This article from The Science of Us has interesting insight into how well we, as individuals in society, know what other people think of us and why it’s important.

Tasha Eurich explored this topic in order to write her recent book, Insight. Her research showed that most of us don’t know how we are viewed by others. When asked whether people tend to assume they are self-aware, Eurich said, “My research shows that 95 percent of people think that they’re self-aware. But the real figure is closer to 10 to 15 percent. I always joke that on a good day, 85 percent of us are lying to ourselves about whether we’re lying to ourselves.”

And while the idea of finding out another person’s honest opinion for those of us in the 85 percent who might not hear the glowing remarks we anticipate, it is important to seek out that information. Eurich states, “If you want to be successful in your career, if you want to have strong and lasting relationships, if you want to have a happy and fulfilling life, a lot of that is dependent on you understanding how you’re perceived.” She also adds a reminder that some of us may be pleasantly surprised by how we are perceived by those who know us.

In either situation, our assumptions of how others see us isn’t a reliable evaluator. In order to fully understand ourselves, both the good and the bad, we must understand how we present ourselves to others. Read the full article.