Know Thyself: Leading from the Inside Out
by DBH Consulting
Insurance industry leaders are taking a hard look at their agencies and asking tough questions about such challenges as: remaining independent in a competitive environment; motivating employees to perform to their fullest potential; ensuring that the company retains its value; and grooming the next generation of leaders.
These issues will only be resolved only through strong and progressive company leadership. This means leadership at all levels throughout the company, such as the quality coordinator role, which requires the ability to influence and have impact on people in a range of positions and departments within the organization.
Ultimately, the agencies and brokerages that thrive long term will create a company-wide culture that produces great leaders throughout the company.
Good or Great?
A good leader is armed with many valuable skills and qualities. Most bring raw talent and a knack for influencing others, as well as wisdom acquired through experience and training in key business functions such as: risk management, finance, sales and marketing; setting and directing a vision; and facilitating strategic processes to propel that vision forward.
A great leader, however, adds to the mix a particularly valuable quality – self knowledge.
Even an often-cited Harvard Business Review’s groundbreaking special issue on leadership states that the “first commandment of leadership is to know thyself” [Collingwood, H., (2001) Harvard Business Review, 79(11), 8]. Great leaders do know themselves, and they understand how to use themselves fully as instruments of profitable growth and strategic change.
The Power of Self Knowledge
You have likely noticed that your level of self knowledge. Self knowledge keeps you firmly grounded so that you stay on target, and gives you an unwaivering leadership presence that will inspire others. You may likely have experienced this with someone you admire. They are centered, focused and unflappable. They draw people in, they create strong alliances, they motivate through their very presence. They seem to exude leadership qualities without even trying. You may have noticed that great leadership begins inside a person and flows outward to others. Leadership built on this solid core of self knowledge and presence will stand firm, no matter what external forces exist.
Here are a few areas that you may want to periodically revisit with yourself and continue exploring at deeper and deeper levels:
Your core values and beliefs. Have you identified the specific beliefs and philosophies that are the driving force of your life? How do your values factor into your decision-making process? Which of your values do you want to show up in every interaction with others?
The impact you have on others. What have you noticed about your effectiveness in motivating others? When are you most impactful, and when do you have the least impact?
How your communication style influences others. How masterful are you in conveying visionary ideas and concepts to others? How does your communication style vary from one situation to the next? What is your best strategy for conflict resolution?
Your use of personal power, relational power and hierarchical power. How much of your personal influence is a function of your position? How does your use of power bring people together from all levels of the company?
How your presence draws others in. What have you observed about your magnetism in social settings compared to business meetings? How do your colleagues and employees relate to you in one-on-one situations?
The power of your internal dialogue. What are the prevalent thoughts running through your mind when faced with a challenging decision? Which voice dominates your internal dialogue – your inner critic or your inner champion?
The source of your unique personal strengths. Which of your strengths never fails you? How do you tap into your strengths in a time of crisis?
What it takes to maintain life balance. How satisfied are you with your relationships, home life, career, social life, health & fitness, finances and other key aspects of your life? What is your cue that you are out of balance in any area?
Your ability to make choices. How easy or difficult is it for you to see choices when you feel stuck? What do you really believe about choicefulness?
Through your earnest exploration of these areas of your inner self, you will discover new insights and wisdom that enhance and amplify your impact as a leader.
Develop Your Self Knowledge Practice
Self knowledge takes practice, just like any other skill. You probably didn’t learn project management techniques by magic – you studied them. Likewise, you can study methods for enhancing your self knowledge skill. Here are a few suggestions:
Just stop. If you stop for just a minute at any random moment in your day, and look quietly inward, asking yourself what you are aware of right here and now, you may not notice much at first. But you will notice something, a physical sensation, a distant sound, a murmur of feeling within. Be proactive about these mini self-awareness pauses. If you practice this often, you will eventually train yourself to notice a great deal more, and will become increasingly more aware of your thoughts, feelings, and sensations in general.
Follow your attention. What are you paying attention to? What is occupying your thoughts and feelings? What is tugging at your energy? Rather than push these thoughts aside, if you acknowledge them more acutely, you will start to see that each attention grabber is a choice. People are often unaware of their choices, but if you look inward, your self knowledge will lead you to the bounty of options that you have in every scenario.
Listen fully to feedback. This means using more than your ears. Listening fully means absorbing what is being said – and what is not being said – into both your mind and body. Take it in, try to understand it as if you were delivering the message yourself. Being truly open to feedback is a learned skill, and the better listener you become, the more you learn about yourself from many other perspectives.
Your heightened self knowledge will not only keep you grounded and focused, but it will inform your interactions with the people you lead. As you study your own inner workings – your core essence – you will come to more fully understand who you are, what choices are available to you, and what value your “being” contributes to those around you. These are the traits that separate good leaders from great leaders. Great leaders lead from the inside out.
First published in the Fall 2004 issue of PAR Quarterly.
