Business is all about creating and capturing value. But in our age of algorithm generated instant answers, and cookie cutter solutions, what is valuable, is what Google can’t give you.
Awareness, a sense of consciousness. Catch is -- we may be unaware, we are unaware.
When all is said and done, business success is a single player game. Those who do well, have mastered paradox.
In the balancing act of delivering results, one has to be able to combine logical analysis with a dash of ‘out of the box’ creative thinking. Along with an ability to think laterally, to ‘connect the dots’ in a way that is not immediately obvious, there is one element often missing – Awareness.
In the time of the Corona pandemic in November 2022 Deliberate Calm: How to Learn and Lead in a Volatile World was published, written by Jacqueline Brassey, Aaron De Smet, and Michiel Kruyt describing what they call ‘dual awareness’ - being conscious of what is going on inside and outside, and how they affect each other.
“With this awareness, we are able to access a state in which we can act with intention and perform at our best no matter what is going on around us. This requires a certain detachment from our feelings and thoughts, where we can observe ourselves having an experience and can observe our feelings and thoughts about that experience. We still feel emotions, and we still may think negative or hurtful thoughts, but we can notice and accept those thoughts without fully identifying with them. We are in a position to choose a response instead of fully identifying with and getting swept away by our emotions and reacting out of habit,” write the McKinsey authors.
They outline five levels of awareness that we can progress through on the road to dual awareness. Not to be too simplistic, we are rarely stuck at a single level in our working life. Our level of awareness is usually spread across the levels, depending on the context, situation, others involved and our mood in the moment.
Unaware – At this most basic level, we may just lash out, and perhaps even explode. Here we react impulsively and emotionally to situations, not understanding the reasons behind our reactions. Not considering the impact of our actions or communication on others.
Not noticing unproductive patterns and behaviours. Being in a foggy angry state, we don’t see our actions contribute to undesirable outcomes.
Self-reflective – We begin to notice our emotional reactions, but don't yet understand why we feel the way we do. Gradually we start to notice patterns in our behaviour, but we haven't yet identified the root causes.
Moving a step up the ladder of awareness, we begin recognising our patterns and behaviours’ after they have occurred.
In reflection, we can identify moments when we reacted negatively or unproductively, allowing us to start understanding our triggers and thought processes.
Perceptive – This is when we notice the thoughts and emotions driving our reactions and can identify their sources. Being perceptive allows us to see the connection between our internal emotional state and what is going on in the room, giving us greater insight into our behaviour.
As we reach this level, we begin to observe our patterns and behaviours in real time, becoming conscious of the cues that signal a shift into a protective state. Self-awareness can be uncomfortable, but it is a turning point.
Resilient – Requires having techniques to manage our emotional reactions and remain calm under pressure. We might take breaks, practice deep breathing, or reframe situations to maintain composure.
This helps us respond more effectively to problems and reduces tension in our interactions with others. At this stage, we develop approaches to pause, calm down, and reframe challenging situations.
These techniques help us redirect our responses, choosing a more productive reaction, instead of acting from a place of emotion. After repeated practice, we become more resilient in the face of the ‘pop up’ inevitable upsets.
Adaptive – Not being on automatic pilot, breaking out of ‘amoeba like cause and effect reactions’ we can quickly recognise and address our emotional reactions, without needing to pause or take time-outs. Ideal is to have new ways of thinking, to be able to respond effectively in the moment, creating some good vibes.
Imagine the ability to just watch yourself, from a few steps away.
Awareness of awareness equals the space for possibility equals value creation.
