Brainstorm a thesis statement, which briefly encapsulates your feelings about self-disclosure, or your own findings in this area. For example:
"Self-disclosure has not only helped me reach my professional goals but has also aided my co-workers in creating a warm and productive environment."
Write a brief introduction, which lets the reader know the topic of the essay, the specific sections you will be discussing and finally concludes with your thesis statement as created in Step 1. The introduction should draw the reader in while setting up a framework for the rest of the essay. Use a hook to grab the reader's attention and introduce self-disclosure. For example:
"When I started at Milton and Company, I often wore a large, furry coat which I hid behind every day from morning until the afternoon. Little did I know that my co-workers were frightened of me."
Structure the body of the essay around the different elements of self-disclosure. This structure could follow each of the main sections of self-disclosure in the open self, blind self, hidden self and unknown self. The body of the essay could also follow your own personal journey from the beginning when you may not have communicated well, to your final acceptance of self-disclosure. Focus on a single topic for each paragraph. The body of the essay should remain about three to five paragraphs long, depending on the nature of the assignment. Open each new paragraph with a topic sentence which introduces the reader to the next segment. For example:
"When I finally realized I had been relaying a different persona than I had intended to my co-workers I finally realized the power of the blind self in daily life."
Conclude the self disclosure essay with a brief recap of the main body of the paper and your own conclusions about self-disclosure. This paragraph should be reflective and include any major discoveries, insights or arguments about the topic. Conclude with a statement that opens up the issue of self disclosure for future discussions. For instance:
"Self-disclosure helped me make close friends with my colleagues and do the best work of my life. Further work on the power of honest self disclosure in the workplace might help to create exciting programs for a variety of work situations."