THE SELF-REFLECTIVE LEADER

Self-reflection can serve as a wake-up call to live your life more fully in the present. Rather than spending your time obsessing about what will happen down the road or continuously planning for the next move, you will become more connected to the actions, decisions, and interactions of today. That, in itself, will make you a better leader. Your teammates, peers, customers, and business partners will experience you as more alive, present, and connected. You will make decisions more consciously with an understanding of the likely outcomes and consequences. If your team is facing challenges, you will be able to prepare them for what lies ahead. At the end of the day, you will assess what you did, how you did, what the result was, and what you wanted it to be. Then you will go back the next day and do the right thing with awareness and intention.

Understand that self-reflection is not a panacea. It will not automatically make you a better leader or open the door to the C-suite. However, I have used this tool throughout my career, from when I was a young analyst until I was the CEO responsible for the entire company, and now in the current phase of my professional life. Self-reflection keeps you honest with yourself. You will see quite clearly whether you are focusing on the things that you say are most important. You can fool a lot of people, but why fool yourself? Self-reflection will guide you on the path that you want to follow.

Self-reflection will require you to ask yourself some personal questions that will most likely force you outside your comfort zone, but the knowledge you gain about yourself is priceless. As you will see throughout this book, self-reflection is fundamental to each of the other principles of values-based leadership. Learning how to take the time to step back and reflect is absolutely essential to your becoming a values-based leader. So turn the spotlight on yourself. The glare will not be more than you can handle. Rather, let it illuminate your life and your choices—personal and professional—and help you see how you are affecting the course of your life and your leadership.