The word AWARENESS means, the state of being conscious of something. It is the ability to perceive, understand, and be aware of one’s surroundings and oneself.
SELF-AWARENESS is awareness of one’s own strengths and weaknesses, values, and goals.
Yesterday I was talking with an incredible young entrepreneur, she was telling me all about how she is growing her new business, how she went out on her own, “Because it only made sense.” and I said to her, “wow you are quite the young entrepreneur.” She was taken aback. Until that moment she did not see herself as a trailblazing business owner. I watched in her eyes as she embraced that possibility. And then her whole body shifted as she stepped into that awareness, and a little smile rose from the corners of her mouth. That was self-awareness in real-time.
One of the first things I work on with clients when we start coaching is awareness about themselves. Hell, even when I have the free coaching call, we talk about this. If you are not aware of how your dyslexia or ADHD or both are showing up in your life in positive and negative ways, then we can’t change anything. When you don’t have awareness of something, you are not able to see that there are choices and options. So, you can’t pick a different way of doing something. Everything is just on autopilot, and it might not be going in the right direction.
The power of awareness is key in shifting to become the most successful person you are meant to be.
Three SIMPLE Steps to Increasing Your Self-Awareness Around Your Neurodiversity.
- Understand your neurodiversity. What is the diagnosis, what do all of the terms mean, and how does that show up in your life daily, weekly, and monthly?
- Pay attention to your thoughts and feelings. Notice what is going on in your mind and body throughout the day.
- Listen to your intuition. Your intuition is your inner voice that tells you what is right and wrong for you.
Last night I was talking with a young person with ADHD.
They had fallen behind in all of their classes. They had a list of all the assignments they needed to complete to get caught up. It was two pages, just to be clear. Here is what they started out saying to me, “I have to get all caught up with this by Friday because I have to have it all turned in.” And they were stressed, so was I looking at all of that.
So, we started reading through each item and noted how long it would take to do each one. I added it up and said, there is not enough time in the next three days to do this and sleep. I don’t think this plan will bring you the best success. What if we ask for an extension on the due date and map out a plan for success, which we include? By the end of the meeting, the whole thing could be resolved in three weeks with only two extra assignments each night for the first week and then one extra assignment every day after. An email was sent to the teachers with a photo of the plan and a couple of them said yes right away. The look of relief on the student’s face, when they realized that they could dig out of this hole and how they were going to do it, was incredible.
It all starts with awareness of self. What am I capable of doing and where do I need support?
Keep following along with this series as I talk more about the ways we can become more AWARE of dyslexia and ADHD in ourselves or in others.
What You Need to Know About Being Dyslexic As An Adult – The Simple Version
Part 2 What does Self-Care look like for Dyslexics and ADHD
Part 3 The Importance of Growth and Self-Improvement
Part 4 Championing for Different Thinkers