Boyatzis’s theory of self discovery

I am in the north of the country, in the land of the white rose, these days and have been sitting through piles and piles of lectures on theology, or was it tribology, or rheology - some comprehensible and some which just fly over one’s head...whoosshhh and it is gone! I have also been taking some time out running around the college where they have installed us to prepare myself for the hours of sitting listening to lectures, and also to get to know the sorrounding areas. But, just as in Dublin, I went out for what was supposed to be a 30min run but ended up getting lost and running for 60min! Navigation and moi are sans affairs.

So, on to this next bit of the EI Leadership series discussing Dr. Goleman's book...I would like to write about Boyatzis’s theory here – yupe, management has plenty of theories too! Boyatzis’s theory is about how “leadership can occur in the tumult and possibilities of our relationships” because others see things that we do not see, others can observe us and report on our progress, and assess our feelings, and provide us with avenues for experimentation and progress. Of course, we have to hope that "others" here would give us true feedbacks without blurring their judgement with 'being nice'. It is not only important to have an employee courageous and frank enough to stand up and give negative, developmental, feedbacks to a manager but it is also equally important to find friends, colleagues, and family members on whom one can rely to get true feedbacks on our personality, actions and perceptions without being afraid of diluting the bond of friendship away - that's why they are good friends, right? The comments and feedbacks should also fall on receptive ears. Coming back to Boyatzis’s theory, it suggests five stages through which one can discover oneself and you will have to read the book to expand on each one of them. The stages are:

“The first discovery: My ideal self – who do I want to be
The second discovery; My real self – Who am I? What are my strengths and gaps?
The third discovery: My learning agenda – How can I build on my strengths while reducing my gaps?
The fourth discovery: Experimenting with and practising new behaviours, thoughts, and feelings to the point of mastery.
The fifth discovery: Developing supportive and trusting relationships that make change possible.”

I find running/walking a good exercise to ponder on these! :-)

Below is a picture I took during my first run yesterday but it is not noon, or midnight, that's for sure!