The Power of Self Concept..by Jolito Ortizo Padilla

Self Concept is the way in which a person sees him-or herself and thinks that others see him or her. An individual with a strong self concept is able to view his or her own abilities in a positive way. Such people do not have to turn to others for affirmation within themselves. A positive self concept results in a person self confidence necessary to deal with others in a professional and productive manner. Customer service providers must work to develop a positive self concept. Angry customers may take out their frustrations on the person who is trying to assist them in finding resolutions to their problems. When this happens ,it would be easy for an individual with a poor self concept to take the customers' words or actions personally. A positive self concept creates the armor necessary to keep customers' actions in perspectives.

Unfortunately, many people do not have a positive self concept. Society places a number of unrealistic examples of perfection before us. The media continue to show us that in order to be truly happy we must be attractive, tall ,thin ,witty,affluent, and perfect in every way. How can we interact with the world in a positive manner if we are less than what we see as ideal? This is a challenge that faces most people.

Others are not influenced by the example that the media have established but have been surrounded by negative people. Negative people can only chip away at an individuals' self concept. If someone tells me that I am not good ,why shouldn't I believe them? The most important thing that people with less than positive self concept can do is to realize that they alone have to power to change the way that they see themselves.

Every individual has the ability to improve his or own self concept. While others can affect how individuals see themselves,change must begin within the individual. The first step in improving oneself is to perform self assessment. A self assessment is an individual evaluation in which individual strengths and weaknesses are identified. A self assessment helps individual to determine where they are headed if they make no changes in themselves or in their behavior. A self assessment must be performed honestly and is meant to evaluate the individual. Instances in which individuals believe that they have been overlooked or have experiences "bad luck" are not relevant during a self assessment. Excuses and blame do not contribute to the performance of an accurate self assessment.

To begin performing self assessment, ask yourself the following questions and record your answers on the sheet of paper or on your computer:

1. What are my strengths? What do I receive compliments from others for having done well. What do I think I am good at?
2. What are my weaknesses? What activities do I feel less confident in performing? Do I frequently make excuses or blame others for my failures? Do I finish what I start? Do I say yes too often? Do I pull my weight in a group activity?
3. How do I see myself? Am I dependable? Do I speak well in front of others? How is my sense of humor? What do I like most about myself? What do I like least? If I could change one thing about myself, what would it be?
4. Do I establish goals and work toward achieving them? Do I take pride in successfully accomplishing task?

It is not enough to perform a self assessment. After assessment, the individual must evaluate the recorded information. When evaluating ,it is helpful to draw conclusions and to develop a plan for the future. Review the responses that you recorded as you performed your own self assessment. Are there specific areas in which you are pleased with your responses? As you draw conclusions about your strengths and weaknesses, recognize that the future will be much more productive if you consider your strengths and weaknesses in establishing goals.

Even if you are not entirely pleased with the outcome of your self appraisal, you now have a valuable new information about yourself. Most people have a very little self awareness because it is sometimes difficult to recognize who are and how others see us. It is much easier to make excuses for our failures and to blame our circumstances on someone else. Do not dwell on any negative information that your self appraisal may have revealed. Go forward making goals to emphasize the positive aspects of yourself and exploring ways to improve those areas that need improvement. Above all accept yourself as the unique person that you are.

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