july

I am beginning to believe that this may be the BIGGEST difference in types of humans:

People who are honest with themselves

vs.

People who lie to themselves

This isn't even related to intelligence (although very wise people seem to be honest with themselves more frequently, bc they realize the truth will always come out, with enough time).

We usually define "honest" as "honest toward others".  But actually, the really critical thing is whether you are honest with yourself. And in any case: If you are not honest with yourself, you can not be honest with others – except by chance.

building /bracket | talking /greatbooks | ex-BCG, ex-PHD | poli + phil + econ

Perhaps. I tend to think the biggest difference is the degree of self-awareness people possess. It’s true that to be self-aware honesty is required. But lies aren’t required for a lack of self-awareness. It’s an act of omission.

It's an interesting point, but I think that people being honest with themself to the extent they are capable of it is more important to me than their level of self-awareness.  (As Freud pointed out, hyper self-awareness is almost a pre-requisite for the most advanced kinds of personality disorders)

I agree, I think self-awareness is huge factor