Take a Journey of Self-discovery: 3 Exercises to Enhance Your Journey

So, your life has just been flipped upside down, or you feel lost from who you once were. Life constantly throws curve balls at us, from break-ups to new jobs to parenthood. Over time, with these curve balls, we adjust to our surroundings. Eventually, we don’t know who we are or how we got here. This is where the journey of self-discovery begins. 

Society tries to make us focus on what little boxes we fit in, which clouds our visions of what is essential. I have news for you… screw all the little boxes. No one fits into the stereotypical views that society has created. It is time to purge the impressions placed upon us and embark on the journey of self-discovery. We must start embracing who we are, the good, the bad, and the in-between. 

On this journey of self-discovery, I dare you:

I dare you to throw out all the conventional terms and checklists of who you should be. Just be who you are in this moment. Today is the day to take charge of your life and mold it into what you want it to be. If you want to get paid to travel and live your best life without a conventional job, then go for it. If you want to be a funny stay-at-home soccer mom, you can do it. If you want to be the CEO of your own company, then get off your butt and do it. 

No matter what, we were all given gifts to succeed at achieving our purpose in life. But we forget this when society tells us we can’t. It is time to strip ourselves of the opinions and impressions of the outside world because they are not us. They can’t see the vision that we have in our minds. They do not know what we are capable of.  When we allow them to stop us from pursuing what we desire in life, we give away our power. Stop giving away your power! There is no right way or wrong way to live life. There is only your way! At the end of the day, you are the one who must live with your choices and your actions. They will choose to stay or leave no matter what, so make your life worth living. 

I am telling you this today because a lot of us are trying to display a perfect image of ourselves to the public and abusing ourselves behind closed doors when we are not being the people who society says we should be. We should be embracing who we are, not trying to hide it. We were created to be perfect in our own way. In addition, how could we embrace ourselves if we do not know who we truly are? So, with this said, it is time to start our journey of self-discovery and find out the answers to the questions we are asking ourselves. This will enable you on your journey to create your dream life.

Create your path….

We all have paths, dreams, and lives that no one else can envision. No one else will see their importance if we do not set out to make them come true. Your dreams are instilled in you because they will enhance the world when they are created. Learning who we are can help us make our dreams come true faster since we will know our strengths, weaknesses, and more.  Showing people who you truly are will allow others to do the same. When we are successful, we create new paths for others to follow so that they can succeed and power the future. Self-discovery looks different to everyone, but here are a few exercises to help you get the most out of your journey.

Here are three activities to enhance your self-discovery journey:

Let’s learn who you truly are with a few questions:

1. What do you want to be?
2. Do you think you are an optimist or a pessimist?
3. What are your strengths?
4. What is your dream job?
5. Create your perfect morning routine.
6. Create your ideal night routine.
7. What would an excellent day look like for you?
8. Are you a procrastinator or a self-starter?
9. What makes you want to start something new or in general?
10. What do you like to do for fun?
11. Who are your close friends?
12. Do you enjoy staying home or going out?
13. List what you are ashamed of.
14. What are your short-term and long-term goals?
15. List all your fears.
16. List all your favorites.
17. What is your greatest weakness?
18. List what you worry about.
19. What new things do you want to try?
20. Are you religious or spiritual? What does that look like for you?
21. Where do you feel the safest?
22. Who was the most influential?
23. Who had the most negative impact on your life? Why and how can you come to terms with it?
24. What are your core values?
25. Who matters to you most and why?
26. What is something you wish you could have?
27. What or who brings you comfort?
28. If you weren’t afraid, what would you do?
29. What are your proudest moments?
30. What was a fantastic memory from your childhood?
31. Who do you admire most and why?
32. What was your biggest failure?
33. Are you a night owl or a morning person?
34. Do you like your job, and why? If not, what would you wish you could be doing?
35. What is your favorite kind of music or artist?
36. What do you criticize yourself most about?
37. Are you more of an introvert or extrovert?
38. What are your happiest memories?
39. List everything you are grateful for.
40. When you are feeling down, what do you like to do?
41. How do you know when you are stressed?
42. How do you handle being stressed?
43. How do you destress?
44. What makes you mad? How do you release your anger?
45. Do you have any addictions? How do they affect your life? Are you getting help to cope with them?
46. Do you like sweet, salty, or sour more?
47. What are your deepest fantasies/Desires?
48. Do you want kids?
49. What do you think your life would be like with them?
50. What do you want to teach them? 
51. How do they positively impact your life? 
52. How has your life become more difficult?
53. Do you have a sound support system?
54. What would your perfect spouse be like?
55. If you have a spouse, what do you love about them? What are habits you are trying to cope with?
56. Is it a healthy relationship? 
57. Are you both growing together?
58. Are they holding you back or uplifting you?
59. Who do you surround yourself with? Why? Have they had a positive impact on your life, and how?
60. Do you view yourself as an artist, writer, scientist, or ________?
61. What are you learning on your self-discovery journey?

