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The self

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People sitting and walking through a city square on a sunny day, with a red brick building and large advertising posters covering other buildings.

Stories and literature

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Your life is not a story: why narrative thinking holds you back

Our stories help us make sense of a chaotic world, but they can be harmful and restrictive. There’s a liberating alternative

by Karen Simecek

Photo of a street with a person entering a doorway to the left and a bookshop named Armchair Books displaying books in its windows.

Place

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‘Place authenticity’ is an important, overlooked part of life

From indie bookshops to artisan cafes, spending time in unique, characterful places can enrich your own sense of self

by Ashley Krause

Photo of a yellow shirt on a hanger in soft sunlight with shadows on a dark cupboard door and a radiator in the background behind a sheer curtain. A person is holding the cupboard door open; their left arm is shown along with the sleeve of their striped t-shirt.

Work and vocation

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Six ways to use clothes to boost your confidence at work

Regardless of your budget or fashion sense, dressing with more intention can benefit your mindset and performance

by Dahlia Stroud

Black and white drawing of swirling smoke and flames rising from the ground, bordered by a rough square outline.

The self

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Why bad doodles can reveal more about you than good drawings

For Marion Milner, ‘not being able’ is a valuable state – one that allows for new and unexpected forms of learning

by David Russell

A child in a red shirt sits at a desk with a black and white cat. Sunlight and shadows create an intricate pattern through the window.

Psychoanalysis and the unconscious

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Three ways to get in touch with your Shadow self

Jung believed we all have a Shadow self. Facing up to it could help you live more fully and be more forgiving of others

by Ruth Williams

A double exposure image of a person using a smartphone overlaid with a bustling city street scene with cars and tall buildings.

Technology and media

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What I learned from sharing my private self with an AI journal

‘Quantified self’ apps analyse our physical and behavioural data. Now, AI journals want to access our emotional lives too

by Angela Chen

A display of various hats, including a red floral hat, a black hat with a coloured brim, a blue hat, and a beige lacy hat, shown on stand in a shop window. A blurred street with a bicycle is visible outside.

Identity

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You have multiple ‘social identities’ – here’s how to manage them

As social beings, our identities are bound up with different groups – here’s how to juggle all the various hats you wear

by Anna K Zinn

Sticky reminder notes are seen on a mirror and on various other items on top of a chest of drawers

The self

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What my mother’s sticky notes show about the nature of the self

Dementia accelerates a process we all experience, as our memories become increasingly externalised into the world around us

by Crispin Sartwell

A person with a black watch on his wrist is touching a realistic prosthetic hand resting on a white surface, with a dark shirt in the background.

Psychosis and schizophrenia

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Rubber hand illusions shed new light on our bodily sense of self

Testing the illusions on those who have entered altered states offers clues about the experience of being in control

by Shayla Love

An art installation with bright yellow-and-blue paintings by Vincent van Gogh projected onto walls and floors, with a person standing in the background.

The self

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Boost your self-understanding with a navigational approach

Physical and mental navigation involve overlapping brain processes, casting new light on the notion of an ‘inner journey’

by Nick Kabrél

A person in a witch hat observes a colourful, abstract painting featuring multiple characters, including a central nude figure, in a museum.

Beauty and aesthetics

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Why art seems more beautiful when you can see yourself in it

Research suggests that people find artworks more aesthetically pleasing when they’re personally relevant to them in some way

by Matt Huston

Hands sculpting a small, rough clay figure of a person’s head and torso against a blurred background.

The self

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When Nietzsche said ‘become who you are’, this is what he meant

Behind the philosopher’s cryptic phrase is an invocation to sculpt your ideal self out of the hard stone of your psyche

by Ryan A Bush