People who really know who they are all seem to share a few of the same characteristics. They have done the work to become self-aware and continue to learn more. These are the top ten characteristics of those people and how they apply those characteristics in their daily lives. If you want to really know who you are you can learn from them and begin your journey to becoming more self-aware.
1| Adaptability
It may seem counterintuitive, but people who really know who they are can also be quite adaptable. According to goodwin.edu, people who are adaptable are more willing to challenge themselves when circumstances change.
They think ahead and focus on improvement while envisioning obstacles as opportunities. You never know when a new opportunity will come along. People who really know who they are can take advantage of new opportunities and use their transferable skills to continuously learn more.
2| Confidence
People who really know who they are tend to have a healthy amount of confidence in themselves. Lifehack.org describes confident people as knowing their place in life and not being frightened by the light in others. Those confident people who know who they are support and encourage others to do their best as well. They are able to create and influence a community of people to strive for better.
3| Wisdom
Wisdom has been hard to define, but health.ucsd.edu has some expert opinions on the topic. Most agree that wisdom is a uniquely human form of cognitive and emotional development. It is a rare characteristic that can be learned and increases with age and experience.
Those who really know who they are, have accumulated wisdom over time and are always looking for ways to learn more. Wisdom is hard to come by if you are young and inexperienced so open yourself up to new experiences wherever possible.
4| Forgiveness
People who really know who they are can find forgiveness in their hearts for others and for themselves. According to viacharacter.org, forgiveness involves accepting the shortcomings, flaws, and imperfections of others.
Forgiving allows you to let go of all of the frustration, disappointment, and other painful feelings related to a person or incident. It is important to be able to forgive yourself and use your past mistakes as learning experiences instead of sources of regret or shame.
5| Acceptance
Everyone makes mistakes, even those who really know who they are. According to inipcenter.org, accepting things as they are requires giving up how we believe they should be. These people who really know who they are, have accepted their own faults and learned how to live with them in the best possible way.
They use their strengths and invest in improving their weaknesses but are accepting that they exist. They also know that there is no point trying to change others. They set healthy boundaries in their relationships and give others the space to be themselves. If these relationships don’t work out, then they were probably not meant to be.
6| Mindfulness
People who practice mindfulness are more aware and more present in their day to day lives. They are able to analyze their emotions and thoughts to form intentions about who they want to be and how they want to feel. Mindfulness and meditation can also help guide one’s thoughts to achieve specific goals and feelings.
There are plenty of apps and videos out there to help you start meditating and become more mindful in your own life. The American Psychological Association found that mindfulness can help people focus, improve memory, cause you to become less reactive, and reduce stress along with many other physical, mental, and emotional benefits.
7| Gratitude
Gratitude means genuinely conveying thanks for all that you have in life and expressing that thankfulness in words to others or in writing for yourself. A quote from American author Zig Ziglar states, “Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions.”
By focusing on what they already have, people who really know who they are can manifest further positivity and more to be grateful for. Letting people in your life know that you are grateful for them makes you feel better too.
8| Autonomy
The cambridgedictionary.org defines an autonomous person as one who is independent and has the power to make their own decisions. They act in their own interests but also only do so if it aligns with their personal values. The autonomous are not just self-centered people who will do anything to further their own agenda. They consciously make decisions to benefit themselves but not at a cost or against their better judgement.
9| Integrity
Those who really know who they are, have integrity and know what values mean the most to them in life. They live by those values and try to keep their actions in line as much as possible. Lifehack.org states that problems arise when we see ourselves one way but behave in ways that are at odds with that vision. People with integrity have strong morals and values that become a base of their personality and stick with them throughout life.
10| Humility
While it may seem like people who really know who they are must be at least somewhat self-centered, one of the main characteristics of these people is humility. Psychologicalscience.org states that humility involves a stance that is other-oriented rather than self-focused.
It has been found that humility is a characteristic of people who hold their convictions and are not easily swayed by others’ opinions. This would seem to agree with the assumption that those who really know who they are can also be quite humble.
Read Next: Learning Who You Are: Top 10 Questions To Ask Yourself
Final Thoughts
If you really want to know who you are, try cultivating some of the characteristics listed above. Practicing self-awareness and developing these traits takes time but it is worth it to have such a clear picture of who you really are and what you want out of life. The decisions you have to make will seem simpler when you have yourself figured out.
