Monday, October 25, 2010

Words for the Week: Who Am I?

You know, if you don’t use a new skill or new information shortly after it is learned, you lose it. Last week, I learned quite a bit about myself. Up until recently, (the past year or so), I would not describe myself as a very self-aware individual. Of course, recent events in my life, have forced me to look within and really examine who I am, my value system and what is important to me.

I took an online inventory called the FIRO-B and got the analysis and interpretation of the data last week. Dr. Lanny Hass shared this very research-based instrument developed by Will Schutz. Schutz believed that self awareness (which leads to self-acceptance and self-esteem) was the first step to solving organizational and leadership issues and ultimately develops openness and honesty between individuals. Maybe you see that as “psycho-babble” but experience has taught me that he might just be right.

The tool was used to measure our behavior choices and preferences in three areas: inclusion; control: and affection. It turns out that I am a very inclusive person and desire that from others. I tend to take control somewhat, but resist controlling behavior in others. I am not a natural initiator of affection (my family is feigning surprise right now) but I somewhat desire that closeness from others. There was a wealth of information about how the results impact my leadership style and interactions with others.

The bottom line however, is that the more I know about myself and how I interact with others, the better I can manage my interactions and understand my limitations. By the way, my results suggest that my career move was a good one, but I already knew that!

Now, time for some introspection – who are you???

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