We call personal identity, the way we perceive ourselves and relate to the world. Lang, a renowned Scottish psychiatrist, defines it as the meaning that an individual gives to his acts, perceptions, motives and intentions.
In this sense, only you can give direction to your own personal identity and be aware of the nature of it, since no one can dive into your depths and find the deepest essence of your being.
On the other hand, GordonAllport’sself-awareness refers to the concept of self as the “terrible enigma,” stating that it needs to be addressed by anypersonality theorythat aspires to be complete.
It is a process, and as you develop an introspective and reflective behavior, you will be able to put lights in your shadows and recognize patterns that remained in your unconscious for a long time in order to bring it to consciousness.
Next, we present an article where you can understand a little more about personal identity and how it can be strengthened.
Who am I?
A question that pretends to be simple and that, however, is recognized by psychology for its complexity.
Probably, if you asked yourself this question you would not know what to answer and your answers would be things like your name, where you live, what you like, what you work on, and some physical description.
A simple exercise to begin to know yourself is to recognize which patterns are yours and which we have been imitating and have acquired from the development of your personality and your life.
What is personal identity?
Personal identityis for psychology the self-image, while for philosophy it consists of asking questions that revolve around our condition as people.
Both revolve around how you perceive yourself and the same as you change over the years.
Characteristics of personal identity that constitute who I am
The Personal Identitydoes not take into account the biological aspects of the individual, but is constituted by the social identity and the spatial identity of the same. This means that basically our physical characteristics are just the packaging, what we are regardless of them is our true essence.
I invite you to ask yourself, how would you define yourself without using any physical attribute? And if you had to describe another?
Identity is a product of interaction with others
The behavior of men, according to the philosopher Rosseau , is of social origin since the pressures of social order are very strong and defining in the way of acting in order to live together.
The human being needs another, he cannot exist in solitude since we build ourselves by interacting with others and this becomes a strong component starting in the first environment, the family.
It is gradually built
Personality is not something fixed, it constantly changes and evolves. Just as self-Knowledge takes time and work, it also takes time to form a solid personality.
It constitutes a series of constant features
Everything is constantly changing and the human being is no exception. Although people’s behavior mutates and changes according to age and life experience, we have predominant traits.
According to the American psychologist Erik Erikson, the development of identity has its crucial moment in adolescence where aspects of great importance for future life are defined. Basically, in adolescence we build the bases to which we will later give structure.
Have you ever wondered which characteristics and beliefs you have changed and which remain intact?
Is predictable in situations or stimuli
According to the authors Stahlberg and Frey , the attitude that a person acquires can be explained based on the following components:
The cognitive, referring to beliefs and opinions; the affective, corresponding to the positive and negative feelings of the beliefs related to the attitude object. And, finally, the cognitive-behavioral, referring to the intention or tendency to carry out the action.
Understanding this, humans function through stimuli. When we think that we will obtain some positive benefit, we will go straight to action as long as our beliefs and values are not imposed through.
May vary over time
Human beings are constantly changing, we are not the same today as yesterday nor will we be tomorrow.
Said by the cognitive-behavioral psychologist, Bandura , Behavior is the product of the interaction of previous cognitions, learning and experiences, and the immediate environment.
It is based on similarities or differences with respect to the social environment
Personality is built in society ,in the first years of life the child still identifies with his parents and his first challenge as an individual is to differentiate himself from them. The same thing happens as we grow and our environment is more and more extensive.
The environment shapes us and we must shape it. Since although as Rosseau has said in his time, the behavior of man is of social origin.
Forms of identification converge at different stages
People change over the years, we are beings that are constantly learning and developing.
The psychologist Mcadams maintains that the integration of versions of himself offers a sense of unity that makes it possible to see the subject as a coherent whole in space and time and with a purpose, where the present is articulated as a logical progression from the past. and future-oriented.
Elements that make up who I am
Only you know who you really are, what thoughts, dreams and projects you keep in the depths of your being. Everyone else can have an opinion, judge you or validate your beliefs and self-perceptiontag. However, the only truth lies when we connect with our deepest essence.
Human groups of belonging
In Maslow’s pyramid of human needs, belonging is on the second level, since when psychological needs and needs are satisfied, the need for love, affection and belonging emerges.
