Self-Perception Exercise
Background: This activity is the first step to clarifying how others perceive you. Some people are seen by others differently to the way they see themselves. It helps to find out if this applies to you; it could be that you come across better than you think or, on the flip side, it could be that you have distracting habits you’re not aware of.
You’ll need a pen and paper for the exercise.
Activity:
1. Find a quiet place where you won’t be disturbed.
2. You need to write down every adjective that comes to mind when you describe yourself. It’s important you’re honest with yourself. Don’t share the information with anyone else. Being straight with yourself should be easier this way.
3. Consider all aspects of your life. Words that you use to describe yourself at work don’t necessarily come to mind when you’re at home or socialising.
4. Cover what you think is good and also what’s not so good about yourself. So, make two lists; one for the negative descriptive words and one for the positive words.
5. Don’t make the mistake some people make; they forget to record the good points!
6. Now that you have these two lists, you’re ready to compare your own perceptions of yourself with the perceptions others have of you. That way you can see if you’re right!
7. To do this, use the three Methods described in Video 4 of our Perception Series titled ‘Ways to find out how others perceive you’.
8. Once you’ve compared other peoples’ perceptions of you to your own perceptions, you need to identify any differences. Accept and believe it when peoples’ perceptions of you are more positive than you expected. But also reflect and consider how to improve on any areas where their perceptions are more negative than you expected. Link these to the relevant videos on our Learning Platform in order to address them.