As featured in the article “Making Yourself Indispensable” published in the October 2011 issue of Harvard Business Review.
A few days ago, Harvard Business Review published an article titled, Making Yourself Indispensible, by Jack Zenger, Joe Folkman and Scott Edinger—co-authors of The Inspiring Leader and principals of the leadership development company, Zenger Folkman.
After years of extensive research, we at Zenger Folkman have identified 16 core leadership competencies that set highly effective leaders apart from the rest. We call these The 16 Differentiating Competencies. Our research proves that if you possess a strength in even one of The 16 Differentiating Competencies, you’re more likely to be perceived as one of the outstanding leaders in your organization. Possess two or three strengths, and you’re on your way to becoming an extraordinary leader.
Over the next 16 days we will open discussions about each of these competencies and how to develop them.
Today’s discussion will focus on the fifth competency:
5.Practices Self-Development
A few Behaviors Defining This Competency:
- Make constructive efforts to change and improve based on feedback from others
- Learn from both success and failure
- Model self-development and embrace its value
Do you take ownership of your own development? Do you seek feedback from others to improve and develop? Do you look for ways to build challenge into current assignments?
Leaders who Practice Self-Development, make constructive efforts to change and improve based on feedback from others. They constantly look for developmental opportunities. They continually develop depth and breadth in key competencies and they demonstrate a curiosity for learning.
Practices Self-Development
Is this a strength or weakness for your leaders?
How has it impacted your career? Organization?
We encourage you to share your thoughts, stories or questions about this competency, below in the comments section.
September 28, 2011 at 9:46 am |
Self-development is crucial. It goes under a variety of names: self-help (which has a bad rep, not unfairly!); self-improvement (which is looked upon with slightly more favor), positive psychology (which strikes some as too academic but at least it sounds adult), and many others.
They all have their roots in self-knowledge.
You can’t solve a problem until you identify it.
You can’t change a thing until you know what it is.
You can’t change yourself until you know yourself.
My new start-up, Self-Knowledge College, will try to address this for people who want to succeed in their personal, academic and professional lives.
Things like time management, procrastination, goal setting, values, communication and even the definitions of success and failure, (which can’t be measured only in financial terms), are all sub-sets of self-improvement which is an effect of self-knowledge. We have to understand the relationships between and among these aspects of human behavior if we are to develop to be our best selves.
October 27, 2011 at 9:00 am |
[...] leader wants those they lead to be learning, developing and growing. It is hard to convince them to do so if they don’t see you doing it. If you want [...]