Know Yourself to Lead Yourself

To master our destiny, we must master ourselves by learning our patterns of behavior and committing to ongoing examination and change.The most important part of any leadership journey is the ongoing, never-ending process of self-awareness. For all of the books, articles, and experts who talk about it, self-awareness can be boiled down to two simple commitments:1. A commitment to understand how you’re wired, the tendencies that result from such wiring, and the impact those tendencies have on others.2. A commitment to change your negative tendencies to become the best person and leader you can be.In other words, it’s a commitment to “Know Yourself to Lead Yourself.”The Biggest Problem in LeadershipAs a leadership consultant, one of the biggest realizations I constantly run into is the fact that most people don’t know themselves. The more work we do at GiANT Worldwide around the globe, engaging with leaders from literally everywhere, the more we realize that so many of us just don’t see it. We don’t see the broccoli in our teeth, so-to-speak. Without taking the time to fully identify our tendencies and evaluate their impact in our lives and on the people around us, we never truly gain control of our own reality. We lose the ability to change our outcomes, and instead, remain captive to our tendencies and the paths they dictate for us.That’s why we came up with a tool called “Know Yourself to Lead Yourself.” It’s a simple visual reminder of the process we can implement every day to take stock of our tendencies and make steps toward changing them.Self-Awareness: Know Yourself to Lead YourselfTake a moment to think about what you do under pressure. What do you do when you get frustrated? What default actions or reactions do you tend to initiate when you’re embarrassed, or when you feel like someone is trying to control you?Now consider the kinds of patterns those repeated reactions begin to create. The truth is, we are all wired by nature and conditioned by experience to develop a set of tendencies that, when indulged in over time, become patterns of action. That includes other people’s actions, too. When we consistently encounter a set of repeated behaviors or circumstances, we tend to subconsciously develop our own patterns of response.Of course, those patterns of action will always come with a price tag: the consequences of our words, deeds, retorts, and responses. They shape who we are, how we think, how we interact, and the way other people learn to view us and interact with us as a result.Ultimately, these consequences conspire to create our current reality. So the question is, if the consequences of our action patterns shape our reality, then are we being intentional about the patterns we develop? Because if we’re unaware of the subtle tendencies that create those patterns, then we are forfeiting control of our own realities. By remaining unaware of our tendencies, and therefore, being unintentional about the patterns we create, we are no longer the masters of our own destiny.Master Your Own DestinyFortunately, we have a say in all of this. We can choose to become intentional about knowing our own tendencies and commit to changing them. How? The answer is through self-awareness. It’s about committing to dive deep into our own wiring, learning to understand the knee-jerk reactions we have been conditioned to exhibit throughout the years, and choosing to know ourselves so that we can lead ourselves in the effort to create the reality we desire.It’s not easy, but it is simple. Notice that this tool is illustrated with an infinity loop. This is because we must never stop being intentional in developing our self-awareness skills, forever and always. If you do this, you will see the fruit of your hard work. The good news is, you don’t have to be defined by your tendencies. You have the power to shape your own reality. So step up, lean into it, and become the master of your own destiny. WPM__Pam Liebe, GiANT Worldwide, Milwaukee, Wis