Understanding the Power of Self Labels

We are complex beings. Multitude of forces shapes our lives, slowly molding, expanding and softening the self. In the forecourt of the temple of Apollo, we find written on a stone, “Know Thyself.” We are fascinated with our self. We hear our name mentioned across a crowded room of multiple conversations. Magically, we filter out noise and hear our name. We are the main character in our drama. Yet, we soak in information from parents and society during key developmental periods. We emerge as adults with a simplified sense of self. We label ourselves with words. Self liberation requires escaping these narrow definitions.

Key Definition:

Self-labels in psychology refer to the descriptive terms that individuals use to characterize themselves, their traits, and their identities. These self-descriptions can encompass a wide range of attributes, including personality traits, social roles, occupational identities, and more. The process of self-labeling can influence self-perception, behavior, and interactions with others, contributing to the formation of self-concept and identity.

​But how well can we know ourselves? Is knowledge gained from painful examination in the mirror, critically examining every line, wrinkle and bulge? How about internal realities, how do we know who we are, and what motivates our behavior? Our self-examinations are subjective, the measurements are biased when the self evaluates the self, fraught with faulty conclusions; we either dismiss important flaws, or painfully ruminate on non-consequential personality tics. We struggle to find an objective balance, seeing the self for who it is and who it isn’t.

Self-labels play a significant role in various psychological theories and frameworks, including self-concept, self-esteem, and social identity theory. Understanding self-labels can offer insights into how individuals perceive themselves, navigate social contexts, and establish a sense of identity and belonging.

In contemporary psychology, researchers continue to explore the nuances of self-labeling processes and their impact on individual well-being, mental health, and interpersonal dynamics.

Knowing Ourselves Beyond Simple Labels

​Knowing thyself sounds simple; but it’s not. The self is a dynamic, changing being. Measuring our big five personality traits only capsulizes a small portion of the enormous complexities of the self. We need more than a psychology test. We are much, much more than a few identifiable traits. Self liberation frees the self from these labels.

Eckhart Tolle suggests:

“To know yourself as the Being underneath the thinker, the stillness underneath the mental noise, the love and joy underneath the pain, is freedom, salvation, enlightenment” (Tolle, 2010).

Often, Tolle’s writings are a bit mystical, but his concept of self-knowledge appears on target. Knowing ourselves in this light shifts work from subjective analysis, defined with words, and subsequently moves self-knowledge to greater self-awareness, identifying emotions and thoughts without labeling and interpreting their greater meaning.

See Know Thyself for more on this topic

Labels and Personal Discovery

In personal discovery, we often expect to stumble on answers that offers finality, a short synopsis that clearly defines our essence. With this we can declare “this is who I am.” But self-knowledge of this sort doesn’t exist. We are much more than an entry in the latest version of the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition: DSM-5). Self liberation includes refusing to let social descriptions to define who we are.

This does not mean we reject diagnosis and treatment of disease. Rather, it means we refuse to let the disease define us.

Brené Brown, authority on shame resilience and professor at University of Houston, in her gentle wisdom reminds:

“Knowledge is important, but only if we’re being kind and gentle with ourselves as we work to discover who we are. Wholeheartedness is as much about embracing our tenderness and vulnerability as it is about developing knowledge and claiming power” (Brown, 2022. p. 89).

Over-Simplified Labels

Many labels are short descriptive words we consciously or unconsciously hold.

• I’m smart
• I’m ugly
• I’m kind
• I’m funny

Applying a few descriptive words to describe ourselves is fine. But, the words take over. We force ourselves to conform to the words. Our label of being smart constrains learning rather than encourages it. We easily slip into a protective state of mind, refusing evidence to reveal imperfections or cracks in our perceived self image.

We are Only Partially Knowable

In the quest to know ourselves, we discover a complex, dynamic, and partly knowable being. These discoveries, while interspersed with unknowns, gives sufficient knowledge for liberation. We must excuse the over-simplified labels tainted with biases, self-aggrandizements, and social influence.