People need to identify with our peers, to belong. Forming groups of belonging is vital since in them we learn that there are other individuals with whom we can share and that we are not the only people with certain tastes or values.
Cultural and social practices
We call cultural practice the manifestation of a culture or subculture, especially in relation to the traditional practices of particular ethnic groups or other groups.
The cultural and social context in which we are born and in which we affirm ourselves will be partly the same that will build our individual personality.
Nationality and language
Lev VygotskyHe affirmed that thought and language develop in a continuous reciprocal influence. When we speak we decree, we put an intention and a message that will go deep from the conscious to the unconscious. The words we choose and the way we speak will also affect our personality.
Political ideals
Political ideals are based on our individual ideals. What we identify with and what we want to fight for will be part of our individuality.
What are your ideals? What is it that you want to protect?
Life’s experiences
Man does not inevitably evolve towards a state of maturity, he requires experiences and a natural and human world that helps him achieve his fulfillment.
These experiences will be the ones that make subjects with similar characteristics and contexts, form completely different identities.
Personality
From tastes to preferences, the way we choose (or not) to react to certain events and situations. All of this is part of our personality.
Things as simple as your musical tastes have a lot to say about yourself. Pay attention to your hobbies.
Importance of understanding who I am
Understanding who you are will allow you to better understand your desires and take action to achieve them. It is important to connect with your interior and bring to awareness everything that we forget on a daily basis.
A good exercise to understand and connect with everything that you normally don’t pay attention to is to have a pencil and a notebook under your pillow and write down your dreams as soon as you open your eyes in the morning.
How to strengthen who I am through personal identity?
What one should really reinforce is not who he is, but how he stands before others. Speaking without fear of what they may think or say, walking firmly and confidently will allow you to reaffirm who you are and act confidently.
Connect with your roots, breathe and walk barefoot through the grass. All these small actions will make you connect with your deepest essence and the earth.
Become aware of myself and reality
We are creators of our reality, the environment and the problems that surround us are simply seasoning. Connecting with yourself, understanding what you like, what gives you pleasure, what you value and what you dream of is what will allow you to shape a more enjoyable and positive reality.
You are happy? What would you need to be happy? If everything was taken from you, how would you start over?
Develop self-confidence
Trusting in oneselfis key to relating to ourselves and especially to others. One cannot transmit confidence to another, if first one does not have it with oneself.
Always remember that when boarding a plane the first thing they tell you is that in the event of an accident you must first put on your mask and then attend, the same for life.
Build a positive self-image
Loving oneself is often judged as an excess of ego or vanity, however that is wrong. Loving yourself and loving your body should be a natural reaction since this is the body with which we were born and it will accompany us for the rest of our lives.
Learn to love yourself, take a long bath once a week or every 15 days. Enjoy it and start treating yourself with love.
take care of myself
Taking care of yourself is key. Do not push yourself or judge yourself since we tend to go erratically in search of an end, such as working excessively to get a promotion or better pay. In this unbridled run it makes us neglect other things such as our health or our environment.
Be aware, don’t forget about everything else. A promotion or better pay is useless if you later have to spend what you earned on the things you neglected.
Ask yourself where am I going? What am I neglecting?
Develop my abilities and skills
We all have abilities and skills, there is something we are really good at. What is it that you can solve almost naturally? Are you a person of letters, logic, numbers or something else?.
Connect with people who support me
We need to surround ourselves with people who help us to be better, with those who support us or not in our decisions, but who are sincere.
Honesty, today, is a precious commodity since people are afraid of hurting by telling the truth. However, the best truths are those that hurt and that help us see what we wanted to sweep under the rug.
Be more proactive when making decisions
The decisions you make should be yours, walk firm and sure of your steps. The decision will always be the right one when you have done the right thing and analyzed the probable benefits and consequences.
Practice breathing , meditating and walking barefoot on the grass to connect with your center.
Take pride in myself and what sets me apart
We are all unique and unrepeatable beings. The only problem is that sometimes we forget about them. Before you can be proud, remember that while achievements are important, what matters most is the path you have traveled and are following in pursuit of them.
What have you done the last years? What do you hope to do in the next? What will be the steps you take to achieve your goals?

University Professional in the area of Human Resources, Postgraduate in Occupational Health and Hygiene of the Work Environment, 14 years of experience in the area of health. Interested in topics of Psychology, Occupational Health, and General Medicine.