This document provides tips on building self-awareness and focus. It discusses the importance of emotional intelligence for future leaders and recommends identifying your core strengths and areas for improvement. It also suggests journaling, mindful listening, and centering practices to help develop self-awareness. Leaders who practice mindfulness are correlated with higher employee well-being and performance. The document concludes by providing contact information for accountability partners.

1. 25th April 2018
Kolkata
HOW TO BUILD SELF-AWARENESS & FOCUS
An SME Council Initiative

5. Our mind is a muscle...
We must keep exercising it

6. Emotional intelligence is central for leaders of the future

7. ● Achievement drive & standards
● Influence
● Conceptual thinking
● Analytical ability
● Initiative
● Self-confidence
*Daniel Goleman, Lecture “Social Intelligence:
The New Science of Human Relationship”
EQ
4/6
IQ
2/6

8. Bain and Company
“Inspirational Leadership”
Likelihood to inspire others

11. What are qualities?
◉ Traits or behavioral habits
◉ Skills or physical and mental abilities
◉ Values or what is important to you
◉ 3 of these should represent your core strengths today, and areas you want to
really focus on
◉ 1 of these can represent an area that is not currently a strength, but is something
that you want to work on

12. ◉ Why are these qualities important for you?
◉ What impact would they make?
◉ How do they make you feel?
◉ What type of person would you become?

13. ◉ Who and what will stop you from making it happen?
◉ External constraints - things out of your control
◉ Internal constraints - your skills, time, habits
◉ Limiting beliefs - your narratives, fears, insecurities

14. ◉ Who and what will help you make it happen?
◉ Your mentors
◉ Your practices and habits **pick one practice from today**
◉ Your mindsets and beliefs

15. ◉ Think of 5-10 people (the more the merrier) could ask for feedback on your qualities
◉ Pick a variety of people inside and outside work to help you develop a broader and
richer understanding of your qualities

16. ◉ For each quality - write down what you will do to work on this area next week
◉ Any change starts with small and imperfect steps
◉ For each quality - write down how you will continue to build this ares over the coming
months
◉ Only practice (and more practice) makes permanent

17. ◉ What is your accountability commitment?
◉ When will you check-in to review progress (add this to your calendar now)?
◉ Who can be your accountability partner(s)?
◉ Make it public, pin-up and share your leadership canvas?

19. Priming
Journalling
Mindful Listening
Centering

20. Benefits:
◉ Laid-off professionals journaling
for five days found new jobs at a
much higher rate ‑ 68% vs. 27%.
(Buhrfeind & Pennebaker, 1994)
◉ Two minutes journaling on two
consecutive days - improved mood
and wellbeing.
(University of Missouri, 2009)
Applications:
◉ When lots on, step-back and get a
“view from the balcony”
◉ Facing a problem or disagreement,
understand others perspectives
◉ When a salient emotion occurs,
better understand yourself
◉ Begin each day by tapping core
values
◉ Or just use as “brain dump” and
clarifier

21. Benefits:
◉ Builds trust and comfort
◉ Builds deeper connections with
people around you
◉ Deeper understand your clients
and their needs
◉ Moves beyond words to decode
body language, tone and more
Applications:
◉ Understanding a client’s needs
◉ Employee appraisals and feedback
◉ Helping resolve conflicts
◉ Any situation where you want truly
connect
◉ Simply as a gift

22. ◉ Provides the space in which we choose how to respond,
rather than automatically reacting to a situation
◉ In this space we find the time and awareness to bring
our inspirational leadership skills to bear

24. Strong positive
correlation
between a leader’s
mindfulness and
employee
well-being
Higher performance
ratings, fewer instances
of negative behaviors,
lower emotional
exhaustion and higher
satisfaction with
work-life balance
“Centeredness is the key
to replacing automatic
reactions with
thoughtful, strategic and
authentic responses”
Bain and Company Lee Kong Chian School of Business and
NUS Business School
London Imperial College

27. 9833980951
benjamin@shortlist.net
9820409188
anshul@greattoawesome.com
9821147670
realmsofdance@gmail.com