​Misguided word descriptions colored with subjectivity, and over-estimated talents ignore faults and undercut worth. With skewed self perceptions, we battle against reality. Our distorted pictures of self defy evidence. We fail and claim victory. We succeed and sorrow for our loss. While we feel confident in our versions of self, we remain foolishly ignorant. We confabulate away evidence testifying against self labels. Often, we prefer to be right rather than better. We conform to negative self labels, rejecting evidence suggesting we are better. We interpret the world as we wish the world to be. Accordingly, we remain imprisoned to our minds. However, we can liberate the self from these confining labels.

Deeper Knowledge of Self

All is not lost. We can free ourselves from the wordy descriptions, opening to our a more expansive existence that exists beyond consciousness. We’re not condemned to blindly plot action from a vague notion of self. We can be well-acquainted with the forces impacting our lives—inside and out. Self liberation is possible.

Self liberation is not always pleasant. T. Franklin Murphy, founder and creator of Psychology Fanatic, wrote:

“A mindful journey into our souls may unearth some nasties, but within the dark caves of hidden secrets we find the allusive treasure of joy dwelling within our wholeness” (Murphy, 2020).

Liberation is not painless. Holding on to confining labels eases our self schema with simpleness and confinement. Unchanging sameness is a tempting prison.

Thomas Merton, seminal figure in 20th-century American spiritual thought, wrote:

“As long as we secretly adore ourselves, our own deficiencies will remain to torture us with an apparent defilement. We will see that we are human, like everyone else, that we all have weaknesses and deficiencies, and that these limitations of ours play a most important part in all our lives. It is because of them that we need others and others need us” (Merton, 2002, p. xxi).

Associated Concepts:

• Malignant Self-Regard: This term term describes a pervasive and destructive pattern of self-perception characterized by chronic self-criticism, self-loathing, and an overarching sense of inadequacy.
• Self-Schema: This refers to a cognitive structure or framework that captures and organizes information about ourselves. It represents our beliefs, opinions, attitudes, and values about various aspects of our identity, including our personality traits, abilities, physical appearance, and social roles.
• Kindsight: This refers to seeing the world through a lens of kindness. It is a manner of interpreting events and people with less harsh judgement and more compassion.
• Dysfunctional Attitude Scale: This scale is used to identify and measure the dysfunctional attitudes that may contribute to and sustain depressive symptoms, aligning with Beck’s theory of cognitive distortions.
• Self-Handicapping: This refers to behaviors or actions people take to create obstacles or excuses that can explain potential failures. This strategy is often used to protect one’s self-esteem and self-image from the negative impact of failing to achieve a goal
• Self Judgement: This refers to the act of holding oneself responsible or accountable for negative experiences, failures, or shortcomings. It involves attributing blame or fault to oneself, often excessively or disproportionately, for events or circumstances that may be beyond one’s control.
• Self-Blame: This refers to the act of holding oneself responsible or accountable for negative experiences, failures, or shortcomings. It involves attributing blame or fault to oneself, often excessively or disproportionately, for events or circumstances that may be beyond one’s control.

A Few Words from Psychology Fanatic

​We can’t banish the biological and social constraints burdening evaluations, but we can learn to work better with them. Labeling ourselves as, “great,” or “terrible” shows ignorance to the complexity, missing the dynamic traits of aliveness. The labels are judgments voiding life of beauty. We are much more than this.

With persistence, we discover some of the elements that subtly shape who we are becoming. While we never fully know the self, we can, however, build a better self—a self more than the biological and cultural forces dictate. Self liberation requires embracing uncertainty. However, removing confining definitions of self frees our souls to soar high, moving closer to our grand human potential.

Last Update: December 3, 2025

References:

Brown, Brené (2022). The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are. ‎Hazelden Publishing; 1st edition. ISBN-10: 1592859895
(Return to Article)

Merton, Thomas (2002). No Man is an Island. HarperOne; First Edition. ISBN-10: 0156027739
(Return to Article)

Murphy, T. Franklin (2020) Joy in Wholeness. Psychology Fanatic. Published: 10-8-2020; Accessed: 04-25-2023. Website: https://psychologyfanatic.com/joy-in-wholeness/
(Return to Article)

Tolle, Eckhart (2010). The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. New World Library. ISBN-10: 1577314808
(Return to Article)