Is self-awareness a strength of yours?

Are you someone who finds that motivation can wane from day to day, week to week?

Have you ever considered the underlying connection between self-awareness and motivation levels?

Now, before you flash back to that boring classroom assessment or university task that had you ‘reflecting’ on your Christmas holidays, pause. I am referring to the action of being inquisitive about your words, actions, feelings, and reactions to everyday experiences. Building your understanding of why I, as well as others, respond to various environments, interactions and conflict in the way that we do.

Reflective practise is important for many reasons, but this article will explain how simple self-reflection can help navigate what is commonly referred to as low motivation. I will also discuss how self-awareness can be a bridge from constant obstacles to successful action throughout your health and wellbeing journey.

Self-awareness and its Impact on Motivation

Literature highlights several definitions for self-awareness [1]. However, to put it simply, being self-aware is developing a deeper understanding of your internal (beliefs, interests, goals, personality etc.) and external (perceived physical appearance and behaviour) being. Becoming self-aware has various impacts on our life – in this blog I want to highlight the significant positive impact it can have on personal development.

Becoming self-aware allows you to dive into the pathways of your brain and the various outcomes that actions and words may have. It has you questioning your thoughts and providing explanations for exactly why who have a history of making certain decisions. For example, many, if not all of us have skipped going to the gym because we didn’t feel like it. However, I’d challenge you to think about why you don’t feel like it. Has something bothered you that day? Do you have a clear picture of why you’re going to the gym? Do you simply not enjoy going to the gym? Self-awareness, is looking deeper within ourselves and overriding decisions we know won’t contribute to a healthier lifestyle.

Whether it be at work, home or in the gym, losing motivation, passion or simply feeling underwhelmed by a lack of achievement or fulfilment within our day is not an uncommon phase of our lives. However, developing our self-awareness can aid in understanding why we are having these feeling and thoughts, thus allowing us to push through, find joy or feel satisfied with all tasks, trivial or not.

 

 

What does Reflective Practice Look Like

Consider this scenario – you’re a customer service operator who just got off the phone with someone who was very rude. You snapped, yelled back and hung up the phone. The next two hours have now been spent repeating this conversation to yourself and others, making it very difficult to calm down and enjoy the rest of your day.

Reflection Pathway

The below diagram is a very simple representation of what reflection might look like in such a scenario.

It is important to remember that reflection can yield several pathways. It’s not always one line of questioning. It may present as more of a tree, branching off into several answers or questions that arise from other questions.

The outcome is the same though – this practice will help you to have a deeper understanding of yourself and possibly others (self-awareness).

This can then be used to dictate your next action and allow for more calculated future decision-making.

 

Conclusion

In summary, reflective practice is the intentional process of examining your thoughts, actions, emotions, and reactions to better understand yourself and others, ultimately improving self-awareness and decision-making. Rather than being a formal task, it involves everyday curiosity about why you behave or feel a certain way, especially in moments of low motivation or conflict. By developing self-awareness – understanding your internal drivers like beliefs and goals, as well as your external behaviours – you can identify the root cause/s of your actions. This may help you to better navigate recurring situations such as avoiding the gym or reacting poorly in stressful situations in a way that aligns more desirably with your goals and values. This deeper insight allows you to make more deliberate healthier choices, regulate your emotions, and mitigate the effects of low motivation. Reflective practice is not linear but exploratory, often branching into multiple questions that provide consistent outcomes and more clarity.

If this is an area that you would like to improve upon to make notable health change and achieve new (or old) health and fitness goals, Seth at Restart Exercise Physiology thrives in improving his patient’s mindset around exercise, overcoming affected motivation, and improving discipline.

Call 1300 899 757 to book an initial appointment at one of our three Brisbane-based clinics today.

Yours in exercise,

Seth

Reference

1. Carden, J., Jones, R. J., & Passmore, J. (2022). Defining self-awareness in the context of adult development: A systematic literature review. Journal of Management Education, 46(1), 140–177. https://doi.org/10.1177/1052562921990065