Recently, I stumbled upon an article that challenges you to ask yourself 20 questions in order to achieve a greater level of self understanding and live life more authentically.
I’m gonna complete this exercise, and I challenge you to do it alongside me!
Are you ready? Here goes:
1. What am I good at?
Empathizing with others. Self-expression through music. Staying positive during difficult times. Tasting intricacies in flavors. Event planning. Learning quickly. Being supportive. Creating artwork. Believing in myself. Taking on new challenges.
2. What am I so-so at?
Leadership. Math problems and programming challenges. Being a social butterfly. Having patience. Volleyball, tennis, running. Self control. Eating healthy. Hyping other people up.
3. What am I bad at?
Telling jokes. Being assertive in sports. Using Instagram. Staying focused on one thing. Speaking up when I’m unsure. Embarrassing myself and feeling ok. Making close close friends. Improvising speeches. Articulating conflicting viewpoints.
4. What makes me tired?
Faking smiles. Binging on sugar. Having a conversation and pretending to be interested. Being ignored. Sitting in a chair all day. Being surrounded by people I think will judge me.
5. What is the most important thing in my life?
Making the world a better place. Loving others, loving myself, and observing the beauty— both the loud, awe-inspiring beauty that transforms our lives and the quiet, vivid beauty that exists abundantly all around us.
6. Who are the most important people in my life?
My best friend Carolyn, who taught me what true kindness means. My mom, dad, and sister, who gave me a home. My friends, who have seen glimpses of my true self and accept me nevertheless, teaching me new things every day.
7. How much sleep do I need?
8 hours 50 minutes.
8. What stresses me out?
Disappointing others. Not living by my values. Having no flexibility or free time. Trying to impress people.
9. What relaxes me?
Playing piano. Eat a delicious new food. Meditation. Journaling. Hot showers. Going for a walk.
10. What’s my definition of success?
Having made a positive impact on the lives of people. Being proud of myself because I stuck to my values. Growing stronger, wiser, and more courageous. Creating memories that I can smile back on.
11. What type of worker am I?
I like to see indicators of progress as I am making something, for example watching color slowly flood over a painting. I also enjoy solo work as I can be as creative as I want to be and if I push myself it doesn’t stress others with me. I love being hands on and building something from the ground up.
12. How do I want others to see me?
Someone kind that they can trust. Someone strong and courageous that they respect. Someone who understands them and someone they can be authentic with. I human overflowing with brilliant, quirky, creative ideas.
13. What makes me sad?
People feeling unloved. People feeling helpless. Feeling fake in front of others and not knowing how to stop. Consciously realizing I am falling apart and not trying to put it back together. Being too scared to speak. Feeling trapped and responsible for the wellbeing of others.
14. What makes me happy?
Having the courage to try something new. Rollercoasters, skydiving, adrenaline junkie stuff. Singing in the shower. Staying active and exploring the outdoors. Making something magical to share with others. Genuine conversations. Debugging a difficult coding problem at 11pm. True love. True friendship. Learning a new skill. Performing. Helping someone out. Feeling powerful. Sleeping.
15. What makes me angry?
Seeing things being wasted when others are starving. When people purposefully try to hurt others. When people refuse to change for the better.
16. What type of person do I want to be?
Someone who inspires others and travels the world with a smile. Someone who can bring out the authentic, best self in others.
17. What type of friend do I want to be?
Supportive and loving but also unafraid to push people outside their comfort zones. I want to be a friend who adds color to people’s lives and makes every day exciting.
18. What do I think about myself?
I think I have a lot of strong qualities like my creativity and my desire to do good. At the same time, I think I am weird and foolish to others. And part of me believes that about myself too. I feel like the way I have been living is so far from the way I want to be living, and that makes me a walking joke.
19. What things do I value in life?
People, authenticity, love, freedom, and hope. I value open-mindedness and noticing new aspects of life constantly. I value growth through overcoming challenges and pushing myself to do something ambitious.
20. What makes me afraid?
Hurting others. Being unable to control myself, with death being the ultimate loss of control. Enslavement. Rejection.
After completing this exercise, I realize there are aspects of my life that constantly bring me down and don’t align with who I want to be. At the same time, there are amazing things in my life that I want to seek further involvement with! With everything, it’s a learning process, and I believe that understanding myself is the first step to making real changes in my own life. I hope joining me in the process has been helpful for you too. I’d love to know your answers to these 20 questions. Feel free to leave some answers in the comments!
Until next time!
