Independence – what it is

What independent people look like

Some emotional intelligence experts believe independence is one of the cornerstones of personal effectiveness and success. They point out the following characteristics and attributes of people who are independent:

• • They strive to be the masters of their own destiny

• • They are free of emotional dependency on others

• • They are not afraid to ask for what they want

• • They don’t give up if they do not immediately get what they are after

• • They are not afraid to try new things

• • They make decisions on their own path, rather than follow the crowd

• • They don’t have the same urge to fit in or be popular as dependent people do

• • They are not driven by what others expect of them

• • They have the courage to leave jobs and relationships if it does not meet their needs.

What it takes to become more independent

The search for independence is the search for oneself. “To become independent you need to be assertive and be able to say: this is who I am, what I like, and what I believe in” (S and G Bower).

Being independent requires a large amount of self-regard and courage. To be independent you have to believe in yourself as there are times when you have to make your own decisions, that is without having support from others.

In striving for independence you can run the risk of becoming unpopular, as independence is often mistaken for arrogance and independent people are often mistaken for being bad team players.

Developing independence can be a powerful journey of self-discovery, and establishing independence will allow you to take effective control of all aspects of your life.

Our Employee Wellbeing Programme (EAP) is available 24 hours a day of you wanted to know more about developing independence.

Sources:

 

Bower, Gordon H & Bower, Sharon. 1991. Asserting Yourself. De Capo Press
Deutschendorf, Harvey. 2009. The Other Kind of Smart. AMACOM Books
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