What Does It Mean to be Conscientious? - Talkspace

Being a conscientious person entails the ability to set and keep long-term goals, be more deliberate about choices, act more cautiously, and ... WhatDoesItMeantobeConscientious? Publishedon:18May2019WrittenbyJessicaDuBois-MaahsMay18,20194minuteread Whenyouimagineaconscientiousperson,youlikelyconjureupsomeonedependable,diligent,andself-controlled.Theylikelyhaveastrongawarenessoftheirsurroundings,theirownthoughtprocessandtheperceptionsofothers,makingconscientiousnessakeypredictorformanytremendouslypositiveoutcomes,suchasdevelopinghealthy,stablerelationshipsandgoodjobperformance.Itisnotsurprising,therefore,thatmanystrivetobecomemoreconscientious,andthereareactionablewaystobuildupthisvaluablepersonalitytrait—evenifbeingconscientiousdoesn’tnecessarilycomenaturallyforyou. WhatitMeanstobeaConscientiousPerson Haveyoueverreceivedfeedbackfromafriendorco-workerthatyoudon’tnecessarilyfollowthroughonyourcommitments?Perhapsyoudon’trealizewhenyou’reactingimpulsivelyandinthemoment,anditimpactssomeofyourpersonalrelationshipsandworkperformance.Whetheryoufailtomeetimportantdeadlines,flakeoutonyourfriends,orarejustmuddlingthroughyourdayswithoutmuchdirection,alackofconscientiousnessmaybeatthecoreofyourissues. Beingaconscientiouspersonentailstheabilitytosetandkeeplong-termgoals,bemoredeliberateaboutchoices,actmorecautiously,andtakeyourobligationsseriously.Often,thisfundamentalpersonalitytraitisanessentialingredientforpersonalandprofessionalsuccess,andasisthecaseforanyone’spersonality,therearevaryinglevelsofhowsomeonedisplaystheirconscientiousness. Youcouldthinkabouttherebeingtwoendstotheconscientiousnessspectrum—lowandhigh.Byunderstandingthesignsofeach,apersonisbetterabletospotopportunitiesforgrowthanddevelopinareasthatmaybelacking. TraitsofHighlyConscientiousPeople Accordingtopsychologists,thesearethemostcommontraitsexhibitedbyhighlyconscientiouspeople: Strongthoughtfulnessandimpulsecontrol Valuesorganizationandhasanabilitytoplanahead Ampletimeisspentplanningandpreparing Payscloseattentiontodetail Mindfulnessofkeydeadlines Abilitytoprioritizeimportanttasks Functionsbestwhenthereisasetschedule TraitsofPeopleWhoHaveLowConscientiousness: Andmostpsychologistagreethatthefollowingarethemostcommontraitsofthoselowerontheconscientiousnessspectrum: Avoidsstructureanddoesnotworkwellwithaschedule Procrastinatesonimportanttasks Failstocompletenecessaryorassignedtasksinagivendeadline Makesmessesanddoesnotstrivetotakegoodcareofthings Doesnotreturnorputbackitems ImprovingYourConscientiousness Althoughmanyviewthepersonalityasaconcreteaspectofaperson’scomposition,therearewaystoenhanceorbuildcertaincharacteristics.Bothbiologicalandenvironmentalfactorsplayaroleinshapingwhoweareandthestrengthofourpersonalitytraits,andasweage,ourpersonalitiestendtoevolve.Ourlevelofconscientiousness,forexample,generallyincreasesaswegrowolderandgainmorelifeexperienceandresponsibility. Ourpersonalitiescananddochangethroughself-development,andaccordingtooneresearchreview,peoplepositivelychangetheirpersonalitiesbyincreasingengagementinactivitiesthatfallintothreeprimarycategories:activitiesthathelpyoufeelimportant,activitiesthatarefun,andthosethatarealignedwithyourcorevalues.Themessageistrysomethingnew,somethingthatfeelsimportant—beitawatercolorclassorarugbyteam—tohelpmakesignificantdesiredchangesovertime. Apersoncanalsoimprovetheirconscientiousnessbyseekingprofessionalhelpandsupport.Injustfourweeksoftherapy,peopleexperiencenearlyhalftheamountofchangeinpersonalitytheyusuallyexperienceintheirentirelifetime,accordingtooneresearchstudy.Evenmore,thepositiveimpactoftherapycanhavealastingeffectonaperson’spersonalityanddoesnotfadeovertime. Therapytoimproveconscientiousness