Wherever you go and whatever you read, you’ll stumble upon this popular saying: “Honesty is the best policy.”
Indeed, we couldn’t agree more with that. But what about self-honesty? What does it mean to be honest with yourself?
We live in a world where we’re bombarded with fake perfection. We are offered instant solutions to finding true happiness, and we blindly follow the rules without ever questioning anything.
We worry more about what others think of us than what we think about ourselves. Self-deception has become the biggest plague of the 21st century.
The only way to change something is by accepting it in its true form (be it positive or negative). If you’re not honest with yourself, your life will become an illusion and self-improvement, something abstract (unreachable).
The only way to be your true self is to accept and see yourself for who you really are and not who others or the media want you to be.
Being dishonest with yourself means choosing to see what you want to see and often ignoring what you don’t want to see. This is a recipe for short-term happiness.
Do you want to know the recipe for long-term happiness and an easier life? It’s hidden inside you. The only way to be truly happy is to be honest with yourself (and practice emotional self-care)!
How To Be Honest With Yourself
Acknowledge both the positive and negative aspects of your life
By observing myself and close people around me, I’ve realized that human beings have this tendency to only (or primarily) focus on positive things in their lives.
Why do we do that? Is it because we’re subconsciously running away from problems rather than facing them?
We’re perfectly aware of the fact that those problems will eventually catch up with us and turn our lives into a living hell, but still, we choose to focus only on things we CHOOSE to.
And it’s high time we change that! It’s high time YOU change that! Instead of focusing only on the positive things in your life, acknowledge both the positive and negative aspects.
Don’t run away from your problems, but be honest with yourself and face them like the real warrior that you are!
If you only knew what vast potential you carry inside you, you would never be afraid to challenge yourself or your beliefs again.
The only person who can make a change in your life is YOU!
Be honest about your mistakes and failures
“The only constant in life is change.” – Heraclitus.
Life is full of ups and downs, successes, and failures. Living means making mistakes, falling down, standing up, fighting, and never giving up.
When something good happens to us, we proudly take credit for it and tell others about it. But, when facing life hardships, we often blame the universe or others for what’s happening to us.
Is it because we don’t want to admit to ourselves that we’re only human beings and allowed to make mistakes?
Or are we so worried about what others will think of us if they see what a terrible decision we’ve made in life?
Let me tell you one thing: Whatever happens to you in life, it happens for a reason. Your mistakes are an inevitable part of your journey called life, and they are here for a reason.
They are here to teach you valuable lessons that will make you stronger, more resilient, and wiser.
So, be proud and be honest about your mistakes and failures, learn to take responsibility, and to keep fighting and trying again no matter how many times you fail in life.
That’s the only way to finding true happiness and being at peace with yourself.
Take time to evaluate
Do you know what the greatest gift given to all of us for free is? Time.
We often take time for granted until something terrible happens and motivate us to appreciate the seconds, minutes, hours, and days more than before.
Don’t wait for that to happen. Instead of taking time for granted, take time to reflect on your day.
Find one or two good things that happened to you today and be grateful for them. Also, think about the things that could be improved in the future.
The truth is, people are only usually grateful for life-changing events, and they fail to appreciate all the little things that (should) mean so much to us. Celebrate both the small wins and big wins.
The only way to become the best version of yourself is by doing a daily self-assessment.
This will help you take responsibility for your actions, focus on things that need to be improved, and it will help you become a master at problem-solving.
Evaluation means tracking your progress. It’s about being honest with yourself and having a clear insight into all the things you can improve today.
Acknowledge and embrace all your feelings
From an early age, we’re often taught that feeling sad, broken, and hurt are bad emotions. When you’re feeling happy, you’re not afraid to share your happiness with the whole world, right?
But, when you’re feeling off, you probably don’t feel comfortable showing it in front of others or even acknowledging it to yourself?
Suppressing your emotions is one of the most toxic things you could do to yourself.
No matter what the media, people around you, or anyone else says to you, know one thing: It is OKAY to feel a wide array of emotions. It is okay to be emotionally vulnerable.
It is okay to be unhappy and feel depressed just because someone you really like didn’t text you back or feel insecure about certain things.
You don’t need to be happy 24/7. You don’t need to “fake it till you make it.” You need to be honest with yourself and allow yourself to feel a wide array of emotions and not see them as something negative.
Question what you’re feeling, express yourself, and show the world that you’re not afraid of being who you really are! And do you know why? Because you’re an amazing human being.
See also: This Is What Loving Yourself Really Means
Stop overthinking and blaming yourself for everything
And for the love of God, stop overthinking and blaming yourself for everything that happens to you in life!
Understand and accept that you’re not in control of everything, and therefore, you cannot blame yourself for things you couldn’t influence.
There are so many factors responsible for the outcomes of every event in your life, so thinking that it’s your fault that something happened is beyond all reason.
Overthinking is one of the biggest culprits for many mental health problems.
Instead of overthinking things or blaming yourself for something that happened to you, find the courage to accept the things you cannot change. Learn to accept things as they are.
You can’t go back to the past and change what happened, but you can focus on being in the moment today and change what’s happening right now in front of you.
You can’t know what will happen in the future, but you can prepare yourself today the best you can for future challenges.
Replace overthinking with hope and replace blame with the belief that everything happens for a reason.
Here’s one of the most beautiful everything happens for a reason quotes to remind you of that: “Realize that if a door closed, it’s because what was behind it wasn’t meant for you.” – Mandy Hale
Seek an outside perspective
Getting a complete picture of ourselves also includes seeking an outside perspective from our family and friends.
