Self-awareness is an element of emotional intelligence that defines a person’s ability to identify and acknowledge his or her personal strengths and weaknesses. In the context of leadership and managing groups, self-awareness is a critical tool that greatly aids leadership (Rungapadiachy, 2014). For a leader to be effective in his or her leadership and management he/she must be to identify their strength and weaknesses and equally acknowledge them (Taylor, Wang, & Zhan, 2012).
Individuals with strong self-awareness exhibit several behavioral traits in leadership and when managing teams. First, leaders with strong self-awareness are ready to own their mistakes (Rungapadiachy, 2014). They do not blame anyone or transfer accountability of mistakes to their junior because they are aware of their weaknesses. Secondly, leaders with strong self-awareness are more motivated to learn. They know their weaknesses and constantly improve themselves by learning from others. Therefore, such leaders are open to new information and learning in the process of their leadership.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Moreover, people with a strong sense of self-awareness are aware of their emotions and are hence able to keep such emotions under control. A leader with self-awareness will not publicly display their emotions to the people and will not base their judgment of people and situations on their emotions (Taylor, Wang, & Zhan, 2012). Lastly, a leader with self-awareness will not be guided by their personal emotions and feelings but will be guided by their personal principles and values. Such leaders will maintain sobriety in the midst of their emotional frustrations.
In summary, self-awareness is mainly concerned with the individual’s ability to identify their strengths and weaknesses emotionally as well as in their profession. Such leaders are willing to listen and learn from others. They take responsibility for any failure and always in control of their emotions.
References
Rungapadiachy, D. M. (2014). Intrapersonal Communication and Self-Awareness. Self-Awareness in Health Care, 12 (8), 156-175.
Taylor, S. N., Wang, M., & Zhan, Y. (2012). Going beyond self-other rating comparison to measure leader self-awareness. Journal of Leadership Studies, 6 (2), 6-31.
