If honesty is the best policy, the best place to be honest is with yourself. Being honest with yourself is a powerful way to be more confident, more courageous, and more focused. There are a number of areas where honesty can be applied to personal life. A review of your morals, values, and practices can help you evaluate how honest you are with yourself.

Take a look:

Question: Are you honest with yourself about your choices? Are you engaging in behaviors that you know are not ideal? From smoking, to drinking in excess, to overeating, being honest with yourself can help you make better choices. Do you routinely engage in behaviors that are harmful to your health and well-being? Being able to be honest with yourself and make appropriate changes will build up your esteem and make it possible for you to be more honest with yourself and with others.

Question: Are you honest with yourself about how you feel? Many people suppress how they feel about many things. They don’t or won’t be honest about how they feel because they don’t feel safe, they have no experience expressing themselves, and/or they have learned to deny their feelings for the greater good. Being honest about how you feel makes it possible to learn ways to express that honesty without being in fear of alienating others.

Question:  Are you honest with yourself about what you want? Like how they feel, many people are unable or unwilling to be honest about what they want. If asked, they don’t have an opinion about where they want to eat, what they want to order, or anything else for that matter. They have lost or never developed the ability to choose for themselves without the input and influence of others. Being able to develop preferences and articulate them makes it easier to not only know what you want but get it, too.

Being honest with yourself allows you to develop healthy ways to express your desires and live your life. A life filled with honesty inward makes it possible to be honest outward towards others. There is a balance and harmony that comes from knowing who you are and what you want and marrying that with others who know who they are and what they want.

Learn to be honest with yourself and don’t bury or deny your preferences or ideas. Being honest with yourself makes it possible to make choices in your best interest that lead to a happier, healthier life filled with the things that you love.