5 Easy Steps to Greater Self-Awareness

By Susan Nefzger, author of A Practical Guide to Living Fearlessly and A Practical Guide to Awareness 

I wrote a book titled, “A Practical Guide to Awareness” because I was led to do so. The book is a step-by-step guide to finding fulfillment through self-awareness. Apparently, I could no longer ignore the little voice in my head. The voice was whispering to me my entire life. As a native of West Palm Beach growing up, I had always known I was to write a book, but little else about it. I went on to a career in public relations, had a family, and settled down … thinking that was it for any further surprises in my life.

Flashback to December 2014 to an email I received containing the information regarding a ‘Conscious Writing Retreat’ in Glastonbury, Somerset, U.K. The originator of the email was a group I had joined a few years earlier, the International Association of Conscious and Creative Writers, founded by Julia McCutchen. Previously, I did not have time to engage in writing prompts and exercises meant to inspire my creative spark. However, this day I was pulled in and my gut instinct told me to follow through on signing up for the retreat. I did sign up and was supported in doing so, from that day onward. I followed the inspiration and wound up in England, spring of 2015 participating in what would prove to be a life-changing experience in every way.

Transformative is the most accurate way to understand how the process affected me, my business, and my family.  I arrived as one person and left as a totally different entity with a new way of looking at the world. You may be wondering, how did that occur?

The process of ‘Conscious Writing’ is meant to help align oneself with creative consciousness in order to write what you are meant to write. It works, trust me.

On the first day of the retreat, I wrote the outline for the book and started writing the book itself within the gardens of the Glastonbury Abbey ruins. The rest is history as they say, and later in 2018, I published the book.

Here are five steps toward awakening from A Practical Guide to Awareness.

1. Self-Perception Activity – Sit in a quiet place and visualize your dreams. See your perfect world. Assemble images that depict an ideal world for you. These images represent how you see yourself. After you have an album of images, see how much better you feel by changing it to reflect your inner happiness. See how specific changes to the album reflect your feelings. Pay attention to your inner discourse and journal it. It will assist you in clarifying your needs and thereby knowing yourself better. After rearranging images to the point of FEELING the scene is right for you, journal it. Later try different image arrangements as your journey proceeds.
2. Creating Space – Create space in your daily life that brings you to awareness. This can be done through breath work, affirmations, meditation, or even by the practice of recognizing the commitments in your life. When we sit down and look at our calendars, it forces us to review our responsibility to ourselves and others, with calmness and patience prior to any issues arising.
   NOTE: Awareness pp 2. We then see what may cause a problem later on in the day or month and we can reconcile it. Notice where you may have just replied yes without thinking about the time it takes or the other obligations in your day. Make time for yourself in the daily grind, for a 30-minute of respite.
3. Self-Care – Self-care is the most important aspect of awareness, because in order to care for others we must be happy and healthy. If not, we cannot fulfill our commitments to our family, friends, and colleagues. Put your needs first by recognizing them then put those needs ahead of any other.
   What is it that starts your day off on the right foot? A cup of coffee on the porch, a walk in the park, meditating for five minutes, doing breathing work? Do it. Like being thirsty for water, being thirsty in your soul can lead to unhappiness. Consider how your continued unhappiness affects others in your life. This is being self-aware. Practicing self-care leads to enhanced energy and greater happiness.
4. Mindfulness Exercise – Take a walk. Do you notice what surrounds you? Try describing to yourself what is in the present moment. We can only be alive right now in the present. It is all we have.  Being aware of the present allows us to be open to all possibilities. Try it without electronics or technology or being preoccupied by the future, for 15 minutes then longer, as your progress in being aware. Note how you feel afterwards.
5. Committing to Awareness – If you feel that something is missing in your life, then begin to apply a few of these practices. Opportunities for awareness present themselves in many forms. Be open to change! Stay alert to what makes you feel excited, happy, and grateful. Whatever leaves you feeling positive and contributing to something greater than yourself, pay attention. That is the beginning, and the answers will appear, if you are seeking. Trust in the process.

Author Bio:

A veteran public relations professional spanning over a highly substantive 30-year career, Susan sought answers on her quest for self-actualization. This led to a complete life transformation while attending a retreat in Glastonbury, England, in 2015, where inspiration flowed forth providing the impetus to write and publish “A Practical Guide to Awareness”, and the next year, “Putting Awareness into Practice”.  She is the author of A Practical Guide to Living Fearlessly, A Practical Guide to Awareness and its companion workbook — Putting Awareness into Practice.

Susan resides in Charleston, S.C.  where she employs the magic of the low country to share her inspiration with others via online courses, workshops, and retreats. Stay tuned for the retreat schedule coming soon here: http://seeingbeyondtheordinary.com visit or @tips_for_fearless_living on Instagram.