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Finding awareness within your personality, motivations, and emotional intelligence is not an easy task. Yet it’s essential for developing effective communication skills and empathetic leadership in the business world. In this article, we’ll delve into the profound impact of self-awareness on refining your brand’s culture. And your role as a leader and ambassador of that culture.

The Power of Authentic Leadership: A Personal Journey

Let’s kick things off with a personal story. Fresh out of university, I embarked on a brief internship at our family-owned company, AP Detailing in Ecuador, which included several family members. This experience exposed me to the emotional complexities often found in family businesses in South America. It taught me that leadership isn’t granted solely by being the owner’s child; it’s earned through actions, not titles. My father, a wise leader, emphasized that trust within a team is built on authenticity, service, and transparent communication.

He recognized that each team member was unique and required tailored communication. Moreover, he was acutely aware of his strengths and weaknesses. By acknowledging the personality differences within the team, he became a mentor to everyone, shaping his leadership style on the go.

While I’ve encountered my fair share of professional challenges during the last two decades in corporates and startups, these early lessons from my first mentor, my father, still endure and are more present today than ever. The pursuit of personal growth is unceasing, and we can perpetually enhance ourselves by embracing a growth mindset.

Know Thyself: The Key to Effective Leadership

These experiences, among many others, underscore the importance of self-awareness. To understand how to collaborate effectively with others, we must first comprehend our beliefs, values, strengths, and vulnerabilities. This knowledge empowers us to unleash the full potential of ourselves and our teams.

A great exercise to start with is:
Ask yourself – Which activities throughout my day are energy drainers, and which activities are energy gainers? You can use a simple sheet, divide it into two, and start reflecting!

Here, we’ve enlisted several methods you could use today to start understanding yourself better.

Exploring Personality Assessment Methods

Over two decades, I’ve intentionally and unintentionally explored various techniques and concepts for understanding my personality and drives. Here are five renowned methods:

Method #1:

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI): MBTI provides insights into your personality type, helping you understand your preferences in how you perceive the world and make decisions. Learn more

Method #2:

The Big Five Personality Traits: This model assesses your openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. It offers a comprehensive view of your personality. Learn more

Method #3:

StrengthsFinder (CliftonStrengths): This assessment identifies your top strengths, helping you leverage them for personal and professional growth. Learn more

Method #4:

DISC Assessment: DISC analyzes your behavioral traits, categorizing you into Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness. It aids in understanding and adapting to others’ communication styles. Learn more

Method #5:

Spiral Dynamics: This model delves into the motivations and worldviews of individuals and groups through a color-coded system. It helped me recognize my strength as an objective-driven person. I am for example an Orange color type of person, extremely objective driven on this color personality test. It helps me understand much more in the way I communicate and in the way I make decisions. Learn more

Method #6:

Physical Personality Profiling: Recently, I came across a new way of profiling, one that I highly recommend. Early in 2023, during a flight delay, I had a serendipitous meeting with an old friend, Alexander Keehnen. Alexander introduced me to this innovative approach to personality profiling, which combines physical tests, personality readings, and goal application. It provides a holistic understanding of yourself. Learn more

In Alexander’s sessions, he combines physical tests, personality readings, and their application to your current goals and challenges. First, the physical tests offer valuable insights into your body’s expressions of your personality. Then, he interprets your profile, highlighting strengths, weaknesses, needs, fears, and stress factors. Finally, he applies this knowledge to your goals, enabling you to make informed choices and plan actions.

I had the opportunity to gain more insightful conclusions about my own personality thanks to Alexander. I would highly recommend anyone to consider this approach as well, an approach that high-profile sports athletes are using around the world.

There are certainly other methods around the world; if there is one recommendation I would add, it’s for you to start researching today and apply any of them. Take action and start gaining the tools that would unlock a new perspective, what I also consider as mental models to live by proactively.

If you need more feedback or help on the subject, please know that you can reach me on LinkedIn or at carlos@inspiralgrowth.com, and I would be more than happy to help.

Embrace Your True Potential

Self-awareness is the foundation upon which successful businesses and leadership thrive. Awareness is the first step not only in the way we apply value hacking at Inspiral Growth but also in most of the coaching programs we have been a part of. On this topic, I would even like to add that a coaching program like the one of Paul Resnick, with the Martial Mind Mastery, defines Awareness and the first battle as the act of conquering yourself first. Finding balance within yourself first.

In Value Hacking with Inspiral Growth, we believe that when you understand yourself deeply, you not only collaborate more effectively but also discover the unique value you can bring to the world. This vision becomes an authentic representation of who you are, making it comfortable to share with the world.

Our Value Hacking Coaching Program focuses on helping you unlock this potential. To learn more, follow this link. Join us on the journey of self-discovery, effective leadership, and realizing the true value you can create in your business and beyond.