Have you ever experienced detrimental communication skills in personal or professional relationships? Where did the miscommunication originate from? How aware of your values and beliefs are you?
Often in relationships, people will assume that they are all seeing the same perspective. However, we are all different. Although we may share similar beliefs and values, due to our own individual experiences we will be at the very least slightly different. It is what makes us unique.
Whilst many people may be able to see the disadvantages in this, such as miscommunication it also provides us with unique strengths. So how do we manage to communicate effectively when we don’t know what the other person’s perceptions are? Sure, we can ask. However, the other person may or may not be intentionally lying to you. They may even be lying to themselves. It can be a coping mechanism that we all use at some point to protect ourselves from harmful thoughts and emotions.
This form of protection whilst sometimes useful in the short term, can cause us additional issues in the long term. Therefore, self-awareness is key. It is useful to take an inventory of our values and beliefs for us to become more self-aware. I often recommend doing so annually or whenever your circumstances change. We are all constantly developing personally and professionally in response to environmental changes and challenges.
One technique that can be valuable in promoting self-awareness is meditation. Taking the time at regular intervals to check in with ourselves; how we are feeling, how we are behaving, and what we are thinking is an amazing tool to develop our self-awareness. If we are not personally developing then we are remaining stagnant, or worse causing ourselves additional issues by not recognising that we are changing.
For those who have not meditated before, guided meditation can be a great way to begin meditating. It is what it sounds like, where a guide will talk you through a meditation. You can also choose to focus a meditation on something that will support you with relationships such as forgiveness, gratitude, or perspective-taking. Life doesn’t have to be so hard. Why don’t we simplify it for ourselves?
I am currently developing my own meditations. I have written and recorded meditations on motivation, relaxation, and identifying emotional cues. If you would like a bespoke meditation focusing on a particular issue, please don’t hesitate to message me directly or book a Free Mindset Meeting here: Home | Chloe Mepham BSc Certified Life Coach where we can discuss what you would like to achieve.