Picture credit - The Flight of Icarus - Jacob Peter Gowy's (1635–1637)
Day 67 - Self Awareness Skill
15 June 2020
sirurp@gmail.com
My learning for the day
Today I want to share my learning about Self Awareness skills from two mythological stories .
Story 1 - The Flight of Icarus (from Greek Mythology)
Icarus and his father Daedalus attempt to escape from the Crete island by means of wings that Daedalus constructs from feathers and wax.
Both are imprisoned by King Minos and the only way they can escape is fly across the sea.
Daedalus warns Icarus first of complacency and then of hubris (excessive pride or self-confidence), asking that he flies neither too low nor too high, so the sea's dampness does not clog his wings nor the sun's heat melts them.
As they take off, Icarus does not stay on his father’s trail for long. Overcome by the feeling of soaring through the skies, Icarus ignores his father’s advice and goes close to the sun. When the wax in his wings melts, he tumbles out of the sky and falls into the sea and is drowned.
The learning
It is difficult to determine which challenge to rise to in shining armor (like David), and when to accept the given boundaries (unlike Icarus). This is where your Self Awareness skill comes handy.
"When it comes to the way we see ourselves, we must be brave enough to spread our wings, but wise enough not to fly too high – and our blindspots are what can send us soaring straight into the sun." - Tasha Eurich, from her book Insight.
Story 2 - Ganesh and Kartikeya (from Indian Mythology)
The Hindu mythological gods Shiva and Parvati had two children Kartikeya and Ganesh.
Parvati had a divine fruit and both the children wanted it.
Shiva told them that the one who circles the world thrice and comes back first would get the fruit as a prize.
Kartikeya swiftly got on his peacock and embarked his voyage.
Ganesh was well aware that his enormous form and his vehicle, the mouse, spoiled his chances of winning the race.
After a little thinking, Ganesh started walking around his parents and by the time Kartikeya returned, Ganesh had already completed the three rounds declaring himself as a winner.
When asked to explain, Ganesh said, “You went around THE world. I went around MY world.”
The learning
When we know OUR world, we can make sense of THE world
Self awareness is - being aware of what’s holding us back, being aware of our wellbeing, being aware of our desires, being aware of our mistakes
This story highlights the importance of thinking clearly especially in adverse situations. Panic clouds our judgement so all we need to do is master the art of focusing on how to utilise available resources to make the best out of the worst
What is Self Awareness Skill?
Self-Awareness is the ability to see yourself clearly and objectively through reflection and introspection
My learning so far on this topic
Day 7 post - What Is Self-Awareness? Four daily practices
Day 17 post - Importance of self-awareness and Bandura’s Self efficacy
Day 27 post - Imposter syndrome, Advices from Gurus about daily journaling
Day 37 post - Two TED talks - The power of vulnerability & Should you live for your résumé or eulogy?
Day 47 post - Two books - Insight & StrengthsFinder 2.0
Day 57 post - Two movies - Wild Strawberries (!957) and Ship of Theseus (2013)
How to improve this skill?
Set a goal to become a go-to person by mastering the art and science of Self Awareness Skill.
Follow the LAST model to build your personal brand as a Guru of Self Awareness Skill.
Learn - Invest time in learning different frameworks/ models/ techniques of Self Awareness Skill
Apply -
Identify a model suitable to you
Create a template to document the flow of the process
Find opportunities to use the selected method/ template
Maintain record/ process flow of every important activities you did with respect to Self Awareness Skill
Maintain notes of your thoughts/ insights/ failures/ challenges…. to be used for sharing/ training others
Share - Share the insights captured in step 2 above in a planned manner (social media posts, blogs, videos, study notes…)
Train - Generate opportunities to train your peers and team members so that, over time, your organization benefits from your efforts
Purpose of this document
I took a 66 day challenge to study Life Skills last year (10 April 2019). To my astonishment, I succeeded in studying for 66 days one skill a day.
My objectives of learning these skills were - To strengthen my mind to face life’s challenges with ease, To use these skills in my worklife for a better performance, To use these skills in my personal life for enriching my relationships, To open new possibilities to surprise myself.
This is my next 66 day challenge (from 10 April 2020) - To share my Life Skills learning with my social media friends.
I pray that my toil helps you in your success journey.
What are Life Skills?
UNICEF defines Life skills as - psychosocial abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday life. They are loosely grouped into three broad categories of skills
- cognitive skills for analyzing and using information,
- personal skills for developing personal agency and managing oneself,
- inter-personal skills for communicating and interacting effectively with others.
Which LifeSkills are covered?
The World Health Organisation identified these basic areas of life skills that are relevant across cultures:
1. Decision-making
2. Problem-solving
3. Creative thinking
4. Critical thinking
5. Communication
6. Interpersonal skills
7. Self-awareness
8. Empathy
9. Coping with emotions
10. Coping with stress.
Some trivia
‘Life skills’ was never part of the school curriculum. WHO/ UNESCO mandated academia to teach these skills in all schools across the globe in 1993.
Different countries educate their children in these skills with different objectives
- Zimbabwe and Thailand - prevention of HIV/AIDS
- Mexico - prevention of adolescent pregnancy
- United Kingdom - child abuse prevention
- USA - prevention of substance abuse and violence
- South Africa and Colombia - positive socialization of children.
