Leadership is a tough gig at any time - especially at the moment when our work practices have changed, we are needing to connect with people in different ways, and priorities have been altered to accommodate the changes we face. At times like these, effective leaders realise that it is they who should step up, rising to the challenge of the times.

Think about great leaders in history, who have had to navigate difficult times, and have effectively led their people through. Queen Esther in the bible showed wisdom, courage and restraint in her leadership, and was able to navigate complexities and cultural challenges that would be difficult for any leader, let alone a Jewish woman in a hostile pagan environment. Nelson Mandela is known for is revolutionary leadership, which is characterised by wisdom, patience and integrity.

Think about a leader that has impacted and influenced you. Jot down the personal characteristics that define their leadership capability.

Self-leadership is all about how we develop in ourselves the best of these capabilities, and challenge ourselves to be the best we can be in both the outward leadership skills and the characteristics of a healthy leader.

Effective self-leadership requires self-awareness

People who lead themselves well are very self-aware, they know how to manage their thoughts and feelings, and are aware of the impact of themselves on others, and vice-versa. A person who leads themselves well asks themselves difficult questions, and courageously seeks the answers.

The most foundational capability for self-leadership is self-awareness. Unless we are aware of our own strengths and challenges, our biases and our preferences, we run the risk of missing important things, or even hurting people.

A great start for raising self-awareness is to have a look at our own emotional intelligence capabilities. There are a number of ways that we can do this:

• Asking people for their feedback
• Leadership coaching
• Honest self-reflection
• Reading about self-awareness and emotional intelligence, or listening to podcasts, etc
• Participating in a 360 degree EQ assessment, such as the EQ-i

An introductory online assessment could be a great start. Have a look at this link below. To get the best out of this quiz, be very honest with yourself! When you read your results, think about some things that you can do that will help you develop in areas that have been highlighted, which could include the ideas above.

What a huge responsibility a leader has to keep a close eye on their own life – their own self-awareness. It has impact both ourselves, and also on the people we lead.

Effective self-leadership includes developing resilience

There’s a lot said about resilience these days, but it’s worth having a second look at as we think about the kind of leaders we want to be. Have a look at this advertisement for a tyre – what ideas about resilience does this stimulate in your thinking?

1. What changing conditions does a tyre need to be prepared for?
2. How does a tyre manage these changing conditions?
3. What other insights does this spark in your thinking about resilience?

The Center for Creative Leadership suggests 8 Steps to Becoming More Resilient

When you consider each of these helpful suggestions, how would you say you apply them?

It’s not difficult to see the connection between self-awareness and resilience. Both are intertwined, and one writer, Ron Caricci, suggests wisely that The Better You Know Yourself, the More Resilient You’ll Be, and ends his article by saying:

Adversity in organizational life, sometimes the result of major change, sometimes the provocateur of it, is a way of life today. Leaders need higher levels of resilience in constant reserve to weather this new normal. Those leaders with strong self-knowledge — who have a clear understanding of their skills and shortcomings, their frustrations, and their core principles — are more likely to sustain those needed reserves of resilience to thrive through adversity and change.

Resilience in leadership has an underpinning of a sure foundation that can weather any circumstance, and for Christian leaders, that sure foundation is Jesus himself. With him, we can develop our resilience, and learn to face all kinds of situations through his strength.

For further thought:

Carey Nieuwhof – Emotional Intelligence archives

Esimai, Chinwe (2018) “Great leadership starts with self-awareness” Forbes.com, Feb 15, 2018

Reid, Joanne (2008) “The resilient leader: Why EQ matters” IVEY Business Journal, May/June 2008

Center for Creative Leadership, Leadership Resiliency: Handling stress, uncertainty and setbacks

Linhart, Terry, The Self-Aware Leader Downers Grove, IVP, 2017.

Cashman, Kevin, Leadership From the Inside Out (3rd Ed), Oakland: Berrett-Koehler, 2017

Hamilton, Craig, Wisdom in Leadership, Matthias Media, 2015

Brown, Brené, Dare to Lead, London: Penguin, 2018

Goffee, Rob & Jones Gareth,  Why Should Anyone Be Led By You?, Boston: HBR Press, 2015.

Sandberg, Sheryl & Grant, Adam (2017) Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience and Finding Joy, London: WH Allen, 2017.

What's to come in "Module 2 - Self-Management"

Good leaders are good managers (even though the reverse is not always true). Having the right tools and practices to support your leadership is crucial. Leading others effectively also requires you ensure they are setup to achieve too. This module on learning to better manage your time, task, commitments and energy is an introductory overview of best-practice teaching on time management, based on the Getting Things Done (GTD) methodology by David Allen. It will take you approximately 45 minutes to complete, including watching a few short videos. Additional content is made available for those wanting to invest more than 45 minutes in the "Additional Resources" at the end of this module.

Click here to move on to Module 2 - Self-Management.