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The Power of Understanding Yourself

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The Power of Understanding Yourself

The Key to Self-Discovery, Personal Development, and Being the Best You

Wiley,

15 min read
10 take-aways
Audio & text

What's inside?

Take a deep dive into your psyche to learn the whys of your behavior and to build a better you.

Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Applicable
  • Well Structured
  • Engaging

Recommendation

Dave Mitchell, the author of The Power of Understanding People, turns his focus inward to help you understand yourself. He says if you tap into “metacognition” – the process of “thinking about thinking” – you can go beyond self-awareness to discover why you develop certain behaviors and to realize your potential. He sets you on this journey of self-discovery with an “interactive style” assessment, worksheets and exercises. Mitchell’s humorous, comforting self-revelations align with his philosophy of charitable self-analysis. His easy, self-improvement guidelines are encouraging, but not preachy or didactic. Some chapters rehash material from his previous book, but those seeking personal growth will enjoy his refreshing, readable and innovative approach.

Summary

Your Essence

Even a fine-tuned sense of self-awareness about your patterns of behavior may not enable you to understand why you behave certain ways, but metacognition can help. This is the process of analyzing the reasons for your behaviors – a way of “thinking about thinking.” It’s a deep dive into the experiences that inform your actions to explain how they boost or hinder you in reaching your full potential. Engaging in metacognition enables you to develop a deeper understanding of what makes you different and special and of what holds you back. For an analogy, think of wine. In addition to studying a wine’s hue, aroma and taste, connoisseurs study its terroir – the extent to which the vineyard environment of the grapes influences the wine.

Like wine, your environment shapes your development. When you are an infant, your mind is a blank slate. What you see, hear, learn and do in your formative years molds your “cognitive schemas” – the “policies and procedures” that rule your thinking. Metacognition shows you what makes you unique by helping you understand the “essence ...

About the Author

Dave Mitchell is a sommelier, international speaker, trainer, consultant, writer and entrepreneur who founded The Leadership Difference in 1995 to promote his “laugh and learn” philosophy. He also wrote Live and Learn or Die Stupid! and The Power of Understanding People.


Comment on this summary

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    T. C. 3 months ago
    Es un contenido muy importante que deja enseñanza para nuestra vida cotidiana
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    M. R. 3 months ago
    very helpful
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    A. S. 8 months ago
    very helpful

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