How to Build Self-Knowledge

Self-knowledge is a skill, not a trait, talent, or divine insight. That's the good news. The bad news is that the self is a wilderness. Without tremendous effort we will suffer from what we don't know about ourselves. Most people struggle to live a life filled with purpose and meaning, and instead get caught up in day to day stuff that drains them and leaves them unfulfilled. Their relationships suffer, their career goes stagnant, and they're stuck. Lao Tzu, the ancient Chinese philosopher, who lived in the 6th century BCE, wrote, 'He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened.' Similarly, Carl Jung said, 'Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.' The sum total of philosophic inquiry is said to have been summarized by Socrates who said, 'Know thyself.' Plato similarly phrased it, 'The unexamined life is not worth living.' At Big Self School, we help those who want to develop deeper relationships, do work that matters, and fully live out who they're supposed to be. That quest begins with the work of self-knowledge.