Leadership is more than directing others toward a common goal; it’s about inspiring trust, fostering collaboration, and creating a vision that resonates. While many traits contribute to great leadership—such as decisiveness, empathy, and resilience—self-awareness serves as the foundation upon which these qualities are built. Without self-awareness, even the most talented leaders can struggle to connect with their teams, adapt to challenges, and sustain long-term success.
What is self-awareness?
At its core, self-awareness is the ability to recognize and understand your emotions, thoughts, and behaviors, and how they influence others. It involves an honest assessment of your strengths, weaknesses, triggers, and biases. Self-aware leaders are not only attuned to their own internal state but also receptive to feedback from others, using it as a tool for growth.
Why self-awareness matters
Self-awareness is an important element of emotional intelligence (Goleman, 1995). While emotional intelligence has always been essential for leaders, it has become even more critical as many leaders are navigating how to connect with their teams in a hybrid work environment (Arruda, 2023).
Self-awareness also helps leaders make better decisions through managing their biases. By becoming informed about your biases, you are more likely to recognize them and stop yourself from letting them dictate your decisions (Mattone, 2024).
Finally, being self-aware helps you perform better! Research shows that leaders who are more self-aware are more effective leaders (Judge & Bono, 2001).
3 ways to develop self-awareness as a leader
The good news is that self-awareness can be developed!
- Leverage assessments. Tools like personality tests (e.g., Hogan, DISC) or emotional intelligence assessments can offer structured insights into your strengths and areas for growth. At Aesop, we love using scientifically-backed assessments to create a baseline around your natural strengths and opportunities for development.
- Embrace vulnerability. Acknowledge your imperfections and share your journey of growth with your team. Vulnerability builds trust and humanizes your leadership. It also allows you to build a support network of people who are aware of what you are trying to work on and that you are willing to listen to their input
- Advocate for feedback. Encourage input from colleagues, mentors, and team members. Constructive feedback—even when uncomfortable—provides invaluable insights into how your leadership style affects others. We suggest setting the expectation that you’ll check in on a regular basis and would like feedback on how well you’ve been achieving your leadership goals.
Conclusion
Leaders who prioritize self-awareness elevate their own performance while inspiring those around them to do the same. By understanding themselves, they can better understand and lead others, creating a lasting impact on their teams, organizations, and beyond.
Sources:
- Arruda, W. (2023). Why self awareness is the most important skills for hybrid leadership. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/williamarruda/2023/01/10/why-self-awareness-is-the-most-important-skill-for-hybrid-leadership/
- Goleman, D. (1995). Emotional intelligence: Why it can matter more than IQ. Bantam Books: New York, NY.
- Judge, T. A., & Bono, J. E. (2001). Relationship of core self-evaluations traits–self-esteem, generalized self-efficacy, locus of control, and emotional stability–with job satisfaction and job performance: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86(1), 80–92.
- Mattone, J. (2024). 10 benefits of self-awareness for leadership development. https://johnmattone.com/blog/10-benefits-of-self-awareness-for-leadership-development/#:~:text=Leaders%20without%20self%2Dawareness%20are,negative%20consequences%20for%20the%20organization.
