Those Girls: Know Yourself Part I // The Proust Questionnaire

My good friend Michelle told me about an artist (I didn't catch her name) but apparently she is a very successful textile artist that sells her work at West Elm. This artist doesn't look at anything online: no blogs, no Pinterest, no nothing. Her philosophy is, "there is a place for me, and a place for my work." I found this so interesting--a successful artist that feels no need to view others' work and compare and contrast, gain inspiration or feel inferior to others. This person knows who they are, and is true to their artistry. I respect that so much--not simply the avoidance of internet creatives (I for one love to see what lovely things people are up to), but the immense personal confidence. "There is a place for me, and a place for my work." Lovely and true.

It got me thinking a lot about knowing ourselves. Do you really know yourself? Do I? If someone asked you today--"what is it that you are really good at, bad at, and what do you truly want out of life?"--would you have the answer? I thought we might take some steps in finding the answers to these questions by self-reflection with proven method. Number one homework assignment: the Proust Questionnaire. Marcel Proust, the turn-of-the-century, French writer, penned a few versions of answers to this questionnaire in a family confessional diary belonging to his friend Antoinette. The questionnaire has since become very famous and a version of it has been adopted by Vanity Fair at the back of each issue, filled in by various celebrities.


Marcel Proust
It's interesting to take this survey merely to sit and contemplate your own personal answers (for your eyes only--unless you're Emily and I) and reflect on how and why you feel this way about yourself. In what areas are you confident? In what areas are you lacking? And after finishing, do you know that you were truly honest with yourself?

It's also really amazing to take the questionnaire and put it away for several years, bring it out and see how you've grown. If you'd like to fill it out, we've made our Printable version available for download. Download the Proust Questionnaire here to fill out and keep for yourself. Below, have fun reading our answers (Andie's in scratchy handwriting and Emily's in red type), written March 4th 2013.