Know Thyself;
Self-awareness is how you get to really know yourself. Once you understand the underlying causes for what you do, you are more able to apply this knowledge to improve yourself.
Basically, in order to make changes in our life for the better, we must first be aware of what needs to be changed. Subconscious patterns, behavior, emotions, and habits remain in the subconscious, hindering us from living up to our potential, until we pull them out, bring them out into our consciousness, and examine them.
Many people hold deep, self-sabotaging, beliefs about themselves and don't even realize it. These beliefs ultimately become a very part of who we are and form our characters in subtle, yet influential, ways. From these beliefs, we develop habits that reflect our self-image. Indeed, as Stephen R. Covey has taught as part of his personal empowerment message, our character is basically a composite of our habits.
Bad habits can limit us in many ways but if we take the time to be aware of them, we can choose to change them.
For one full day, pay special attention to how you react to everything, from getting out of bed to driving down the street to talking to others and so on. You'll notice habits which you very likely never guessed that you had.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Once you recognize these automatic behaviors, ask yourself if they are worth keeping. Do they help you or do they merely keep you stuck in a rut? You now are in a position to choose whether you want to keep the limiting habit or if you want to change it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For any habit that you want to change, don't try to eliminate it completely but instead replace it with a good habit. And, don't forget to reward your successes because positive reinforcement has been proven to increase your chances of transforming bad habits into good ones.