“Just because we discover ourself doesn’t mean we’ve realized who who we are. Furthermore, just because we realized who we are doesn’t mean we’ve actualized who we are.” - RC
Self Discovery is the stepping stone to realization. Within the discovery of our self awareness we envision a picture of what would be our image. The image would be how we see ourself. The image becomes us, the image has always been us, the image is a thought process we tune into, and will never be anyone else. The image we envision is to not be shared with others. No one else can become our image. This is our image and ours alone. The image can be shared in the form of an expression, but that expression is purely our own, and will never be another individuals expression. Our image is sacred.
What is sacred can, and will never be copied. Cheap imitations are not copies. Just as humans can not create life without the action of coitus the same goes for an individuals image. Upon realizing what we have discovered we learn the inner workings of our images. We learn the pathways our energy takes to create our image. These pathways can take many avenues, and we may create many styles making it seem like our image has changed, but it has just changed form. We have the ability to express ourselves in countless ways. We can take on many thought process’, and styles, but our essence will remain the same. This is the second path of self awareness: Realization. There are many aspects to us we discover. With every discovery we need to realize the importance of each discovery. We need to realize how to put our discoveries into action. Everyone’s process will be the same, but the method will remain the same. The method being the three paths of self awareness. Self reflection may seem the same, but is much different in nature. People may argue it is a fourth path of self awareness, but that is not true. I’ve been self reflecting since I was in elementary school. Self reflection is the act of utilizing our awareness. Self- reflection is awareness itself.
For me, I discovered self reflection then I realized it’s importance so I put it into action. There’s so many people who have yet to discover this skill. Self reflection is an absolutely necessary skill we all need to curate as it aids us in our personal growth. There are countless skills that would benefit us as individuals ultimately aiding us to build more wholesome communities, self reflection is just one of those skills. Actualization is the application of what we’ve culminated. Our inner discoveries, and realizations being applied in the form of action is a necessary step in expression.
To express ourself is to never withhold ourself from being our true self. Being our self is absolutely necessary in achieving people’s acceptance. We are all individuals. We can learn from each other respectively, but never become another individual for they are and we are just that, individuals. If we attempt to be someone we fail to embody our personal truths. Embodying these truths is another form of actualizing our individuality. Individuality are the previous two paths of self awareness: discovery, and realization. The words may be interchangeable, but the method will always be the same. There are no other techniques to self awareness. The words may have synonyms, but the meaning will always be the same. The act of searching for meaning is discovery. The act of discovering the synonyms of a word is realization. The application of these words is actualization.
By: Roman Cavazos