To discover your true self is the most important skill you can possess. When you know who you are, you know what you need to do instead of looking for permission from others. It allows you to bypass tons of frustration caused by putting time into the wrong things. Yes, life is supposed to be full of trial and error, but this lets you find the best areas to experiment with. Once you know yourself, you will become more confident, you will understand your purpose and you will begin making a bigger impact on the world.
So how can you know who you are and what you ought to do in life? Here are the six steps you need to take in order to know your true self. Make sure to read the whole way through since we’ve also included 24 quotes to inspire you to live more authentically.
Follow These 6 Steps to Discover Yourself
1. Be quiet
You cannot and will not be able to discover yourself until you take the time to be still. Many people don’t know themselves because any sort of silence scares them; it’s too uncomfortable to be alone with every flaw staring back at them. But it isn’t until you get alone, evaluate yourself and are completely truthful with yourself that you will actually be able to see every facet of your life—the good and the bad. Be quiet and discover your true self.
2. Realize who you truly are, not who you want to be
I know you already have a set idea of who you desperately want to be, but it might not be who you were designed to be. When you know who you are, you will finally see where you and your specific gifts fit into the bigger picture.
And although there are many points along your journey to help you discover yourself, the best way to begin is to take a personality test and the StrengthsFinder test. (If it’s been five or more years since you’ve completed either of these, take them again.) No, these self-evaluations aren’t perfect, but they do pinpoint your top areas of strengths, so you can focus on the change you were meant to bring into the world.
3. Discover what you’re good at (and not good at)
This might be the most difficult step in discovering who you truly are, but it’s a necessary one. Sure, it takes trial and error to find what you’re good at, and no, I don’t want you to give up before you’ve had more than enough attempts, but knowing when to quit is a gift that everyone needs to learn.
Quit when you’ve put in ample time and your efforts aren’t giving back. What is ample time? Only you can decide that. But when you quit correctly, it isn’t giving up, it’s making room for something better. When your actions do nothing but drain you—rather than produce more passion and increase your drive to do more—that’s a good sign it is time to focus elsewhere. Your strengths will show you who you are.
4. Discover what you’re passionate about
Following passion of any kind is a good thing, and you need to pay attention when it comes because it shows an area of life that you need to pay more attention to. If we’re talking about following your passion in work, it’s a good thing. And if we’re talking about having more passion for life, it’s a good thing. Focus more on passion, understand yourself in better ways and you’ll make a bigger impact. Passion produces effort and continuous effort produces results, which produces a deeper discovery of your true self.
5. Ask for feedback
If you don’t know yourself, hearing what others have to say about you is a helpful practice. Ask them two simple questions: “What strengths do you think I need to develop further?” and “What weaknesses do you think I need to work on?” Of course, their opinion isn’t going to be perfect, but their feedback will probably indicate a few areas you should at least take a second look at. This step is especially important for those who are stuck in finding themselves. Sometimes those closest to us can see something we might not be able to see in ourselves.
6. Assess your relationships
A large aspect of discovering yourself can be found in your relationships. When you realize you’ll never truly know anyone else until you discover yourself, the importance of knowing yourself becomes even more apparent. This truth especially rings true for business leaders because if you don’t know the people on your team, then you will be lost as a leader. But this rule also applies to any relationship in your life. Almost as much as you need to know yourself, other people also need to know who you are. People need you—the real you.
Use your reflections to fight your biggest fears because when you understand who you are, your purpose will finally become bigger than your fears. When you realize who you are, you will spend less time spinning your wheels. Focusing on your strengths gives you the needed traction to make a bigger and better difference in the world. When you know yourself, you will find more peace and you will find success quicker than ever before.
Here Are 24 True Self Quotes for Inspiration:
We’ll now share our favorite true self quotes for this year. We hope the following words of wisdom will encourage you to be your authentic self, which will ignite the spark in others to do the same.
Deep True Self Quotes That Touch the Soul
- “The authentic self is the soul made visible.” —Sarah Ban Breathnach
- “There is a way to again be in real time with the universe, but it is not through force, imagination or manipulation. It is by finding your true self. When you do, you will not need to manipulate life, it will simply flow.” —Mooji
- “The moment you understand yourself as the true self, you find such peace and bliss that the impressions of the petty enjoyments you experienced before become as ordinary specks of light in front of the brilliant sun.” —Swami Satchidananda Saraswati
- “Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.” —Carl Jung
- “True self is non-self, the awareness that the self is made only of non-self elements. There’s no separation between self and other, and everything is interconnected. Once you are aware of that you are no longer caught in the idea that you are a separate entity.” —Nhat Hanh
- “Under whatever name or form we worship It, It leads us on to knowledge of the nameless, formless absolute. Yet, to see one’s true self in the absolute, to subside into It and be one with It, this is the true knowledge of the truth.” —Ramana Maharshi
- “Until we let go of our mental images of who we are or who we should be, our vision remains clouded by expectation. But when we let go of everything, open ourselves to any truth, and see the world without fear or judgment, then we are finally able to begin the process of peeling off the shell of false identity that prevents our true self from growing and shining into the world.” —Paul Buchheit
- “Love is who you are. Your true self is pure love, infinite awareness, and unbounded joy.… As you realize this, you will feel a small light in your heart. At first it will be the size of a spark, then a candle flame, then a raging bonfire.” —Deepak Chopra
True Self Authenticity Quotes to Be Real at All Times
- “This above all; to thine own self be true.” —William Shakespeare, Hamlet
- “Being your true self is the most effective formula for success there is.” —Danielle LaPorte
- “Accepting all that you are will lead you to live your best life and will allow you to be free and your true authentic self.” —Camille Kostek
- “Fear closes all doors to the true self, that brilliant center where the ecstasy lies.” —Kenny Werner
- “The best part of when you reveal your authentic self publicly is that it will allow those people around you, whether it’s your teammates or people who you thought were friends, you will see their true colors come out. Some people who you might have thought would not be supporters end up being some of your biggest supporters.” —Jason Collins
- “Sometimes you have to let everything go—purge yourself. If you are unhappy with anything—whatever is bringing you down—get rid of it. Because you will find that when you are free, your true creativity, your true self comes out.” —Tina Turner
- “You have the freedom to be yourself, your true self, here and now, and nothing can stand in your way.” —Richard Bach
- “When you’re not rooted in your authentic self, you believe what someone tells you. You’ll fall for it.” —Tabitha Brown
Stay True to Yourself Quotes
- “Stay true to yourself, yet always be open to learn. Work hard, and never give up on your dreams, even when nobody else believes they can come true but you. These are not clichés but real tools you need no matter what you do in life to stay focused on your path.” —Phillip Sweet
- “At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and you know what you want.” —Lao Tzu
- “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.” —Steve Jobs
- “Whatever things you go through, you stay true to who you are and your core values.” —Sophie Gregoire Trudeau
- “Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go out and look for a successful personality and duplicate it.” —Bruce Lee
- “If there’s one message I want people to take away is never compromise being your authentic self. Even if that means making others uncomfortable.” —Halima Aden
- “Accept no one’s definition of your life; define yourself.” —Harvey Fierstein
- “Just be your authentic self because there’s nothing sexier or more beautiful than that.” —Carol Leifer
This article was updated July 2024. Photo courtesy of @the_brookedavis/Twenty20
