Self-Awareness - A Look into Personal Change Management and Anxiety

What is the thinking behind awareness in everyday decision making?

First the definition of "awareness" and "want to change" that I will be operating on:
Awareness: conscious and mindful of situation or fact.
Note: When I speak negatively about awareness, note that it is always in the light of "hyper" awareness or "excessively" aware.

Again, operating on the definition of "want to change" is not a bad thing - it means you are comfortable with the way things are.

We must decide on a framework for how to view self-awareness so that it is not viewed in a vacuum and so that relations can be drawn to create the idea. That framework here is choice.

For this idea, what it first boils down to is personal judgments of choices made. Are you choosing right or wrong? However ultimately this doesn't matter too much and we must delve deeper. Within the context of self-awareness, negative decisions may be necessary (stealing food to feed the family, etc.)

It comes down to the want to change.

Here is a quick (expertly drawn) graph showing Self-Awareness vs the Want to Change:

Let us take a deeper look at each of these facets.

First, High Want to Change - Low Self Awareness
This isn't the most important quadrant and its analysis is mostly useful in comparison to the other quandrants. Now that I consider it holistically it may even be better renamed to "stupid" to put it harshly.. or someone help me with something politically correct. Basically with a high want to change but low self awareness one would end up very confused - knowing they are acting in a not ideal way, but unable to have the clarity to see how their actions play into the greater life.

People in this position would often be criminals, as high want to change is indicative of wrongdoing, but low self awareness would make them incapable of understanding how to escape their situation or change their mindset.  

Second, High Want to Change - High Self Awareness
People in this section would not spend over a few weeks, months, or years in it. With high will to change and a mindset that allows them to see all aspects, the situation would change quickly. There is not much to say here as the double positive's benefits are self-evident.

Third, Low Want to Change - High Self Awareness
Again, operating on the definition of "want to change" is not a bad thing - it means you are comfortable with the way things are. High Self Awareness however is bad in combination with it though. Without want or ability to change, but being overly conscious of all actions is anxiety. For those suffering from anxiety, perhaps one way to attempt to address it is by realizing these two facts within anxiety.

People in this situation are very common. Caged in the circles of thought and unable to escape it but through sleep.

Lastly, and most notably, Low Want to Change - Low Self Awareness
Though it might seem not in the best interest of an individual, it is actually very satisfactory. Low Want to Change means you are content with your life as is, which can be a very good thing. Low Self Awareness pairs well with this as you don't need to be hyper critical of every decision or thought you have, which would just lead to anxiety.

Key also to this position is the ability to move in a diagonal direction (relative to the graph above). Moving into a position where you do have a Want to Change would mean that you should move into a mindset of raised Self Awareness so that your change is swift, and efficiently executed.

People resting in this position are probably the happiest and most satisfied of any classification. Though it may seem like the upper righthand portion would encompass those improving their lives, that is not necessarily true and I would want everyone to take away the benefits of both the upper right portion and lower left portion - especially the lower left as I believe society overlooks peaceful happy people.

Closing notes:
Looking back maybe I should have placed the "Ideal" tab right on the Y axis in the middle. I didn't mean to imply that zero Self Awareness should be good, as you should always be mindful of your actions. Zero or absolute minimal Self Awareness would mean a zombie-like state which I wouldn't recommend.

Just being aware of your position can help you understand your circumstances and where you want your mindset to be in the future. 

Infinite Access to the Internet Decreases the Need to Explore the World for Ourselves

First, let us establish a little History...
Imagine your ancestors' access to the world outside of their own locality. They had stories mostly, but also books and maps (at different points in history) to learn from. Needless to say it was very limited.
Any thirst they had for knowledge that didn't exist in their locale was difficult to attain.

The important conclusion to take away from this going forward is that knowledge seekers had to leave their locale to see/learn for themselves.

Today...
Thirty-five percent of people worldwide access the internet (http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm). You and I both know the infinite expanse of the internet; you can go anywhere and experience or learn almost anything. It is truly an amazing thing.

However, how does that effect our will to experience any of those things for ourselves?

Example...
If one is curious about Hawaii, one may simply ask google and you are transported there.

May we agree that a certain number of people given internet and curiosity about Hawaii and no access to the internet and another group with full access to the internet and the same curiosity, the group without internet would more likely contain more travelers to the destination? (It may need also be said that I'm implying a medium level of curiosity across the board, as a high level would possibly lead to as many members of each traveling - though of course this is not the point.)

