How to Increase Your Emotional Awareness

by Dr. Caron Goode | Jan 24, 2020 | Emotional Strength and Resilience

You may have experienced emotional awareness already: knowing you’re in a bad mood; knowing you’re elated, etc.

But there is a second step to your emotional awareness that some people never consider that it’s something they have control over at all. That second step is – WHY am I feeling this?

Certainly, the question of why you have an experience is important when you have a negative mindset. Happiness is a given, and we know why it occurred. But a negative emotions may be more difficult to track and change.

Here’s a simplified example: Your neighbor announced that they are moving into a brand-new home, bigger and much nicer than the home they currently have. Outwardly you are happy for them, but negative emotions rise and make you wary.

You may feel envious of their new, bigger, and better space. At first, perhaps you’re jealous of their step up. Deeper down, you feel envious or actually angry at yourself for not working to your potential to receive a promotion, and allowing you to have that new home.

Deeper down, you may be feeling inadequate, as if you can’t provide nice things for your family.

Increasing your emotional awareness can help you figure out these deeper feelings, and then work towards solutions. 

Here are three easy steps to increase your emotional awareness, and thereby learn to control and modify what you’re feeling more accurately. 

1. Get into the habit of assessing how you’re feeling during different times of the day. This isn’t to judge what you’re feeling. Rather, this is to learn how to identify your emotions. 
2. Once you’ve are comfortable identifying your emotions, the next step is to review the “why” behind negative emotions. Dig deep and be completely 100% honest with yourself. No judgment; just assessment.
3. The third step, once you’ve identified the “what” and “why,” is to learn how you can turn your negative emotion around to a positive. Practicing this technique can help you see everything in a more positive light. 

Becoming more emotionally aware is one of those tasks that isn’t always easy. But it is rewarding in the end, and worth the time and effort you put forth.