A fundamental leadership skill – Self Awareness

Last week, I had the opportunity to attend my Fastlead participants’ Graduation. Each leader shared key learnings from the Fastlead program. Self Awareness shone through for a number of Fastleaders as a fundamental quality, enabling so many other skills – self awareness is an oxygenator of leadership!

Why is Self Awareness so important?

Self awareness is knowing our individual strengths, weaknesses, values and how we impact others. Being self aware places you at the base camp of leadership effectiveness. 

Let’s get more specific: understanding how we feel and act in any given moment, why, and how that influences people around us, is self awareness.  From there we cultivate a range of leadership qualities to empower us in our life and career.  Not being aware of your limitations, imposing unreasonable expectations or projecting your own fears onto others is not self awareness.  It can lead to decreased morale and increased stress in others with unintended consequences.

So operating with awareness you have more internal space to listen, pause and observe. You can NOT know and be curious to allow a new perspective in conversations.  Your self awareness is the basis for emotional intelligence – the  EQ factor which enables your ability to navigate interpersonal dynamics with empathy and compassion.

Leadership is a Universal Quality

Do you agree? Leadership is a universal quality that doesn’t require direct reports for validation.  Anyone in your organisation, community or family can be a leader.   You, in any role in life, can be a leader.  

Consider for a moment,  the dynamic landscape in which leaders operate in business. Here, self awareness is the bedrock underpinning effective leadership, shaping both the leader’s actions and their ability to inspire and guide others.  

Let’s take the example of a Project Lead within a changing business environment. Although Project Leads don’t have direct lines of authority they need to meet targets and deliver successful outcomes.  It is a juggling act of managing expectations, influencing others to collaborate and contribute towards project deliverables.  When you know yourself you can lead authentically, aligning your actions with your values and beliefs. Authenticity cultivates trust and respect across team members. It inspires loyalty and commitment and ultimately collective success. We all respond positively to authentic leaders !

Lets go further to acknowledge self aware, authentic leaders welcome feedback and self-reflection. They seek to improve and learn from their experiences and building positive relationships within their teams.  The ability to introspect and adapt allows leaders to navigate challenges with clarity and resilience, making sound decisions.  When you understand your own emotional triggers and responses you regulate your emotions effectively. You maintain composure and perspective even in high-pressure situations.

When it All goes Wrong …

In those times when you’re  getting outcomes you didn’t expect – the wrong outcomes and ‘nothing seems to be working‘ that is actually an opportunity ! If you hold the mirror up and peer right in,  pause and ask : “What does this moment require of me?”  Reflect and take your next action from there: Pause and in that moment consciously choose your response.

So, therefore in purely academic terms :  leadership can be defined as your ability to respond (with action or communication).  Therefore, how you respond to what occurs in your day, moment by moment, matters.  Another way to think of this is you have no control over what happens to you only how you respond and it is the response that makes all the difference.

Finally, I am inspired by our Fastleaders’ contribution at the Graduation. May you also be inspired and successful.   You can start by checking in with how you are feeling today  Why is that? How can you work with that emotion to create the best outcomes for yourself and those around you?  This Emotions tool will help you identify how you’re tracking.  You may want to take a Circuit Breaker or Rapid Fire Session to get traction in your leadership. 

Fastlead is an award winning program for emerging and First Line Leaders. Wishing you every success!