"How do you know if, say, marrying your dating partner will lead to long-term happiness? Or whether accepting a demanding new job (with all the added responsibilities and time dedication) will bring lasting fulfillment? These and other major life choices are made based on the belief that you truly know yourself (i.e. your abilities, values, and desires). In other words, they rely on (presumably accurate) self-knowledge."
"We often overestimate our positive traits, like intelligence, attractiveness, honesty, or kindness. Blind spots in self-awareness hinder growth by distorting how we see ourselves. Accurate self-knowledge helps us make better life, career, and relationship decisions. A recent paper in Current Opinion in Psychology by Thielmann and Burghart explores the limits of self-knowledge, why it matters, and how we can strengthen self-awareness. In this article, I discuss how to know yourself better and why accurate self-knowledge is essential for personal growth."
Accurate self-knowledge influences major life choices such as marriage and career by aligning decisions with abilities, values, and desires. Personality-related self-knowledge shapes identity, decisions, and well-being through perceptions of traits like conscientiousness. Psychological research indicates frequent flaws in self-awareness, including overly positive self-perceptions and blind spots for socially desirable traits that others can observe. Positive bias can support self-esteem but also produce inaccurate predictions and poor decisions. Individuals with traits such as narcissism show especially pronounced blind spots. Strengthening self-awareness and correcting biases can improve decision quality and long-term outcomes.
Read at Psychology Today
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