The Difference...
Both groups gain similar knowledge but something is lost. Knowledge is still gained over the internet however the exposure is tertiary and hollow. Nowadays one may gain a more broad view of the place, but one would lose the impalpable direct knowledge obtained by visiting the place itself.

Reasoning... (Or why internet-knowledge is hollow)
Let me posit first that direct exposure creates people that are more whole and 3 dimensional compared to those that haven't. Travel implies interaction and true experience. Though obvious, this cannot be written off. 

Extrapolated, this lack of exposure means that less traveled people are lesser people. Don't read too much into this though, because although accurate, it is meaningless in most everyday situations. Quite offensive too. 

Take away...

If you've always loved alternate places, people, cultures, anything that you have personal value for, go there and dive in - make it a priority instead of reading the news. 

Also, have humility when discussing a topic that you have tertiary (second hand, internet) knowledge, with someone who has experienced things first hand. 

Companionship as a Priority in Religious Sects

When you consider any religious group you usually immediately go to belief systems, but what of the possibility of relationships based on attitudes rather than the belief system. Are theists aware or disturbed by this possibility?

I would think that many, especially in mainstream ideologies, would care. They might even find that as a compliment to their amicability.

-- Please see the following as a thought experiment, not attacking or judgmental of theism. --

As a Christian, I assumed that everyone I met in any church-related function was a believer. I think that is an understandable and semi-universal feeling. That back-of-the-mind assumption makes me feel comfortable. Or rather the knowledge that that may have not been true makes me feel uncomfortable. That those people I communed with may have been deceivers is crazy. Though it is no great fault of theirs that they are nonbelievers, just there for the community, it is still offputting.

And as that is a possibility, it must mean that there are people who do that. Those select people who choose to knowingly enter a religious group with no intention of conversion or learning must be interesting people. Their mindset must be one that likes the convictions that the institution instills but must disagree philosophically. How this would work out would be unlikely, however it must happen.

I would have so many questions for a person like this.
How can you like their attitudes but stop at their beliefs?
Are you almost convinced to join the faith or have you thoroughly decided against it?
Do you believe that those you commune with would be offended if you admitted your position?

Personal Improvement: How Sharing Your Plans with Peers Can Hinder Your Efforts (read: why actions speak louder than words)

Telling others about your personal improvement intentions hinders your follow through.

If you've ever had an idea to improve your life; be it through exercise, dieting, even education, your first thoughts are always so grand. "Tomorrow, no solid foods - I'm going to juice everything!" You are so excited to lose the weight you gained over the winter. You go out and buy an expensive juicer, and a bunch of fresh fruits and vegetables so everything is prepared.

Part of preparation of course is mental; you have to tell yourself that you are committed. You have to be excited about the weight loss and how great you will look - after all, you've been wanting to lose that weight for months.

Sidebar: Let us all agree that we are social creatures. And in that light, we share the news of our lives with our friends and family. Agreed? This is a normal routine, but it is necessary to proceed to set this precedent.

Naturally, in your social "news-sharing" routine you tell your friends and family about your new personal improvement venture.

It may not seem like anything, but you've already made a fatal mistake, challenging your ability to follow through with your effort. You told people. But in that act of sharing, you've fired reward centers in your brain. So called "Empathy Neurons" react to your imagining and sharing and your brain reacts in a way as if it had already performed the self-improvement venture.

Reference:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbh5l0b2-0o
@ 6:11

As you start your juicing routine and continue sharing your effort with your peers, your brain is still receiving the "reward feelings" all along. This hinders you and, though you don't know, your brain must be confused why you are continuing if you already feel basically as good as you ever will.

In part, you falter because you shared and got the "reward feelings" just by spreading the news and people acknowledging your idea.

I would argue that personal improvement ventures are sometimes more likely to go through for those who don't share their plans. 

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Advice 
Next time you have an idea for personal improvement, just go ahead with it and see what happens, keep it a secret and let the results speak for themselves. If people ask after noticing change then feel free to share. This will encourage a continuance of behavior and allow the "reward feelings" to take place in the natural, logical order to produce better results.

Downside: Altered short term social behavior.

Upside: You follow through in the long term.