Art of Winning Commitment by RICHARDS Dick;

Author:RICHARDS, Dick;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: AMACOM
Published: 2004-03-07T16:00:00+00:00

Development Strategies for Self-Awareness

Leaders can develop self-awareness, but it needs exercise. Meditation is certainly a proven way, whether it is the kind that requires sitting in stillness or the kind practiced by Thich Nhat Hanh, who speaks of being mindful during mundane activities such as washing the dishes or taking a walk. There are also some very simple ways to exercise self-awareness that can easily be integrated into a daily routine.

Finding the Barriers

Most of us who have been raised in a culture that values intellect and devalues feeling harbor rationalizations that create barriers to our own self-awareness. Those barriers are significant hurdles for leaders who wish to win emotional commitment. One of the first steps, then, in developing self-awareness is to become aware of the barriers. Ask this question: What do I tell myself in order that I may remain unaware of my feelings? Some people disparage their feelings, convincing themselves that they are unimportant. Others try to analyze their emotions rather than experience them, and in the process drive the emotion out with flights of mental activity. Some believe displays of emotion are inappropriate and embarrassing. Some see emotion as a sign of weakness.

These barriers are often very difficult to spot because they become habitual and so seem natural and right. A clue to the barriers keeping us apart from our own emotions can be found in our reactions to the emotions of others. Do we feel embarrassed, irritated, angry, disgusted by the feeling of others? Why?

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