Leadership blind spots: Chapter 1- What you need to know to understand the leadership blind spots

In light of people and leadership development, we tend to use different ways to further grow. Some of us start a new education, others search for mentors, third look for coaches, etc.  But often in our process of learning, we focus on developing technical skills instead of focusing to develop ourselves.  Our intentions may be good,  but often the result leads in a dead end.  Leaders in today’s organizations are not different from all other people. In times when everything about you can be easily found through several websites,  most people tend to keep the most important elements for personal change for them.  And these elements are associated with their inner world. Most people easily talk about external elements of their development, but almost always stay quiet when they are asked how are they dealing with their presence at the workplace and how they build their professional reputation.  The areas for improvement, connected with the leader inner world and reputation in the workplace are  known as blind spots

We all know that blind spots are driving us to unintended miss spots and expensive damages. The same can be said for the blind spots in your career. That is why it is so important to be aware of them.

Have you ever tried to answer the question: What exactly are the blind spots?

There are five things you need to know about them:

• Blind spots are results of no match  between intentions and perceptions 

This is all connected with what we believe that we present and what others actually experience about us. There are some hidden gaps and because of those gaps, our professional reputation is not what we imagine it could be. If you think about people in your environment and how they are presented in the eyes of others you will easily understand that there is a fine line between intelligent and condescending, innovative and rebellious,  confident and arrogant, etc. These people have great intentions, but they fall short.

• Blind spots are not always negative

Sometimes we are oblivious to a reputation gap in our own favor. That is often when others admire some of our skills or talents that we brush off as unimportant. In moments like those we undervalue ourselves and limit our own potential.

• Managing our blind spots requires strong emotional intelligence

We can’t fix our blind spots if we don’t know that they exist. To achieve that we need to really tune in to ourselves and others around us on a different emotional level. By increasing our self-awareness, listening more intentionally, watching carefully for non-verbal signs that our messages are being received the way we intended.  

• Blind spots are well managed with  small  changes

Usually, it doesn’t take much effort or needs to change an approach overall. Sometimes even subtle shifts in your behavior and mindset can completely change your professional trajectory.

• Blind spots affect everyone

The difference between ordinary and successful people is that second group knows how to detect and manage blind spots instantly. They have developed the ability to read all kind of people and situations and respond to them appropriately.

By knowing your blind spots and knowing how to react on them you will be able to build your career on a much different level and with higher speed than now.

Today most companies hire people based on tangible skills, but then, they fire people based on their lack of intangible skills.  We can only go further way in our careers, based on our credentials, or the tangible skills, listed in our CV’s. Unfortunately, many people think that beefing up that list of accomplishments is key to get noticed and considered for next level roles. But maybe as you probably guessed,  this is not the way it works.  At some point, the rules for success change and we can’t get ahead by simply adding more lines to our resume. Researches clearly show that winners are those who can best interact,  engage and influence others. In today’s competitive business environment our potential for advancement is determined by our intangible skills. Some people refer to these intangible skills like soft skills, but actually, they are must-haves for career advancement.  These skills are more like a psychological and social capital like the ability to understand our personality traits and our temperament, to listen and communicate effectively, to be able to connect with others and lead by example and with impact, to be flexible and decisive when things change. The intangible skills also help us to recognize how our words and actions are perceived by other people. They are the key to discover if our professional reputation is positive as we think. These skills are often associated with emotional intelligence and are essential for ensuring long-term success.

When we talk about managing blind spots,  one of the most important elements here we need are the intangible skills. They are an important part of the blind spots strategies that can help you ensure your future as a successful leader.

Want to learn more, then wait for the next chapter