By Doug Glener
Self-awareness may seem like an odd skill for a leader to cultivate. After all, what does it have to do with crushing goals? But research shows that self-awareness has more benefits than you might imagine.
Leaders who are self-aware:
– Have better relationships
– Make smarter decisions
– Are more creative
– Are more confident
Also, not surprisingly, self-aware leaders get more promotions. This all leads to a simple conclusion: building self-awareness is one of the smartest things you can do as a leader.
The Self-Awareness Trap
Just about everyone believes they are self-aware. But it’s a rare quality, even in leaders. Harvard Business Review says just 10% of all leaders are self-aware. Gender plays a role: Some 19% of women executives exhibited self-awareness, compared with only 4% of male executives.
The good news is that self-awareness can be cultivated. It’s not like we have a fixed amount. We can learn to see ourselves and our world more objectively and become a more successful leader—and human.
What Self-Awareness Is
There are many definitions of self-awareness. Here’s one that satisfies: “Self-awareness is the ability to see yourself clearly and objectively through reflection and introspection.”
Taking a deeper dive, researchers divide self-awareness into two parts:
- Internal self-awareness: the amount of objectivity we have when we consider our values, aspirations, reactions to others, desires, strengths, weaknesses, and effect on others.
- External self-awareness: our understanding of how other people view us.
Here are five ways to increase your self-awareness.
Keep a Trigger Journal
Every time you get upset, write down what happened in a journal. Also note what might have been the cause—a missed deadline, an interaction with a colleague, a challenge at home.
Over time, a pattern will emerge. You’ll see what upsets you. This will let you prepare for difficult situations and respond in a balanced manner. For example, you can visualize how you want to act and what you’ll say if you are triggered. You can also use relaxation techniques, such as deep breathing, before a challenging encounter.
Intellectual Humility
It’s easy for leaders to believe they have all the answers to workplace challenges. But this is impossible. Here’s just one piece of evidence: The amount of information humans have accumulated doubles every day. This exponential increase makes it impossible for anyone to keep up to date in this constantly changing world.
Intellectual humility means accepting the truth: we don’t know everything. Even if we did have the answers today, they would likely be outdated by tomorrow. The solution is to admit that our assumptions may be wrong and a colleague may have a better answer.
A best practice of intellectual humility is to have an insatiable curiosity to learn more—to recognize there is something new to be known. It’s the best way to thrive in a world overflowing with information.