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My primary area of concentration is a blend of my 26 years of experience in the fire service and some of my approaches to particular instances, as codified in the courses Leadership in Organizations and Social Processes in Organizations. I chose this route because one directly impacts the other.
Self-Awareness
Self-Awareness
As a leader, I have become much more diligent in practicing self-awareness. Students of the Stanford Graduate School of Business’s Advisory Council were surveyed, and the results showed that most felt self-awareness was the most important capability for leaders to develop (Daft, 2017). On the other side of self-awareness, either discovered by the practice of, or not addressed because of a lack of, are blind spots – things leaders are not aware of or do not care to recognize as problems. One particularly damaging blind spot is the display of an aggressive, confrontational style or being a jerk. According to Stanford professor Robert Sutton, jerks harm the people they work with and also damage organizational performance (Daft, 2017). Being too nice and trying to please everyone is another blind spot.
Daft, R. L. (2017). The Leadership Experience. Cengage Learning.
Emotional Intelligence
Emotional Intelligence
Self-Awareness: The ability to recognize and understand your own emotions. "Regulate"
Self-Management: The ability to control disruptive, unproductive, or harmful emotions and desires. "Outbursts"
Social Awareness: The ability to understand others, or show empathy.
Relationship Management: The ability to connect with others and build relationships.
Emotionally intelligent leaders can have a positive impact on organizations by helping employees grow, learn, and develop, based on relationships built on trust and respect.
Daft, R. L. (2017). The Leadership Experience. Cengage Learning.
Big 5 Personality Traits
Big 5 Personality Traits
Openness: Willingness to embrace new ideas and situations.
Conscientiousness: A person who follows through and gets things done.
Extraversion: Outgoing, talkative, and sociable, as well as enjoys social situations.
Agreeableness: Being a nice person in general.
Neuroticism: Tendency to be anxious or moody.
84.5% of HR managers said their organization employed personality tests for the selection of new employees.
Scandura, T. A. (2021). Essentials of organizational behavior (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
Introversion vs. Extraversion: Where people gain interpersonal strength and mental energy.
Sensing vs. Intuition: How a person absorbs information.
Thinking vs. Feeling: How much consideration a person gives to making a decision.
Judging vs. Perceiving: A person's attitudes toward ambiguity and how quickly they make a decision.
Nearly 200 U.S. government agencies have been reported to use the MBTI as part of their training programs.
Daft, R. L. (2017). The Leadership Experience. Cengage Learning.
I have found that in certain settings, starting a training session with a personality test significantly helps with self-awareness. Participants tend to embrace their determined personalities when self-discovered, rather than simply having someone tell them what they are. Not only are they more willing to lean into that identity, but they often begin analyzing how they mesh with others in their workplace with little to no prompting. DK
Are leaders born or made?
Are leaders born or made?
Greek philosophers Plato, Aristotle, and Socrates all believed that leaders were both born and made.
In my experience, top leaders tend to seek out natural leaders rather than develop them due to the time and effort required. I have always believed that the organization must take steps to cultivate its own leaders. This seems to have a much greater impact on organizational culture.
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