” To know yourself as the Being underneath the thinker, the stillness underneath the mental noise, the love and joy underneath the pain, is freedom, salvation, enlightenment.” ~ Eckhart Tolle
A large part of knowing your purpose is knowing yourself. Who you are and what you’re here for will naturally be connected.
There are other benefits as well.
Really getting in touch with who you are leads to greater happiness and ease with yourself and others. You’ll experience less inner conflict and make better decisions because you have clear inner guidelines. Knowing yourself means being aware of your values and having more compassion for yourself and others. You can experience the freedom to truly be yourself.
Getting to know yourself is a self-reflective process. You need to create the space in your life to accomplish it.[tweetthis]A large part of knowing your purpose is knowing yourself. [/tweetthis]
Two ways to get to know yourself better are journaling and meditation.
With journaling, it’s good to have a format to guide your process.
Find a quiet place where you won’t be interrupted or disturbed. Carve out 20 to 30 minutes of time to allow yourself to let the ideas flow. You don’t have to answer all the questions at one sitting, just go with what feels good to you.
Take a few deep breaths to center yourself. Then consider these questions and write down the answers that come up for you.
- What are my top five core values? Your core values are the things you hold close to your heart. They can be things like being creative, having time freedom, being productive, high achievement, loving relationships, security, flexibility, helping others, spiritual connection, inner peace, integrity, consistency or fitness and health. The list is endless. You may have more than five, but identifying the top five helps you to focus and aids in decision-making.
- What do I love doing? What makes time slip away? In other words, what are your passions and interests? How do those play into your life mission or purpose?
- What are my personality preferences? Do you make decisions based more on feelings or more on facts? How do you recharge your energy—by being alone to “re-group” or by being around other people? Do you enjoy being active most of the time, or do you prefer going at a slower pace? Embrace who you are!
- What do I dream about doing, being or having? What you dream about becoming or doing in the future tells you a lot about yourself. Allow yourself to dream big and fill in the details. Is there something you’ve been putting off? What can you do about that?
- What are my strengths and what do I want to improve? Now is the time to acknowledge yourself for all the things you do well! Are you a good friend? Do you have a skill you excel at? Are you curious or courageous? How about a great sense of humor or kindness? The things you aren’t so good at may be things you’d like to improve on or they can give you information about what you want to limit in your personal or professional life.
Meditation 
Meditation helps you to know yourself at a deeper, spiritual level. As you sit comfortably and focus on your breath, you relax into a receptive state. As thoughts surface, simply notice them and let them float away, with no judgement. Focus on your heart. Feel the love grow and blossom there. Start with 10 minutes and gradually work up to 20 to 30 minutes. This stillness allows you to “know the Being underneath the thinker.”
Knowing yourself isn’t a one time activity. We are continually changing and expanding as we go through life. Check back in with these processes to see what’s changed and how you’ve grown.