Now, let’s push you out of your comfort zone:

Getting out of your comfort zone will unlock new parts of your identity. Your comfort zone was created to help you stay safe, but it holds you back most days. Doing the things that you are most afraid of will allow you to see what you are truly capable of. In addition, it will let the fear disappear and stop holding you back from achieving your dream life. 

1. Conquer your fears. Take your list of your fears and start facing them one by one head-on. Some examples are skydiving when you are afraid of heights. 
2. Learn to Dance
3. Find a role model who overcomes some of the same hurdles you are facing. Learn how they did it and try to apply it to your life.
4. Go after your dream, even when you do not have a backup plan. Life is too short to stay at a standstill. 
5. Shut off your electronics for a day. 
6. Try new foods. 
7. Go a day without watching TV. Find new ways to enjoy your time. 
8. Confront something or someone you have been avoiding. Holding on to negativity affects you more than whatever the other person did. 
9. Commit to a workout program and complete it. 
10. Change your daily routine. 
11. Take an improv class. 
12. Get on stage and sing a song. 
13. Watch a TV show in a different language. 
14. Hang out with someone more successful than you are. (Successful people will help you become successful.)
15. Take a trapeze class. 
16. Make a new friend outside of your circle or industry. 
17. Volunteer at a local school or nonprofit.
18. Talk to a homeless person. They are people, too, and have learned more things than you could ever know. 
19. Climb a mountain or hike. 
20. Become a mentor. 
21. Join toastmasters!
22. Apologize for past mistakes face to face. Then forgive yourself.
23. Do a no-spend challenge month. See what things you are paying for that do not bring you joy or are holding you back from your financial goals. 
24. Cut back all your expenses for a month. (Hulu, Netflix, gym membership, internet, fancy phone, etc.) Then, see what you fill your time with and how much money you save. 
25. Give you control for a day and say yes to everything. See where life leads you.
26. Go to a party alone. 

Now, I want you to journal everything that you experience. If you are stuck on this one, here are a few things that can get you started.

1. What do you want to get out of your self-discovery journey today?
2. How did you feel this week and why?
3. What did you do? Was it something new? Were you excited or afraid? How did it turn out and make you feel?
4. Did you meet anyone new?
5. How was school or work? How was your day?
6. What is the most beautiful thing you have seen this week?
7. What was the most terrifying thing you have seen?
8. What is the one thing that completely changes your life?
9. Does history repeat itself in your life?
10. What was the biggest lesson you learned when you were a child?
11. What would your dream life look like?
12. Have you ever been in love, and how did that work out? 
13. Make up an alter ego for yourself? Please give them a name, and they describe their qualities, looks, personalities, skills, and more. 
14. What would it be if you could invent one thing to make your life easier?
15. Who is your hero? Why do you admire them?
16. What is the greatest gift you could ever receive?
17. Do you think of yourself as a cold person or a warm person, and why?
18. What is the greatest mistake you have ever made?
19. What is your most deeply held belief?
20. Who is your celebrity crush? What do you find appealing about them?
21. If you were to have a mantra, what would it be?
22. What is one adventure you would love to go on?
23. If you could live anywhere, where and why?
24. What are your religious beliefs and practices? Are you satisfied with them, or how would you change them?

Now, I want you to put it all together with steps. 

1. Visualize yourself and your future.
   1. I want you to visualize who you are, where you are going, how you will get there, and what success looks like.
2. Explore your passions!
   1. I want you to dive into your passions and explore them in-depth. Learn what you like about them, how they make you feel, and how they come from a cherished time in your life. 
3. Evaluate your skills!
   1. Take something you love doing and try to learn more about it. Then, practice the new skills you learn to see how far you can go. Can you become an expert in the field? 
4. Keep journaling it out.
   1. Journaling your process or life will allow you to unlock new parts of yourself and heal the trauma in your life. 
5. If you need additional support for this self-discovery journey or the journey to creating your dream life… find a life coach that empowers you or a therapist to help you heal. 

Beautiful,

Remember, you are more important to this world and others than you will ever know. So, get out there, create your vision, and live your best life. You are an inspiration. You are a go-getter. Your dreams are important. You are powerful. Show the world who you are and change some lives today. Know who you are and what you stand for. Remember to embrace your self-discovery journey to its fullest. The path is not the same for everyone. Your path through self-discovery might be more bumpy than others, but it is important to stick to it and not take the easy way out.