Why is self-awareness important for the therapist? In terms of self-awareness, what are some potential blind spots for the therapist to carefully consider?

Self-awareness is the intentional focus on behaviors that would otherwise be in the background and keep affecting our lives. Self-awareness is important because it makes us aware of behaviors that we perform without thinking and may help us make better decisions and modify our behavior for the better. It is the first step toward self-knowledge.

Self-awareness is particularly important for therapists for several reasons, some of which are discussed in the next section. In the section after that, we outline the potential blind spots or barriers to developing and practicing self-awareness for therapists.