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intelligentexecutive

Developing a betterunderstanding of yourself

8 personal factors which determine your success

Developing a better self-understanding

• Your success, salary and self-esteem are all dependent on how you best apply what you’ve already got!

• This doesn’t just apply to you at the outset of your career; it applies throughout it and to all levels of seniority. Without understanding yourself, it is unlikely that you will be able to capitalise on your full career potential.

• Your personality type, values, motivations, competencies, skills and emotional intelligence are inter-dependent, and they all combine to form the foundation for your on-going success.

• However your motivations, abilities and opportunities will change over time. Understanding your strengths and shortcomings will allow you to best capitalise on your career prospects.

Copyright 2013. An Intelligent Executive white paper from Armstrong Hall.

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White paper: Developing a betterunderstanding of yourself

Strengths 03

Personality types, traits & behaviours 04-05

Values 06

Motivations 07

Specific skills 08-09

Competencies 10

Emotional intelligence 11

Application 12-13

1. Strengths

Know your strengths and play to them. Be aware of your weaknesses and understand them.

Look back at your major work achievements and you will see that they most likely occur in the areas where you are strongest – behaviourally, as well as technically.

People excel in areas in which they are strongest. That is because you become energized, focused and confident – and therefore highly productive - when undertaking these activity types.

In contrast, when working on areas which are weaknesses (or you perceive as being weak), people struggle. Energy is sapped out of them - they become

negative, distracted and lose focus.

When managing people, it is particularly important to understand their strengths in order to get the best out of them by utilising these areas. The best managers use their insight into the individual attributes and characteristics of their team members to manage

them in different ways. They apply a unique approach to each of their staff that brings out the best in each individual.

Your own career will develop further and faster when you can drive it on your strengths; so know your strengths, understand them and use them to inform your career choices.

There are 34 strengths (as defined in the work of Buckingham and Clifton1) and in leadership these are clustered into four domains (Strengths Based Leadership – Tom Rath and Barry Conchie).

1 Buckingham, M., Clifton, D. O (2001) Now, Discover Your Strengths, Gallup Organization





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Achiever Activator Adaptability Analytical Arranger

Belief Command Communication Competition Connectedness

Consistency Context Deliberative Developer Discipline

Empathy Focus Futuristic Harmony Ideation

Includer Individualisation Input Intellection Learner

Maximizer Positivity Relator Responsibility Restorative

Self-assurance Significance Strategic Woo*

Executing Influencing Relationship Building Strategic Thinking

*Winning others over

2. Personality traits, type and behaviour

We are what we are! Personality is inherent - and whether you like it or not, it underpins how you perform in a given set of circumstances. You need that insight into your own personality and natural behavioural instincts to be able to most effectively manage and direct your work performance and career.

Your personality type will influence the kind of work in which you can perform best, how you work and how you interact with others.

The best way to properly understand you personality type is take a personality test - if you have not recently undertaken one or no longer have access to it, you may wish to ask your employer to have you complete one or pay for one yourself. Your career direction and prospects will benefit.

Traits

The framework provided by the Big Five personality traits2 is acknowledged as a robust model to describe human personality. They are:

• Openness (inventive/curious vs. consistent/cautious)• Conscientiousness (efficient/organized vs. easy-going/careless)• Extraversion (outgoing/energetic vs. solitary/reserved)• Agreeableness (friendly/compassionate vs. cold/unkind)• Neuroticism (sensitive/nervous vs. secure/confident)

Each dimension is underpinned by a number of correlated specific traits. For example, under Extraversion, we see such traits as assertiveness and sociability.

Types

One of the most commonly applied tests in terms of evaluating personality types, through measurement of personal preferences, is that based on the work of Isobel Myers and Katherine Briggs3. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is a questionnaire that measures psychological preferences in terms of how subjects perceive the world and make decisions. Based on Carl Jung’s psychological types, MBTI utilizes combinations of 16 possible psychological types based on 4 dichotomies.

Extroversion (E) v. Introversion (I)

Sensing (S) v. Intuition (N)

Thinking (T) v. Feeling (F)

Judging (J) v. Perception (P)

2 Costa, P. T., Jr., & McCrae, R. R. (1992). Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R) and NEO Five

Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) professional manual. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources

3 Myers, Isabel Briggs; Mary H. McCaulley (1985). Manual: A Guide to the Development and Use of the

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (2nd ed.). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.





