We Can Change... our team's reality

Why self-awareness is the core of leadership

Something I think about all the time:

For most leaders, their team knows them better than they know themselves.

Many leaders underestimate the outsize impact their actions have, simply by virtue of their role.

It’s easy for them to forget that everything (and I mean everything) they say and do matters.

It would mortify them to know that their team members are always watching them, dissecting their words, fretting about their silences and trying to anticipate their next decision, reaction or emotion.

And the team misses nothing.

The team knows what makes their boss mad and what will get them off the hook.

The team will bring up a tough topic (or not) based on how their leader enters the room or the Zoom.

The team knows the particulars of their leader’s stress response in excruciating detail—usually more than the leader themself does.

The rare leader who prioritizes self-awareness—doing the inner work of understanding and managing themselves—is effective not only because they’re less reactive and make better decisions, but because their team gets to focus on the work, not on managing their boss’ mood.