4 Ways to Know Yourself Better

We can build the life we want only on a foundation of self-knowledge. If you want to be happier, first you have to know what will make you happier (not what makes someone else happy), and how you can achieve that (not what’s worked for someone else). It’s easy to be distracted by the way we wish we were, or think we ought to be, or what others think we should be, until we lose sight of what’s actually true. Here are some ways to get to know yourself better and find what's true for you:

The Four Tendencies

Gretchen Rubin’s Four Tendencies personality framework is based on how we respond to inner expectations (like New Year’s resolutions) and outer expectations (like work deadlines). Knowing your Tendency will help you identify specific habit-change strategies that are more likely to work for you, depending on whether you’re an Obliger, Questioner, Upholder, or Rebel. Take the free quiz or read the guide.

Know Yourself Better Journal

The Know Yourself Better Journal is made for anyone who wishes to gain insight into themselves, but needs more direction than a blank page. In this journal, you’ll find questions and distinctions based on Gretchen Rubin’s work, meant to help you develop self-compassion and understanding, and discover ways you might make your life a little happier.

 

Know Yourself Better Journal

$24.99

Work Happier SMS Challenge

Want to be happier, healthier, more productive, and more creative at work? In this free 7-Day SMS Challenge, you’ll be challenged with a series of prompts to help you understand your work style, and find opportunities to tailor the way you work to your own nature, interests, and values. While we don’t always have control over every aspect of our work, with self-knowledge, it’s often possible to identify small changes that can yield big results.

From a Work Happier participant: “I’ve been experiencing some major burn out in my work. This challenge has helped me to figure out some major things that were not working for me, and I’m feeling renewed motivation and energy.”

Text WORKHAPPIER to +1 (844) 934-1913, and opt in to join.

Important Distinctions for Habit Building

Outlined in the "Strategy of Distinctions" in Gretchen Rubin's book Better Than Before, certain distinctions are key to making effective resolutions—like whether you're a morning person or a night person, or an abstainer or a moderator. When we know ourselves, we can set up a resolution in the way that's right for us. Read about these distinctions here.

Reflecting on what’s true for you can be challenging, but self-knowledge and self-acceptance are an essential part of any Happiness Project.

4 Ways to Know Yourself Better