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The 16PF questionnaire

One of the other popular personality type testing instruments is that developed by Raymond Cattell4 who identified an inventory of 16 ‘personality factors’ and the 16PF Questionnaire remains a well-used assessment tool.

Low Range Descriptor Primary Factors High Range Descriptor

Aloof, cool, formal, reserved

A - WarmthEasy-going, outgoing,

warm

Concrete thinking, low general mental capacity

B - ReasoningAbstract-thinking, bright,

fast learner

Changeable, easily upset, reactive

C - Emotional Stability

Adaptive, calm, emotionally stable

Accommodating, docile, submissive

D - Dominance Assertive, dominant, stubborn

Introspective, restrained, taciturn

E - Liveliness Animated, enthusiastic, lively

Expedient, non-conforming, rule-breaking

F - Rule Consciousness

Conforming, dutiful, staid

Hesitant, intimidated, shy G - Social Boldness Bold, thick-skinned, uninhibited

Objective, self-reliant, tough-minded

H - Sensitivity Intuitive, refined, tender-minded

Accepting, trusting, unsuspecting

I - Vigilance Distrustful, skeptical, suspicious

Conventional, grounded, practical

J - Abstractedness Abstract, imaginative, impractical

Genuine, open, unpretentious

K - Privateness Discreet, diplomatic, worldly

Confident, secure, self-assured

L - Apprehension Apprehensive, insecure, self-doubting

Conservative, constrained, traditional

M - Openness To Change

Experimental, free-thinking, liberal

Affiliative, dependant, follower

N - Self-Reliance Individualistic, self-reliant, solitary

Impulsive, undisciplined, unexacting

O - Perfectionism Compulsive, controlled, precise

Composed, placid, relaxed P - Tension Driven, impatient, tense

4 Cattell, R.B., Cattell, A.K., & Cattell, H.E.P. (1993). 16PF Fifth Edition Questionnaire. Champaign, IL:

Institute for Personality and Ability Testing.




Copyright 2013. An Intelligent Executive white paper from Armstrong Hall. 05





Copyright 2013. An Intelligent Executive white paper from Armstrong Hall.06


3. Values

Businesses talk about their culture in terms of ‘values.’

As individuals, the value set we develop is a constant guide to the way we live our lives. Our personal values are built over time. They are absorbed from

our earliest interactions with those around us – parents, siblings, our wider family, teachers, and friends. Our value set continues to

develop over time as we enter the world of work.

We perform best when we are true to our values and we struggle if we are required to do things that do not resonate

with them.

Understanding the impact of your personal values can help guide

your career choices. You could find you are swimming against the tide and your career will not progress as it could because you are under-performing in a wrong

choice of role or in the wrong type of environment / company.






4. Motivations

As our career grows, our relative income increases - but the money itself is likely to have less meaning per se.

It is generally seen as due recognition of achievement and success. Increasingly therefore, achievement and successful performance in a role is key in motivating us to continue performing and progressing.

If your career is to progress and you seek personal fulfilment, it must therefore be built on roles that provide the opportunity to achieve (motivational) and therefore must also be aligned in terms of personality, values, competencies, skills and emotional intelligence.

Abraham Maslow put forward the theory that human needs are hierarchical; the most fundamental and basic four layers of what is depicted below in a pyramid, are what he called “deficiency needs” or “d-needs” - physical needs, personal security, friendship/love, and esteem.

Maslow’s theory suggests that the most basic level of needs must be met before the individual will focus motivation upon the higher level needs.

He also used the term ‘Meta-motivation’ to describe the motivation of people who go beyond the scope of the basic needs and strive for constant betterment.

What I enjoy

Accomplishments

What I dislike

Mistakes

Dreams

Life Purpose

Status

Job title

Work-life balance

Satisfaction

Seniority

Security

Scope of impactEarnings

morality, creativity, spontaneity, problem solving, lack of prejudice, acceptance of facts

self-esteem, confidence, achievement, respect of others, respect by others

friendship, family, sexual intimacy

security of: body, employment, resources, morality, the family, health, property

breathing, food, water, sex, sleep, homeostasis, excretion

Self-actualisation

Esteem

Love/belonging

Safety

Physiological

5. Developing your skills

Our skills continue to develop over time. They are hugely dependent upon the challenges of a role – any job, any task that lies in front of us.

