Have you ever worked for a leader who was in the wrong role? In some situations, a leader lacks the skills and experience for the role. At other times it a personality mismatch. The leader is the wrong person for the job because of who he is. For example, I worked for one leader who was not a people person, at all. He knew it, I knew it, everyone knew it. The organization put this leader in charge of people-related activities. He floundered, and the organization suffered while this leader struggled. As you might imagine – it was painful for everyone involved.
It is tough working for a leader with the wrong personality
Another time I worked for a leader who was a complete disaster. My army unit was deployed and our commander was fired for a lack of judgment in personal matters. That is a nice way of saying he was sleeping with one of his subordinates. A horrific mistake for any leader to make. The unit went into complete turmoil as a result of the poor personal decisions this commander made. His wife did not deal well with the news.
The leader who replaced him was well suited for the job
Shortly after a new commander was sent to lead our unit. This commander arrived and immediately went about the task of restoring morale to the organization. She was a people person. She visited everyone in our unit and let them know everything was going to be okay. Troops listened to her and trusted her. Morale improved rapidly. I watched in wonder as she turned around a bad situation in less than 90 days. It was a pleasure working for a leader with the perfect personality type for the situation.
Real leadership is being the person others will gladly and confidently follow.
John Maxwell
A novel framework for new leaders
All The Way Leadership! created a novel framework for new leaders. Fundamentally this framework communicates that it is vital for you to possess integrated integrity as a new leader. Having individual integrated integrity means that ‘who you are’ aligns with ‘what you say’ and ‘what you do’. If you do not demonstrate individual integrated integrity your team will not trust you, and your impact as a leader will be limited. We will start by discussing the all-important topic of knowing ‘who you are’.
Three key components comprise ‘who you are’
All The Way Leadership! believes it is important for every leader to know ‘who you are’…really. Who you are as a leader is comprised mainly of three key components – your personality, your strengths/weaknesses, and your expertise. Figuring out your personality is the topic of this blog. It is not difficult to do. Your strengths/weaknesses and expertise as a leader will be addressed in future posts. For now, let’s focus on who do you see when you look in the mirror. What type of person are you?
A tool to discover your personality
It is important that you truly understand ‘who you are’ as a leader. Not who others think you are, but who you really are. What is your personality? How are you wired? I am a big fan of diagnostic tools. They are a great source of data for personal growth. When it comes to personality tests the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is an excellent starting point. There are other tools available, but I recommend the MBTI first. This website (https://www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test) allows you to identify your MBTI for free. The site also provides a detailed description of each personality type. It is well worth reading through your results.
Why All The Way Leadership! recommends this personality test
All The Way Leadership! recommends that all leaders take the MBTI test so that you know your personality type. Some people do not know their MBTI. I did not know mine until much later in life. The earlier you identify your MBTI the better. This data point provides insight into your personality. It helps you understand what makes you tick. How you respond to certain situations. Now that you know your MBTI, spend some time reading about it. Learn more about yourself. It will help you in many ways as a leader.
Why knowing your MBTI matters
Understanding your personality can help make you more successful in many situations. Make the most of these insights. Just so it is clear – I am not saying that your MBTI is 100% accurate. After all, we are all unique. The entire human population cannot be placed into 16 specific categories. Rather All The Way Leadership! believes the MBTI helps provide you a fundamental understanding of your personality. If you want to be an effective leader, you must first know who you are.
The most difficult thing in life is to know yourself.
Thales
What about you?
Do you know ‘who you are’ as a leader? Have you taken the MBTI personality test and reviewed the results. If not, then take the test and leverage the findings. If so, you will enjoy the next few blogs. We are going to explore how to leverage the MBTI as a leader to include points to ponder, tactical tips and lessons learned about this topic.
ATW! is designed to make you a better leader
I hope you join me on this journey to raise up the next generation of leaders. The world is in desperate need of more great leaders. Women and men who lead with confidence, clarity, and creativity. It’s time to become the leader that your world needs. Let’s go All The Way!