One of the reasons people avoid seeking an outside perspective is because they’re not ready to hear the truth. However, you might also have friends who are not genuinely honest with you.
Real honesty doesn’t require a disclaimer. True friends will never be afraid to tell you what they think of you and how things are because they know it’s the only way to help you progress.
If you’re having a hard time seeking an outside perspective from the people close to you, you can always talk to a licensed therapist. Talking to a person who isn’t a part of your life can be extremely beneficial.
A therapist can provide new insights and offer new perspectives that none of your friends and family can.
And if you’re feeling a little bit insulted and disappointed in yourself once you see how others perceive you, know that this is a good sign. It’s the first step to accepting things as they are and deciding to work on yourself.
Trust your intuition
Have you ever made an impulse decision? I’ve done it multiple times, and almost every time, I regretted doing it. Do you know why?
Because I didn’t listen to my intuition and only focused on what I wanted in that one moment, and I didn’t (want to) see things as they were.
I didn’t want to listen to that little voice in my head telling me to do or not to do something because I wasn’t honest with myself.
Be honest with yourself. Your self-awareness is the most valuable tool you have at your disposal. The more you master your intuition, the more you’ll be in touch with your true self.
They say that listening to your intuition is listening to your soul telling you what you should do and what you should avoid doing. Trusting your soul means being honest with yourself.
Accept the fact that you don’t need to know everything
No matter how educated you are, how many books you read, or what courses you attend, there are still some things you don’t know, and that’s more than okay.
Being honest with yourself also means admitting to yourself that your knowledge is imperfect. The only way to be realistic and humble is to embrace imperfection.
If we think that our knowledge is superior and we know everything, we will not be motivated to learn new things and expand our horizons.
That is why it’s important to accept that we’ll never be able to know everything, but we will be able to keep learning.
Don’t be satisfied with mediocrity. Strive to become more successful, more organized, and more knowledgeable.
And remember that your skills and knowledge don’t need to be perfect, but always make some space for self-improvement.
Learn to forgive yourself
Self-forgiveness is one of the hardest things you’ll ever do in life.
It’s easy to forgive someone when they hurt you (especially if it was unintentionally), but forgiving yourself for letting them do that to you is the hardest part.
But it’s necessary, and you need to do it. If you want to be 100% honest with yourself, you need to learn how to forgive yourself.
Forgive yourself for every bad decision in your past, for every encounter with toxic people, and for not being able to protect yourself when you needed to. Forgive yourself for not being perfect.
Forgive yourself for not trusting your intuition, for foolishly believing every lie they said to you, and for thinking that you’re not good enough.
Once you do that, you will realize that you’ve been too hard on yourself. You will no longer dwell on your past, but you will learn to be in the moment and embrace the present.
See also: 6 Ways To Be Loyal To Yourself And Why It’s So Important
Accept the fact that you don’t need to be perfect
How many times have you compared yourself with others and thought they are better, stronger, or prettier than you? How many times have you wished to be perfect?
I bet one too many, and it’s no wonder. The media and social networks bombard us with all those perfect bodies, flawless makeup, perfect lifestyles, and whatnot.
And that is when we start thinking to ourselves that we’ll never reach that perfection. That is when we start lying to ourselves.
We start buying things to cover our imperfections instead of working on self-acceptance and embracing them.
Stop comparing yourself with a prettier girl or a guy! Be honest with yourself. Admit to yourself that you have lots of imperfections, and that’s perfectly okay.
Avoid negative self-talk. Work on yourself, but never strive to reach perfection because that will never happen. Do you want to know the real answer to the question: What is true happiness?
To have a strong sense of self. True happiness means being honest with yourself and believing yourself.
It means not worrying about what other people think of you and not wishing to be flawless, but accepting all your imperfections as something that makes you unique and special!
Learn to express yourself
Learn to express yourself emotionally, mentally, and physically.
Did you know that emotional intelligence is the key to happiness and success? So, don’t be afraid to express your feelings and tap into the depths of your sensitive side.
Being honest with yourself also means doing things that you’re passionate about. Is it drawing, singing, dancing, or something else?
What is it that you enjoy doing but keep telling yourself that you don’t have time for it?
Your passions are an important part of your identity – of your true self. You can express yourself in various ways, from unique outfits to your talents.
Don’t just follow what’s trending right now but focus on creating your own trends. Don’t pretend that you like something just because the majority of people do.
Show the world your true colors! Create your own path of truth and offer the world something new that others can’t.
Love yourself
Do you know what the only way to get in touch with your authentic self is? By practicing self-love and self-care. Learning to love yourself is one of the most challenging things in one’s life.
It’s truly amazing how fast we fall in love with others, but when it comes to loving ourselves, we turn it into an everlasting battle. But, it doesn’t have to be like this.
If you want to learn to love yourself, positive affirmations for happiness and success will help you. Practice these affirmations daily, and after each session, you’ll feel more connected with your authentic self.
At the end of the day, you can hide your true self from the world, but you can’t hide it from yourself.
And Be Patient!
Learning how to be honest with yourself in a world where everyone is trying to be something they’re not is challenging. But it’s necessary if you want to live a happier life!
In a world full of fake things and artificial happiness, dare to be different! Dare to be your true self!
Start your day with a positive mindset, and make the best of it! Don’t seek perfection, but also don’t be too self-critical.
See things as they are, work on improving them, and stay patient. It’s the only formula you’ll ever need for living a happier life and reaching your full potential.