Awareness is one of the most common ideas used in the field of personal growth and excellence, but it’s also one of the most difficult to achieve. It’s an idea that’s easy for us to point to, but the path to getting there isn’t always straight. It’s easy for us to say that awareness is the first step, that when you become aware you can begin to heal. But what is awareness really? How do we get there and where do we go once we have?

Awareness is simply knowing.

It’s a consciousness of what’s going on around you and inside you. There can be awareness of world events or of bodily sensations. There can be awareness of moral rightness or of ethics and law. The more aware we are of ourselves and our situations, the bigger the picture we are able to see. When we are aware of how we feel, we can understand how it may be clouding our judgements. When we are aware of another person’s social background, we may better understand her viewpoints. And importantly, when we are aware of how what we do affects other people we are able to make a choice that resonates with our deepest truth.

How our decisions affect other people

This has been the object of philosophical and legal debates for centuries. If there was an easy answer I’m sure we’d all know it. That’s why awareness is so crucial to the process of skilled action. When we decide to do something, we not only affect ourselves but also the world around us. It may not be a butterfly’s wingbeat causing a hurricane, but the effects are there.
A simple way to know how your actions are affecting other people is to ask. Think of a project you’re working on right now. Think of all the people in your life who may or may not be involved in the project. Ask some of them what’s changed since you started this project. The answers might surprise you. Even the people we think are entirely uninvolved may have something notable to say. Maybe it’s a change in your demeanor. Maybe your idea has become all you talk about. Maybe you ignore your friends in order to get more done. Maybe you give and give and give to a person in need, and what you’re really doing is enabling them to remain dependent.

It isn’t always easy to see how we are affecting the people around us.

We sometimes wear blinders and are so absorbed in our own situations that we forget about everyone else. Growing up, I was close to a man who all his life had struggled with alcoholism. I remember clearly when during a heated conversation, he blurted out “How can you say what I’m doing is wrong? My drinking only hurts me, and no-one else!” At hearing this, I was astounded. Many of his friends, loved ones, and co-workers were suffering because of his behavior, and he was completely unaware. Many of our situations aren’t so black and white, but when we look hard enough we can all begin to see areas of our lives which could use a look.

A simple shift in awareness is all it takes

But it isn’t easy. We have to start small, and over time with discipline we’ll gradually become aware of more and more of what’s inside us and what motivates other people. Eventually, on the road of awareness, we’ll have a wider perspective. One that we didn’t even know we could achieve. A perspective that other people couldn’t fathom. It can take years to develop such a perspective, but it’s worth it to know that when you make a decision, you can make it with the highest and best interests of everyone involved. Many medical professions still take versions Hippocrates’s oath, which states “Above all, do no harm.” When we are aware, we stand a better chance of upholding such an oath.
Have you recently become aware of something which was previously shadowed? What brought on this awareness?
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LOVE
Dr. Ryan K. Marchman