EMPATHY FOR SELF
Goal:
The goal of this assessment is to assess an individual's capacity and tendency to understand and care for their own internal experiences, needs, values, and perspectives with compassion. Drawing from the concept of applying design thinking to oneself, this involves becoming an empathetic observer of one's own life, challenging assumptions, and exploring motivations and behaviours without immediate judgement. It includes deep self-understanding and reflecting on one's identity and circumstances.
Key Areas for Assessment:
Understanding Personal Values and Meaning: Questions about awareness of core values, what one stands for, what is important. How one understands and works towards meaning in life.
Identifying Personal Needs and Desires: Questions about the ability to articulate one's own needs and desires and recognising their importance.
Self-Perception and Awareness of Inner Critic: Items related to worldview, self-perception, underlying assumptions, and the recognition and understanding of one's "inner critic". This includes challenging self-related assumptions.
Cultivating a Positive Relationship with Self: Questions assessing self-kindness and self-compassion. Treating oneself with care.
Practicing Self-Care and Demonstrating Resilience: Items about engaging in activities for well-being and demonstrating resilience or recovering from adversity. Managing stress.
Embracing Vulnerability and Authenticity: Reflecting on comfort with vulnerability and efforts to live authentically. Sharing aspects of identity.
Learning from Personal Experience: How individuals process life experiences, including challenges or "failure" as opportunities for learning and growth.
Low (10–26)
Begin by asking yourself the foundational questions about your values, needs, and vision.
Try observing your inner critic without judgement to understand its origins.
Explore techniques for self-compassion.
Focus on observing where and when you have energy and joy.
Medium (27–38)
Continue to deepen your self-understanding by exploring how different aspects of your identity intersect.
Practise actively listening to your inner narratives and intuition.
Reflect on past experiences (like "failures") not as setbacks, but as opportunities for learning and growth in understanding yourself.
Consider how trauma or past experiences might affect your self-perceptions.
High (39–50)
Consider how you can apply this deep self-understanding to creatively envision your future or navigate challenges.
Utilise principles similar to the "Ideate" or "Prototype" stages in Design Thinking, but focused on your own life in an integrated way.
Ensure you balance self-focus with engagement in the world around you.