Propiología
Take off, take off, take off
Propiología: The Science of Oneself
Fernando Camacho Ospina · 2026
Propiología is the study of oneself. The word comes from propius (Latin: 'one's own') and lógos (Greek: 'science'), and names a book about self-knowledge and personal transformation. It is not a self-help manual or a personality test — it is an invitation to reveal the hidden mechanisms that govern your behaviour.
Glider flight is the central metaphor. Without an engine, navigating invisible thermals, the pilot learns to read their environment and trust their instruments. In the same way, the reader learns to know themselves: their life narrative, senses, body, emotions, external world, and the people around them.
The concept of propiología was born in Bogotá in 2005, after years of research into physiological responses and human behaviour. The book turns it into a practical model: two parts — 'Know yourself' and 'Take control' — guiding the reader from understanding to action.
"Only after many years of living have I come to understand the diversity of lives that people lead — and how little we know of our own. I have seen the immense potential for change and improvement that each of us carries."
— Fernando Camacho, Preface
The six elements of the model
Book structure
Part I — Know yourself
A structured model for exploring your own being: the six elements that define who you are and how you behave, and how they interact with each other.
Part II — Take control
Preparation, stages of clarity, action and reflection: concrete tools to produce real and lasting change in your life.
About the author
Fernando Camacho Ospina holds a PhD in Applied Statistics in Biomedical Engineering (UNSW Sydney). Glider flight is not merely a metaphor for him: he was a glider flight instructor at the Aeroclub de Colombia, where he experienced first-hand the transformative power of mastering a completely new environment. Colombian-Australian, multilingual, with over 25 years in innovation projects and data analysis, he wrote this book convinced that self-knowledge is the starting point for all progress.