Man Know Thyself– Socrates

The great philosopher, Socrates was very right when he said that man should know himself. How well do you know yourself? Knowing yourself speaks to self-knowledge, self-awareness and mindfulness. One thing I have discovered is that many human beings are not original. Their thoughts are not their thoughts. Their opinions are not theirs. This shouldn’t be.

What does self-knowledge mean? According to Stanford Encyclopedia of philosophy, self-knowledge refers to knowledge of one’s own sensations, thoughts, beliefs, and other mental states. It also means a person’s understanding of themselves, how they think, their feelings and behavior.

 Knowing who you are is very important. When you know yourself, you know why you think the way you think and why you do things the way you do. When you know yourself, you know your purpose; the reason why you are here on earth. When you know yourself, you know how much you are lacking and how much you need to improve. A lot of people do not know themselves. When you do not know yourself, you do not have a mind of your own. You can be easily controlled by the situations and people in your life. So it is very important to know yourself.

Now, knowing yourself isn’t just about knowing your best color, food, drink, etc. It’s about getting to know you like you get to know another human being. It is about enjoying being in your presence. It may sound just wrong. Why would I want to be around myself when I am always with me? If you find hanging out alone really boring, maybe you don’t know yourself enough to enjoy your company. When you don’t know yourself, you do not know your value, neither can you appreciate your worth. Anyone can be allowed to take advantage of what you have to offer because you do not know how much it is worth. When you do not know yourself, everything goes. You do not control life, life controls you.

What are the benefits of knowing yourself?

There are so many benefits to knowing yourself. Some of them include:

1. You live at peace with yourself: When you know yourself, you realize that you are happy with yourself. A lot of people are strangers to themselves. No one can live happily with a stranger all their life except they get to know that stranger and invest in the relationship. So get to know yourself by spending more quality time with yourself. I’m not speaking about the time you spend alone doing some chore or watching a movie or listening to music. Really get to know you. Sit down and enjoy your own solitude. Probe yourself as to why you act the way you do. You can never be at peace with yourself if you are angry with yourself or hate yourself for your past mistakes which have cost you lost opportunities. Whatever your beef with yourself is, come to peace with yourself. Tell yourself, it is time to make this relationship work.

2. You live a Happy life: Everyone desires to have a happy life. Chances are that you do all you do to try to be happy. Getting to know yourself makes you see the good in yourself and work at improving yourself daily which makes you ultimately happy.

3. You see no other competition except yourself: When you know yourself, you realize that there is only one of you. You don’t spend your entire life wishing you were someone else. You see the importance of striving to be the best version of yourself. Rather than hate on others, you appreciate the gifts they have and learn from their success.

4. You have more confidence in yourself and abilities: Knowing who you are and who you were created to be gives you all the confidence you need to achieve success. It gives you a head start in seeking the right resources and support system you need to getting you where you need to be.

5. Knowing who you are teaches you self-control: Learning self-control is so important in living a beautiful life. You know how to manage your needs, finances, relationships and other areas concerning your life. A person with self-control manages their emotion well and know how to make good decisions for themselves and others around them.

When you know yourself, you live a truly happy life. It is when you discover who you are that you know how best to live. You see, people always look to you to know how best to address you. If you do not know your worth, the world will never acknowledge you. So don’t despise yourself. Don’t look down on your little beginnings. Never measure or compare yourself with other people. Those that do this are not wise. You are only permitted to learn from other people. Never forget that you are so special. The world waits upon you to give what you were designed to.