When you're self-aware, you become untouchable. When you can acknowledge your toxic habits and negative traits and work on improving yourself, nobody can use anything against you. Nobody can use your past as a form of punishment because you don't live there anymore. Nobody can tell you something you don't already know. Self-awareness is a superpower. Denial will keep one stagnant or lead to one's downfall. But knowing who you are, at your core, and actively improving yourself among all voices and judgment, is so unbelievably powerful.