5 CREDIBLE STEPS TO ATTAIN TRUE SELF-DISCOVERY FOR TEENS
Teenagers usually ask this question “Who am I?” as we
transit from childhood to adulthood. We try to find out who we really are and
what our capabilities are and what our weaknesses are. We find it more
surprising that our identities change when we are with different people. We do
not act the same way with our friends as we do when we are in the company of
our parents. We try to find that centre; that sense of total knowledge f
ourselves, who we really are. There is usually this sense of us being neither
here nor there, but as we approach adulthood, we gradually acquire self-discovery;
the question is “is it true self-discovery?” Puberty however doesn’t help us
out in discovering ourselves during our teen years. We start developing beards,
larger hips, broader shoulders, protruding breasts, deeper voices,
higher-pitched voices, etc. We are confronted with hormonal changes and
physical changes that we try to understand. Being so young, and having never
experienced this sort of thing before, we compare ourselves with others. We ask
why we are developing faster or slower in certain parts in comparison to our
peers. Thus we tend to gravitate towards those our peers who seem to ‘have it
all figured out’.
In a bid to discover ourselves, we would try to flex our
independence which is characteristic of adulthood. This to us means being able
to make decisions by ourselves and we do not want anybody imposing their
standards on us. We, who used to be very obedient kids, now turned into these
rebellious youngsters questioning everything we are told, trying to establish
the paradigms that should guide our thoughts and not being remote-controlled by
those of others. However, these ways which we seem to lose ourselves—rebellion,
mood swings, egocentrism, narcissism, etc—have helped us to find ourselves in
the end.
For most of us who may still be struggling with identity
crisis, I did my research to find credible ways to help you discover that great
person that is locked inside of you. Most times, what inhibits our
self-discovery is the pleasure we get from remaining confined in our comfort
zones, where we don’t have to go over ourselves to do stuff, that’s the point
where things come easily, we are lazy to stretch those boundaries, break those
chains and release that power which is locked inside us.
To achieve true self-discovery, you must be willing to
challenge yourself, to break those limits. Do not set any maximum for what you
feel you could achieve because that could just be where the start line was
placed.
STEPS TO ATTAIN TRUE
SELF-DISCOVERY
1.
INTROSPECT
Search yourself for that flame that drives you. Find out
what your passions are, what your talents are. Set a clear view of what you
want to become, what you want to achieve. Acknowledge your uniqueness and be
confident of who you see in the mirror. Develop that hunger to know more about
yourself. That would give you the desire to take that giant leap out of your
comfort zone.
2. BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF
When finding out your passions and talents, be honest with
yourself. Resist the turbulent waves of peer pressure; don’t be the jellyfish
that swims wherever the current takes it, rather be the whale that dares to
swim against the tide where necessary. Don’t pick your passions based on what
your peers are doing, pick them because they are truly your passions. Don’t say
“OH! I have a passion for dancing” just because you finished watching a
complete Step-Up movie. Be true to yourself so you don’t regret it later.
3. CHOOSE A MENTOR
Have someone who you can always tell about your journey in
attaining self-discovery. Someone who understands you and supports you. This
person could even be your peer; but t’s usually better to have an older person
who has passed through this sort of thing and should know better ways to help
you out. The disadvantage of having your peer as your mentor through this
journey of self-discovery is that you are both very young and are still trying
to figure yourselves out; it’s like a blind man leading a fellow blind man,
there’s still a great chance of falling into a ditch!
4. BE OPEN TO CHANGE
In your journey of attaining self-discovery, expect changes—times
that once again make you question yourself and your progress. Dare to dream big
and aspire towards becoming and achieving what may seem impossible, you may
even end up being better than that. Remember that in this journey of attaining
self-discovery, there is no such thing as making a mistake, those ‘mistakes’
are very good opportunities for you to learn!
5. BE HAPPY
Most people may not see the importance of this step, however,
it is as important as every other step mentioned here. When you stay happy and
thankful for how far you have come in attaining self-discovery, you would inspire
yourself to do more. Never complain about what you have not become or what you
do not have, look back at what you have accomplished and just smile!
Now you know how to discover yourself. It is very important
for every teenager to discover himself or herself. It would help you to become
whatever you may become in life. I would leave you with this to think about:
“Only the self-aware rule the world”
- Arinze Obiezue
1 comments:
This is such an insightful article! I think every teen should read it!
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