Self Awareness

Self Management Managing self – a core aspect of managerial and personal effectiveness Self manager role Behaviors and actions for understanding and practicing various dimensions of self related with managing and being successful

Self Concept A person’s existential experience expressed in terms of self concept Knowledge a person possesses about oneself A set of characteristics, abilities, ideas or behaviors that a person believes (s)he possesses or does not possess

Self Concept A theory of a person about who (s)he thinks (s)he is – a mental picture, an identity Forms on the basis of what one experiences and is told

Self Concept - Kinds Perceived self (what I think I am) Ideal self (what I would like to be) Social self (what others think I am)

Value of Self Concept A key determinant of behaviors and actions Personal adjustment Interpersonal relationships Psychological health Personal growth Ability to know and accept others

Value of Self Concept Life success Fulfillment of basic human need of self regard Central to improving managerial skills – understanding of current level for improvement Core part of life management skills

Life Management Skills Managing Stress Tactical Symptom Managing Time Setting Priorities and Goals Self Awareness Problem Strategic

Contradictions? Supplementary Managing from inside out “He that would govern others must first master himself” Understanding of self to be able to manage outside world Applying of the experience of managing others to improve oneself

Downsides Possible inhibitor, rather than facilitator, of personal improvement Resistance to acquiring new information to protect self esteem or self respect

Downsides Contd… Potential of new information to be negative or contradictory to perceived self resulting in shame or inferiority feeling Pain avoidance psychology

Paradox or Enigma Pre-requisite for and motivator of growth and improvement Inhibitor of growth and improvement

How to Address? Understanding the concept of sensitivity line Defensive threshold in the face of encounter with inconsistent information or pressure of change More discrepant information or the more serious its implications: closer to the sensitivity line and more need to defend oneself Threat rigidity response

How to Address? Feedback or information Self disclosure Verifiable (e.g. objective standards), predictable (e.g. on regular interval) and controllable (e.g. on request) Self disclosure Interactions and sharing with others

Self Management Self awareness – diagnostic process Self development – actioning process

Self Awareness A process of gathering information about oneself for the purpose of examining it Strengths and weaknesses Positive and negative sides Opportunities for the self and the threats to it

Methods of Self Awareness Self reflection Structured questionnaire Personal journal/ diary Feedback from others Personal disclosure

Self Awareness Process Sources of Information Other people Critical incidents Structured questionnaire Personal reflection Information Responded by higher and lower selves Issues facing you in various roles

Self Awareness Model Unknown to Others Known to Others Hidden Self Open Self Known to Self Unknown to Self Unknown Self Blind Self

Self Awareness Model The open self: information about the self which both the person and the others know The blind self: part of the self that is known to others but the person is not aware of

Self Awareness Model The hidden self: information the person is hiding from others The unknown self: information not known to the person and the others

Improving Self-Awareness Seeking feedback from others Thereby decreasing the blind self Sharing and disclosing hitherto undisclosed information to others Thereby decreasing the hidden self

Improving Self-Awareness Unknown to Others Known to Others Open Self Known to Self Reduce Hidden Area through Disclosure to Others Reduce Blind Spot through Feedback from Others Unknown to Self

Managing Individual Differences Diagnosing, understanding, valuing, and utilizing differences among individuals Another dimension of self awareness linked with managerial effectiveness A key part of emotional intelligence and interpersonal maturity More creative problem solving in team Help in self knowledge

Managing Individual Differences Self knowledge Instrumental to making interactions with others effective and insightful Helpful in understanding of potential for contributing value relative to others

Managing Individual Differences Focus on differences not on distinctions Differences observed (help in understanding potential sources of misunderstanding and finding ways to work around them): helpful Distinctions created (tool for social barriers for reinforcing advantages and disadvantages and creating mitrust): hurtful

Emotional Intelligence Non-cognitive skills related with management of emotions for effective human functioning Not the same but a part of emotional competency – social and behavioral skills

