BA321:

Introduction

We will first focus on intrapersonal effectiveness.  We will use several tools to help us learn more about ourselves so we can determine what skills we have and what we still need. If you have a high degree of self-awareness, you can capitalize on your strengths and develop plans for improving or compensating for your limitations.  Personal and professional relationships can be improved through self-disclosure and trust skills, and healthy relationships will foster organization success.  By developing an understanding of ourselves and others, we can increase our personal and professional success and satisfaction.

Learning Objectives

This lesson begins the process of self-awareness, which helps create better leaders.  Upon completion of assigned readings, activities, and this lesson, you will know:

• your strengths, personality, attitudes, and behaviors.
• your classmates and their strengths, personalities, attitudes, and behaviors.

Lesson Readings & Activities

By the end of this lesson, make sure you have completed the readings and activities found in the Lesson 1 Course Schedule.

"Know Thyself" - Socrates

As early as the time of Socrates, individuals recognized the importance of understanding oneself.  There are continued arguments about nature versus nurture in the development of leadership skills.  Many conclude that good leadership is an art rather than a science, and leadership styles need to vary depending on the situation.  Consensus indicates that to be a leader, one must have a high degree of self-awareness, which is a key component of what is called emotional intelligence.

“In fact, Daniel Goleman’s research at nearly 200 large, global companies revealed that emotional intelligence—especially at the highest levels of a company—is the sine qua non for leadership. Without it, a person can have first-class training, an incisive mind, and an endless supply of good ideas, but he still won’t make a great leader.” (Goleman, 2004)  Emotional intelligence consists of self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills. 

Self-awareness is knowing your motivations, preferences, and personality, and understanding how these factors influence your judgment, decisions, and interactions with other people. (Cooper, 1998)   Self-awareness is an excellent starting point for effectiveness in the work place.  There are many methods for gaining self-awareness.  One means to gain insight into ourselves is through the completion of the Keirsey Temperament Sorter-II. I'd like each of you to visit the Keirsey Temperament Sorter-II at the following Web site and take the personality assessment.

The Keirsey™ Temperament Sorter^®-II

Please note:  The Web site asks you to login to complete the survey.  The site does not use your information in any way.  Review your Temperament Sorter II  MINI report (FREE). Do you feel the core characteristics apply to you?

For a quick overview of the four temperaments, go to About the KTS-II.

“Self-awareness is an essential skill for developing personally and professionally. If you have a high degree of self-awareness, you’ll be able to capitalize on your strengths and develop plans for improving or compensating for your limitations.” (de Janasz, Dowd, Schneider, 2009)

Self Disclosure and Trust

Another means of gaining self-awareness is through self-disclosure. Self-disclosure is the process of sharing your thoughts, feelings, and ideas. Self-disclosure involves risk and vulnerability. Mutual disclosure deepens trust in relationships and helps both people understand each other more. (Borchers, 1999)

There are many benefits of self-disclosure that include psychological relief, validation of perceptions of reality, reduction of stress and tension, improvement in communication, enhanced relationships, and improved productivity among team members. As beneficial as self-disclosure can be in the business world, it is often a difficult task. A useful way of viewing self-disclosure is the Johari Window. (Luft and Ingham) The Johari Window (shown in Table 1.1) is a way of showing how much information you know about yourself and how much others know about you.

Table 1.1 The Johari Window

	Known to Self	Unknown to Self
Known to Others	Open Pane known to self and others	Blind blind to self, seen by others
Unknown to Others	Hidden Pane open to self, hidden from others	Unknown Pane unknown to self and others

The Johari Window consists of four regions. The Open Region includes information such as physical appearance and occupation. The Blind Region includes information that others can see in you, but you cannot see in yourself. For example, others might think you exhibit strong leadership skills; however, you may not think you are a good leader. The Hidden Region contains information you wish to keep private, such as dreams or ambitions. The Unknown Region includes everything that you and others do not know about yourself. You may have hidden talents, for example, that you have not explored. Through self-disclosure, we open and close regions so that we may become more intimate with others.

The basic premise of the Johari Window is that our personal and professional relationships can be greatly improved through the understanding of ourselves. The more we share with others, the more high quality relationships we develop. The more you disclose, the more you trust. Trust is a multifaceted concept that captures one’s faith or belief in the integrity or reliability of another person or thing. (de Janasz, Dowd, Schneider, 2009) Trust is an essential component in developing business relationships with colleagues, customers, and business associates.

According to Schindler and Thomas (Schindler and Thomas, 1993), trust is composed of five elements.

• Integrity --  In short, you mean what you say and say what you mean. 
• Competence—You are aware of your strengths and limitations.
• Consistency – You use good judgment in handling situations and conformity with previous practice.
• Loyalty—You demonstrate faithfulness to one’s friends and ideals.
• Openness—You are not closed to new ideas.

Self-disclosure and trust are two mutually reinforcing skills that, when practiced with the appropriate personas at the right time and place, can serve to deepen and improve personal and professional relationships. There are fears and risks associated with disclosure, however; knowing what, when, and how to disclose can serve to mitigate the fears and risks. The mutually reinforcing nature of disclosure and trust forms the basis of healthy personal and professional relationships.

For example, an individual who practices the Muslim religion and prays at sunset each day should consider disclosing his religious practices. With a shared understanding, group meetings can be scheduled around time conflicts, which will provide for an open environment. An employee with child care responsibilities should disclose time conflicts so time can be adjusted as well, making for a less stressful working environment. Upon self-disclosure, individuals with similar issues may even find themselves sharing the responsibilities with others in similar situations.

References

P.L. Schindler and C.C. Thomas, "The Structure of Interpersonal Trust in the Workplace," Psychological reports. (October 1993) pp. 563-73.

“Interpersonal Skills in Organizations, 3rd Edition” by Suzanne DeJanasz, Karen Dowd, and Beth Schneider, Irwin McGraw-Hill, 2009.  ISBN 0-07-340501-9

J. Luft and H. Ingham, "The Johari Window: A graphic Model for Interpersonal Relationships." University of California Western Training Lab, 1955.

Tim Borchers, Interpersonal Communication, Moorhead State University, Allyn & Bacon. 1999. http://www.abacon.com/commstudies/interpersonal/indisclosure.html

Robert Cooper, Executive EQ: Emotional Intelligence in Leadership and Organizations (New York: Berkley Publishing Group, 1998).

Daniel Goleman. (January 2004). Best of HBR 1998 What Makes a Leader? Harvard Business Review, 1- 11.