The Power Within: Embrace Self-Awareness

Welcome to the first edition of the Harmonised Success Newsletter!

No time to lose!

I want to share how self-awareness transformed my leadership journey after burnout in 2014.

Oh no! Not another post about 'self-awareness'! Believe me, this one is personal…

The Turning Point

Many of you already know how I went from a high-performing Sales Executive to a Director and burned out.

It wasn’t until years later that I understood how my lack of self-awareness meant I didn’t understand my values, knew nothing about ‘alignment’ and would often relate mere external factors of success to my happiness and joy.

I often felt like a ship lost at sea…trying to understand why, despite course corrections, I still wasn’t feeling joy.

I now call this the ‘uninformed trying to lead the uninformed-er’ phenomenon.

Over time, I found that I wasn’t alone, and I came across many leaders who felt the same way.

Case Study: A Leader at Hyundai

My client (let’s call him John) expressed how often he felt he was just another cog in the wheel, where his routine was robotic, his interactions were pre-defined, the work was the same, and the stress was non-stop.

Through our work together, John learned to ‘break his lens and start again,’ where we went right to the core to understand his values (through a highly personalised method), what brought him joy, what his passions were, and many many many other questions and deep dives!

John learned about his emotional and environmental triggers, and we worked together to adjust these for ‘alignment’ and harmony.

Reflection Time: What emotional triggers in your life cause you stress? Take a couple of minutes to write one or two down (or hit reply and write to me).

What The Research Says

A study conducted by the International Hospital Federation (IHF) in 2023 explored self-exploration of self-awareness in leaders.

Interestingly, while most leaders in the study believed they were self-aware, only 10-15% were when placed through the assessments.

The study revealed that leaders feel more confident in their values and triggers but are less aware of their weaknesses and the effects of their actions on others.

To this end, it becomes significant to see self-awareness holistically and invest in this continuously.

Another recent study published in the prominent journal Frontiers in Psychology found a direct correlation between self-leadership and leader self-efficacy. This demonstrates that self-leadership is a pathway to developing leadership qualities in others.

As a leader, your ultimate goal is to develop other leaders, but without self-leadership, this means starting from behind the starting point.

Going back to John’s story, ‘leaving’ wasn’t his first choice. He was determined to give this a try, put in the effort, and reach a level of self-awareness that would benefit not only himself but also those around him.

Kudos to John; it’s a process, a shattering of sorts if you will :-)

Practical Tip

Set aside 15 minutes at the end of each day for self-reflection.

Use this time to think about your interactions, decisions, and emotions throughout the day.

Ask yourself questions like, “What triggered my emotional response today?” and “How did my actions impact my team?”

Write these down!

Fun Corner: Leadership Limerick

There once was a leader quite wise,
Who saw work through self-aware eyes.
They'd reflect every night,
On what they'd done right,
And found harmony was their best prize.

Closing Remarks

Thank you for joining me for the first edition of the Harmonised Success Newsletter!

Your Journey Begins Here

As you embark on your journey towards greater self-awareness, remember that every small step done daily counts.

Thanks for reading!

P.S. Please take a moment to rate the newsletter below. I appreciate this very much.

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