Experience and ‘doing’, as well as the learning that comes from an academic approach, builds our underpinning knowledge and our skills develop to a level of expertise. There may be the skills that are core to our own occupation or discipline - be it accountancy, customer services, mechanical engineering or sales. Others are more general and may be around managing people or business orientated like budgeting and cost control. Some may be industry sector specific and others will be transferable across sectors.






Functional experience

Industryexperience

• Consultancy

• Customer services

• Engineering

• Finance & accounting

• HR

• IT

• Legal

• Marketing

• Manufacturing &

operations

• Project management

• R&D

• Sales

• Training

Private sector Public sector

• Financial services

• Retail

• Consumer packaged

goods

• Pharmaceuticals

• Leisure

• Travel

• Media

• Business & professional

services

• Utilities

• Energy

• Manufacturing &

industrial

• Central government

• Local & regional

government

• Education

• Criminal justice

• Defence & intelligence

• Health

• Not for profit

• Charities

• NGOs






Carry out an inventory of your skills. Categorise them within the following table.

How much of a generalist are you as opposed to a specialist? How broad are you in terms of industry sector? How well do you understand other sector requirements where you have no past track record but could apply? Get to know the job market and see where you may fit.

Your performance in your current role and your development within your current organization should focus on optimization of your particular skill-set. Requirements of your role that do not readily sit within your skill-set should provide the focus for your Personal Development Plan as well as maintaining the currency of your existing skills.

Industry

Sector Specific

Transferable -

Cross Sector

Functional -

occupational

Industry

Sector Specific

6. Competencies

Competencies can be technical (the ‘what’ we do) but more often refer to behavioural performance (the ‘how’ we do it). Competencies are the ‘soft’ skills required to perform successfully within an organization.

Our behaviours are very much driven by our personality type and traits, rather than by learning. However, natural behaviours can be improved to an extent through awareness and development. The more influential the role within an organization, the more critical they are and therefore the greater the emphasis on their assessment at interview etc. Our impact on the organization, our successful performance and hence our career growth is very much dependent on these competencies.

Achievement Orientated

Analytical Ability

Communication Skills (Oral, written, presentation)

Creativity / Innovation

Decision-Making Skills

Integrity / Honesty

Flexibility / Adaptability

Initiative

Interpersonal Skills

LeadershipManagement Skills

Persuasiveness / Influencing

Planning and Organizing Skills

Problem-Solving Skills

Team Building / Team Work

Time Management

Simply put, you will excel in areas in which you have well-developed competencies and to succeed in different role types, and at different levels of seniority, you’ll need to develop specific competencies further.

You can link competencies with ability to excel in job types – for example achievement orientation is fundamental to good salespeople. There are other distinct relationships - analytical (statistician, accountant, tax adviser), communication skills (trainer / lecturer, presenter), creativity (designer), persuasiveness (sales, marketing), planning & organizing (HR, project manager), problem-solving (IT, customer services, engineering).

Leadership requires a broad set of such attributes. For example, influencing and decision-making can be seen as obvious fundamental requirements. It is not uncommon for leadership to be identified as a competence in its own right, though it is - in reality - a combination of behavioural attributes. The characteristics of leadership are best viewed and understood in the context of the impact of emotional intelligence on behavioural competence.











7. Emotional intelligence

Emotional intelligence is a broad description of the ability to understand and control one’s own emotions, together with the ability to manage relationships through the recognition and understanding of other people’s emotions. EI is so critical to success that it accounts for 58 per cent of performance in all types of jobs. There are four basic areas in which professionals apply emotional intelligence, wisely or poorly, when making decisions in management and in leadership. These are:

• Self-awareness. The ability to understand your emotions as well as recognise their impact on relationships and performance. This relates to accurate self-assessment and self-confidence.

• Self-management. Controlling your emotions and using your awareness of them to stay flexible and act positively. A critical aspect in business is the ability to keep any disruptive emotions under control in changing situations and overcoming difficulties. This relates to transparency (trustworthiness), adaptability, achievement orientation, initiative and optimism.

