Do You Know Who You Are?

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Seems like a silly question, doesn’t it? Of course I know who I am! When I hear that response my come back is “No, do you really know who you are?”

I just had sort of a milestone birthday. I’ll give you a hint it used to be the national speed limit! It’s kinda cool when someone asks me my age I can just tell em double nickels. It’s a much more southing way to say 55… I can honestly say at this ripe old age I’m still learning about myself and my thought is if people aren’t spending time learning about themselves they will never maximize their true potential.

We were channel surfing today and came across Suze Orman conducting a motivational speech in front of a large audience of women. Ms. Orman has her own TV show and has written a number of books on how to manage personal finances. She’s has really been in the spotlight lately with the current state of the economy. Suze used to be like “nails on a chalkboard” to me however listening to her today gave me an entirely different impression. In her speech she was very clear in telling her audience that in order to be successful in life you have to know yourself!

I immediately related her comments back to the work we’ve been doing with managers. We work with organizations that have a desire to enhance their culture in some way, shape or form. During our initial inquiry with a potential client we’ll typically ask about their managers and their level of self-awareness. We’ve come to realize that organizations often pass over this area in their efforts to improve their culture.

We advocate self-awareness as the first, foundational step to improved performance.
We’ve been successful using a tool called The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator which basically helps individuals understand their personality preferences. In our workshops the teams share their personality styles with each other and it’s amazing to see the lights go on within the group. In this crazy hectic world we live in it is rare when managers actually take the time to explore themselves. Arguably, this self exploration is the key to unleashing human potential.

I believe all of us were created to succeed. My advice for anyone who is interested in maximizing their success is to take the time to understand who you are and how you impact others. I’m glad to know Suze Orman agrees.

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Comment by Bill Campion on March 15, 2009 at 12:00pm: Perfect sense. Your comments are interesting regarding your extroversion. Have you taken the Myers-Briggs recently? Their latest 18 page report gets very specific regarding the different levels of extroversion, intuitive, feeling, etc. I'm a ridiculous extravert. I thrive around people and I struggle to quiet myself. Sounds like you may be more in the mid-range. I'll give you an example. I spent Tuesday through Friday in North Carolina working for a client. We were up early every day and didn't get back to our rooms until 11pm every night. It's a 5 hour drive one way no matter how you slice it. We drove home Friday and I got to my humble abode around 7:00PM. I had just sat down to watch some hoop when the phone rings and it's a friend of mine. She tells me they are having a party at one of my favorite restaurants in town and she wants me to come. What do you suppose I do? I take a Marine shower and go party. Was I tired, hell yes. Would it probably have been in my best interest to chill? Probably so. I just can't stand it when someone is having a party without me. I'm sure that also has something to do with the fact that I'm a "feeler" - Sometimes I feel obligated to do things for and with other people. In any event I appreciate the discussion. It's so much fun to understand what makes other people tick. Now I'm really interested in you and what you do for a living and how you got turned on to Talent Revolution. Can't tell you how much I appreciate the back and forth. If you are a Cro-Magnon what's that make me Neanderthal? Have a special day Matt!

Comment by Bill Campion on March 14, 2009 at 2:33pm: That's hilarious. So you are a young pup! yes we do evolve and I will tell you I've grown more in the last ten years than I did in the twenty years before that. With that said my personality preferences have not changed. I'm an ENFP and I'll always be an ENFP. I get my energy from being around people. I don't need things to be in perfect order. I like spontaneity and I think routine is dull and boring. What I have been able to do is appreciate people more who have different preferences. I've learned that more introverted, alone time is valuable and rewarding. I can do detail work now but it's not where I thrive. The Myers-Briggs information is more than a snapshot. It pinpoints your preferences and gives you an understanding of the types of activities that give you energy which is invaluable in your personal life and your professional life. You can't really change your preferences but you can learn to manage them. Does that make sense? I'd love to hear back. Thanks for keeping the dialogue going. I appreciate you Matt!