Emotional Intelligence Ability to manage own and others emotions for effective relationships Ability to diagnose and recognize own emotions Ability to control own emotions Ability to diagnose and recognize others’ emotions Ability to respond appropriately to others’ emotional cues

Emotional Intelligence More important than cognitive/ general intelligence Deterioration of its level in the face of increasing IQ level Less emphasis on developing EI IQ accounting for only about 10 percent of the variance in job performance and life success IQ and EI combined: four times more

Emotional Intelligence Measurement Emotional awareness Emotional control or balance Emotional diagnosis or empathy Emotional response

Values Fundamental beliefs or standards about right or wrong, desirable or undesirable, worthwhile or worthless guiding decisions and actions Most enduring characteristic Often taken for granted – not aware until challenged

Values Cultural values Universalism vs. particularism Individualism vs. collectivism Affective vs. neutral Specific vs. diffuse Achievement vs. ascription Past and present vs. future Internal vs. external

Values Organizational values (culture) System of commonly held beliefs and standards guiding organizational behaviors Value congruence: organizational members’ values and corporate values

Values Personal values Individuals’ beliefs and standards Limited in number but differences in intensity Lived values (values in use) vs. loved values (espoused values) Instrumental values vs. terminal values

Values Instrumental values Terminal values Prescribe desirable standards of conducts or methods for achieving an end: two basic dimensions - morality and competence Terminal values Prescribe desirable ends or goals: two basic dimensions – personal or social (positive relations within but inverse relations between dimensions)

Value Maturity Self-centred (pre-conventional) Moral values reside in external factors and consequences: punishment and obedience; individual instrumental purpose and exchanges

Value Maturity Conformity (conventional) Moral values reside in duty, maintaining social contacts, keeping commitments: mutual interpersonal expectations, relationships and conformity; social system and conscience maintenance

Value Maturity Principled (post-conventional) Moral values reside in commitment to freely selected standards, rights and duties: prior rights and social contact or utility; universal ethical principles

Ethical Decision Making Conflict between maximizing the economic performance or social performance Trade offs between the two Between right or wrong but between right and right – a function of manager’s level of moral development and principles Certain standards to test decisions

Cognitive Style Pattern of perceiving, interpreting and responding to information Key to decision making, problem solving, creativity Two dimensions Information gathering Information evaluation and response

Cognitive Style Knowing style Emphasis on facts, data, details and their validity, accuracy and objectivity Liabilities: slow in decision making, uncreative, resistance to innovation, intolerant of multiple views

Cognitive Style Planning style Emphasis on plans, structures and preparations and predictability Liabilities: resistance to change, intolerant of ambiguity, overwhelmed by chaos, can’t handle illogical issues

Cognitive Style Creating style Emphasis on creativity, risk taking and innovation, action, interactions, multiple inputs Liabilities: resistance to structure, tends to break rules, may make mistakes, tends to ignore data and facts

Cognitive Style Irrespective of problem situation, a tendency of using the preferred cognitive style Defining problems and seeking of decision situations in line with the preferred style Relations with career choice but not with academic performance

Orientation toward Change Adaptability to and methods used for coping with changes in environment Two dimensions Tolerance of ambiguity Locus of control

Tolerance of Ambiguity The extent to which one is threatened by or has difficulty coping with ambiguous, information-overloaded situations High tolerance – cognitively complex Better information transmitter, more sensitive to internal characteristics of others, behaviorally adaptive and flexible

Tolerance of Ambiguity Sub-scales Novelty: tolerant of new, unfamiliar situations Complexity: tolerant of multiple, distinctive or unrelated information Insolubility: tolerant of problems that are very difficult

Locus of Control Attitude regarding the extent to which one is in control of actions and their consequences (destiny) Two dimensions Internal locus of control (self as an explanation) External locus of control (powerful others as explanation)

Core Self Evaluation General personality orientation guiding behaviors or overall positive self regard Dimensions Self esteem (positive self evaluation) Self efficacy (perceived ability to perform capably across situations) Emotional stability (neuroticism) Locus of control