• Social awareness. Your ability to identify emotions in other people and to understand their perspective and take an interest in their concerns. This relates to empathy, organizational awareness and service orientation.

• Social skills/relationship management. Your ability to use your awareness of your own emotions together with your understanding of the emotions of others to manage interactions successfully. A critical aspect in business is the ability to take charge and inspire others while sending out clear, convincing and well-tuned messages. This relates to inspirational leadership, influence, developing others, change catalyst, conflict management, building bonds, team work and collaboration.





Some of your career highs and lows to date will have had their outcomes driven by your Emotional Intelligence. Only when you understand it, can you perform at your very best and get yourself in the game for those senior roles. We suggest you develop your emotional intelligence either yourself or engage with a specialist such as a suitably qualified career coach. If you wish to firstly undertake a self-assessment, our self-assessment framework outlined on the following page may help prompt you.

Jot down your answers to the questions below in the table on the following page together with any notes.

• Review any documentation that is relevant – appraisal documents, 360° feedback, the big emails and letters. Reflect on the big conversations.

• Get feedback from those around you who you trust to be informed and honest with you.

• Appraise your work performance over the past 24 months:

Your objectives | Your development | Your challenges | Your big decisions | Your critical actions, interactions and execution | Your successes and failures

• Consider the above four factor model and ask yourself…

What worked well? | What could have gone better? | What do you wish you had done differently? | What did you learn?

• Discuss this with a friend, trusted advisor, mentor or career coach.

Having become better acquainted with your emotional intelligence, you should now consider whether there are any areas you need to develop and if so, what these areas are.






Self awarenessThe ability to understand your emotions as well as recognise their impact on relationships and performance.

Emotional Self-AwarenessAccurate Self-AssessmentSelf-Confidence.

Self managementControlling your emotions and using your awareness of them to stay flexible and act positively.

Emotional Self-Control Transparency (trustworthiness) AdaptabilityAchievement Orientation InitiativeOptimism

Social awarenessYour ability to identify emotions in other people and to understand their perspective and take an interest in their concerns.

EmpathyOrganizational AwarenessService Orientation

Social skills / Relationship managementYour ability to use your awareness of your own emotions together with your understanding of the emotions of others to manage interactions successfully.

Inspirational Leadership InfluenceDeveloping OthersChange CatalystConflict ManagementBuilding Bonds

Emotional intelligence self-assessment framework

For further insight into emotional intelligence you may wish to refer to our

emotional intelligence white paper.


8. Application

What you choose to do now and on an on-going basis is the 8th factor - Application.

All these 8 factors determine your make-up. They are inter-linked and if you are conscious about them, and look to develop them, you should be able to realise your full executive potential - whether you are a subject matter expert, middle manager or senior business leader.

You should consider how your personal attributes relate to your goals, and what you need to do, to develop a better understanding of yourself and how you can best apply yourself to realise your hopes, ambitions and career potential.

So what do you do now?

You should find it pretty obvious whether you need to take any action. It depends on your motivations, goals, priorities and how big any gaps.

However your career will not progress with any direction or emphasis - nor will you perform at your best if you do not have an honest self-evaluation to inform you when choices need to be made and an action plan that supports your ambition with the necessary development.

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Personal type

EMOTIONALINTELLIGENCE

Competencies

SKILL

Values Motivations

Strength

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Consider entering the most significant thoughts or facts about your make up in a table…

• Reflect on your recent experiences.

• Determine your strengths and specific skills.

• Consider your values, motivations.

• Review, any previous points of reference: personality assessments you may have undertaken, appraisals and feedback (formal & informal).

• Seek the opinions of people you think are qualified to give you input. Speak to more than one person.

• Think about whether you may be able to benefit from undertaking a personality profile or working with a performance coach suitably qualified to help you develop your emotional intelligence (you may wish to try get your employer to pay for this or alternatively consider paying for it directly yourself).

• Are you making the most of yourself?

• Consider implications for achieving your goals moving forward.

Self-evaluation

Strengths Personality types, traits

& behaviours

Values Motivations

Specific skills Competencies Emotional intelligence Application


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