Cultivating Self-Awareness as a Leader

How self-aware are you as a leader? It's important to assess yourself openly and honestly. A high level of self-awareness is the foundation for effective leadership. Leaders who cannot objectively assess their thoughts and behaviors risk losing respect among their team and damaging their reputation. It's essential to be able to look inward, identify your emotions, and recognize the triggers that bring them to the surface.

On the surface, this seems like a pretty easy thing to do. You might think, “Well, of course, I’m self-aware, Who would know me better than, well… me?” But there is much more to having a high level of self-awareness than just being present and broadly aware of your thoughts, emotions, and actions. Most people are aware of their thoughts some of the time, but few are aware of their thoughts at every moment. Additionally, our mind can hide patterns of thought and emotion away from our view, tucked away in the subconscious mind. We are often more acutely aware of our conscious thoughts that are fueled with emotion, such as “I don’t want to go to work today,” or “I am SO hungry,” or “Tom from HR is a total jerk.” These are the thoughts that we have a greater capacity to perceive at any given moment since they reside in our conscious mind. They are the voice that narrates our day, and crafts how we view the things that occur while we are in a waking state. It is the voice in the background of our lives.  By default, we take our thoughts for granted and internalize them as pieces of ourselves. 

Since the narrative voice is with us from birth, most people have a sense that they are their thoughts. This uninterrogated idea, that we are our thoughts, is exactly what leaders who strive for a high level of self-awareness challenge. Our thoughts are not objective reality, they are only our internal impression of objective reality (if there is, indeed, actually one; the exploration of which could fill volumes). When you can genuinely accept that your thoughts are not objective reality, you have taken the first step to creating greater self-awareness. Being open to the fact that your internal voice may at times be biased, or even, completely inaccurate, is, at its core, the foundation for being a great leader. Openness invites new ideas and growth. Thinking that your subjective thoughts are objective reality, stunts progress. 

It is incredibly empowering to think that we are not our thoughts, since some of them seem to come from out of the blue or reside within us unwelcome. Thoughts of failure, thoughts of insecurity, and thoughts fueled by anger and jealously. Those are not who we are. They are only our interpretations of what we are perceiving currently, which are based on our perceptions of past experiences. Thoughts and feelings are, above all things, choices. They are choices of attention. What we choose to focus our attention on, affects our thoughts and our emotions. Leading Yale psychologist John A. Bargh, in an article for Scientific American, expresses beautifully the agency that we all have when it comes to the unconscious/subconscious mind:

“Understanding the tug the unconscious exerts on us is essential so that we do not become overwhelmed by impulses that are hard to understand and control. The ability to regulate our own behavior—whether making friends, getting up to speed at a new job or overcoming a drinking problem—depends on more than genes, temperament and social support networks. It also hinges, in no small measure, on our capacity to identify and try to overcome the automatic impulses and emotions that influence every aspect of our waking life. To make our way in the world, we need to learn to come to terms with our unconscious self.” (1)

Techniques for Creating Greater Self-Awareness:
These are a few techniques that you can use to reframe your subconscious processes. (2) My favorites include:

·      Mindfulness meditation

·      Visualization

·      Hypnotherapy & autosuggestion

·      Intentional thought reframing 

·     Incantations (emotive affirmations) (3)

These therapies are powerful tools for helping you retrain your neuropathways and to reframe your thoughts to be more in sync with your goals. Some you may be familiar with, while others you might never have heard of.  I have had incredible success reframing some of my own unproductive thought patterns by incorporating the methods above into my daily routine. In fact, I credit these methodologies with helping me build my business and grow it to the level it is at today. 

Work toward being a more conscious and compassionate leader!

by Heather Richard

Above Par Business Solutions

www.aboveparbusiness.com

(1) John A. Bargh “Our Unconscious Mind,” Scientific American (Jan 2014): 35. 

(2) Keep in mind that not every therapy modality will be the right fit for you, so if you do not enjoy or find benefits using one, try another. I am not a health care or mental health professional and cannot diagnose, prescribe, or treat any illness or symptom. Please reach out to a health care professional if you need medical or mental health assistance. 

(3) Tony Robbins advocates for incantations over affirmations and I agree.