.) Why?
- How many ways do you find yourself limiting your natural expression
because you are worried about the reactions of others? What are some
of your top internal justifications?
- Is there anywhere in your life that you know you profess a belief
in something that you actually do nothing to support?
- Is there some task that you say you do, but actually, you do very
rarely or not at all?
- Do you find it difficult to maintain eye contact?
- If a parent, do your children like you?
- Do you "like", not just love, your children? What is it
about them that you dislike? (Make a list.)
- How much time do you spend with your children? (Not like to spend,
not wanted to spend, not "I could if I would", but how
much time?)
- Do you believe that you have to please your children?
- Is it your view that children are unruly and need discipline? How
much should your children have to displease you before you start
to resent or dislike them?
- What kind of things make you laugh?
- How often do you laugh or even smile (naturally, not for flattery)?
- What principle would you stake your life to defend, if any?
- For what person would you risk your life for?
- Is there any reason you would willingly choose death?
- How would you like to be remembered after you die?
- How do you think the world (friends or strangers) will actually remember
you?
- What should your epitaph read to accurately reflect your life?
- Under what conditions do you believe it permissible to lie, fib,
withhold, deceive, distract, or in anyway not tell a person what
you know when they inquire directly?
- What percentage of your spiritual/moral/integrity ideals actually
appear in your daily life? (e.g. - a) You believe in the truth, yet
you lie and tell the boss you are sick just when you want a day off?
b) You talk about prosperity but you can't pay the rent on time.
c) Unconditional love is your standard, but you can't stand the bastard
that lives next door.)
How well did you know yourself? The number of these questions that you
were able to answer with immediacy, clarity, and accuracy simply reflect
your self-awareness.
Though some questions contain multiple parts, they provide ample clarification
for giving context to the subject being probed. How thoroughly did you
answer the questions? How quickly could you answer them? How much doubt
or anger did reading these bring up? All of these factors are additional
sign posts as to the factuality in your responses. For follow-up, ask
3 people whose opinion you trust to answers these questions about you
and note how they compare. (If you have trouble getting 3 people, or
finding 3 that you trust to ask, this too is an indicator that you might
not want to know.
Michael has given the following scale to assess yourself.
- 1-10 = Little or no self knowledge.
- 11-20 = Somewhat self aware to moderately conscious of their interactions
with the world and others.
- 21-26 = A reflective and observant person. Capable of fair degree
of personal insight.
- 27-32 = Highly self-aware and self-knowledgeable.
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