Ingeneral,therearethreetypesoftherapiesthatcanhelpimproveyourlevelofconscientiousness:Behavioralandcognitiveinterventions,goal-relatedtechniques,andcognitiveremediationtherapy. Behavioralandcognitiveinterventions Thistypeoftherapyfocusesonteachingyoutheskillsneededtosolvereal-worldproblemsthroughassigningtime-limitedassignments.Thedifficultywiththisapproachisthatcompletingassignmentsrequireacertainlevelofdisciplineandfollowthrough,theveryattributeslow-conscientiouspeopledonotpossess.Inanycase,thistypeoftherapyisshowntopromotepositivechangesinbehavior. Goal-relatedmetacognitivetechniques Thistechniqueinvolvesgainingabetterawarenessofone’sownthoughtprocesses.Specifically,alow-conscientiouspersonisaskedtoenvisionaclearpathtotheirlong-termgoal,anticipateanypossibleobstacles,andultimately,envisionthemselvesachievingthegoal.Thetheoryisthatbyponderingourfutureandourplans,wecanincreaseourlevelofawarenesstoachievethem. Cognitiveremediationtherapy Thisformoftherapyaimstoenhanceanindividual’scognitiveprocessesandfunctions,suchasmemory,byleveragingspecificmentalexercises.Theintentofthesementalexercisesistotransfercognitivegrowthanddevelopmenttoothertasks,includingthekeyactivitiesthataremostchallenging. Asisalwaysthecasewhenseekingclinicalsupport,findingatherapistthatbestmeetsyourneedsisessentialtosuccess.Fortunately,therearemanyresourcesavailabletohelpyouidentifythebesttypeoftherapyforyourneeds. BuildingandMaintainingYourConscientiousness Thejourneytoimproveconscientiousnessisnotaneasyone,butitcanbeworththetimeandeffort—especiallywhenconscientiousnesspositivelyimpactsyourhealth,worklife,andpersonallife.Thispersonalitytraitisanimportantindicatorwhenitcomestodevelopingandmaintaininghealthy,stablerelationships,andcanevenhelpcontributetoincreasedresponsibilityatwork. Andwhileyoumayshowsignsoflow-conscientiousbehaviortoday,thereareclinicallyprovenstrategiestoidentifyandshoreupanyareasofweaknessforthefuture.Thefirststepisalwaysidentifyingandunderstandingyourpotentialforgrowth. Talkspacearticlesarewrittenbyexperiencedmentalhealth-wellnesscontributors;theyaregroundedinscientificresearchandevidence-basedpractices.Articlesareextensivelyreviewedbyourteamofclinicalexperts(therapistsandpsychiatristsofvariousspecialties)toensurecontentisaccurateandonparwithcurrentindustrystandards. OurgoalatTalkspaceistoprovidethemostup-to-date,valuable,andobjectiveinformationonmentalhealth-relatedtopicsinordertohelpreadersmakeinformeddecisions. Articlescontaintrustedthird-partysourcesthatareeitherdirectlylinkedtointhetextorlistedatthebottomtotakereadersdirectlytothesource. Share 1 Tweet 0 Pinit 0 JessicaDuBois-Maahs JessicaDuBois-MaahsisaChicago-basedwriterwhoseworkhasappearedinUSAToday,VerilyMagazine,TheChicagoSun-Times,andTheFloridaTimes-Union,puttingherMSJdegreefromNorthwesternUniversitytogooduse.Whensheisnotwriting,sheenjoystravelingtonewplacesandhangingoutwithhercat,Buster. 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