As the Facade and Blind Spot grow smaller through self-disclosure and providing feedback, the Arena expands.With mutual disclosure, the Unknown area shrinks as well. The goal of positive communication is to expand the Arena by learning more about yourself from others’perspectives and sharing more information that may be unknown to others. In this way,more information is passed back and forth between you—creating new opportunities for synergy and creativity. The second tool is the Self-Disclosure Checklist (Exercise 1). We typically don’t give much thought to how well we self-disclose information to others. The Self-Disclosure Checklist provides you with an opportunity to reflect on how well you do this vital activity. The more honestly you can answer the questions, the more insights you will have into your ability to self-disclose information about yourself.
If you answer yes to three or more of the questions in the checklist, you may want to think about how freely you disclose information about yourself. While it isn’t appropriate to share everything about your life, self-disclosure is essential in a partnership. The greater the self-disclosure, the more information flows and the more trust is established. It’s better to provide too much information about yourself than not enough.