Why self-awareness is key for leaders and how to develop it.
A few years ago, I facilitated workshops and seminars on the topic: “Being a Leader”. Participants were experienced managers working for a large multinational biotech company.
One of my first questions was always:
“You’re all senior leaders, so I’m curious to know what the characteristics are of a great leader?”
Followed by: “What are the characteristics of a ‘not-so-great’ leader?”
People generally came up with quick answers. But here’s what struck me:
Every time I asked someone to explain or elaborate on their answer, they would come up with stories about leaders they used to work for or about people they had seen leading other teams. No one ever shared a story about their own leadership style, about their own leadership characteristics.
When I explicitly asked what made THEM successful leaders, the answers came a lot slower. Many of them said they were not exactly sure of what elements in their leadership made a difference, not fully AWARE of how their teams perceived them as a leader.
The American Management Association cited a study of 72 executives at public and private companies with revenues from $50 million to $5 billion on leadership traits that showed that HIGH SELF-AWARENESS was the strongest predictor in overall SUCCESS.
What is self-awareness?
Self-awareness is the ability to recognize your thoughts, triggers, motivators and everything else that goes on inside of you. Being self-aware means taking a deep and honest look at your feelings, why you feel a certain way in response to certain situations or behaviour.
If self-awareness is the KEY to LEADERSHIP SUCCESS, how can we become more self-aware?
Let me give you my 5 TIPS to IMPROVE SELF-AWARENESS:
Understand your emotional HOT BUTTONS
Anytime you feel strong emotions coming up in the workplace, fill in the blank:
I’m upset because …….
Don’t repress or deny the cause of your emotions, but stop, breathe and acknowledge what you feel. What is your interpretation of the situation that makes you feel that way? Is this REALLY what is going on?
Choose your response by taking a moment, rather than reacting directly to it.
2. Identify your personal values
Your personal values are your non-negotiables, the things that define you and that are most IMPORTANT to you. Values will guide you in your decision-making and in your behaviour. When you live your life in alignment with your values, you feel happy, fulfilled, without internal conflict and are able to lead from a place of CLARITY and VISION.
When there is a disconnect between what you do and your personal values, you will feel frustrated, stressed, tired and unhappy.
3. Ask others for feedback
When you are in a senior leadership position, you will find that there are few people around you who think they can give you HONEST feedback. The STAKES are HIGH, the IMPACT of your decisions is GREAT, but with almost no people to rely on for advice and feedback, how can you grow and improve?
A great way to help people feel comfortable opening up is to show them that YOU are willing to be OPEN and VULNERABLE. Ask for specific feedback and recommendations on certain events, ideas and beliefs. Listen to the different perspectives of your people and genuinely explore them, even if you disagree with them. Acknowledging your own weaknesses or mistakes along the way are great ways to be open and vulnerable.
Another way is to hire a COACH, whose job is to hold up a mirror in a non-judgmental way and give honest feedback to help you grow and reach your full potential.
4. Stay Focused
An important part of being a leader is prioritizing, connecting and making decisions, but you can't do either optimally if you're distracted.
Distractions take energy away from the task you are doing and prevent you from being fully present, from seeing all the possibilities. They block your performance, your creativity, your intuition, everything that successful leaders tap into to perform optimally. It can be trained to stay FOCUSED for extended periods of time. Spend time becoming AWARE of where your focus is during daily activities. Notice how often you multi-task.
5. Keep a Journal
Journaling is a great way to learn and reflect on your daily experiences when experimenting with the above-mentioned 4 tips. Once you organize your thoughts on paper, they no longer take up space in your mind, it’s easier to analyse them and put things into perspective.
Keeping a journal is one of the most effective ways to reflect on your learnings and improve your self-awareness.
Let’s Lead!
