Towards a Certificate Qualification

The Management of Technology and Innovation

Applied to Supervisory Employees

Certificate in the

Management of Technology & Innovation applied to Supervisory Employees

Managerial Leadership Engagement (CMLE): Part One

Study Guide

Directors: Prof R Marcus Chairman, Prof B Anderson CEO, D Marcus, Company Registration No. 2001/009271/07

Registered with the Department of Higher Education and Training as a private higher education institution under the Higher Education Act, 1997. Accreditation No. 2004/HE07/003

Table of Contents

Chapter Page

Eight Establish Effective Work Relationships 125

1 Synopsis & Learning Outcomes

2 Supervisory Leadership Development

Approach to Supervisory Leadership Development

Supervisory Leadeship Competencies

On becoming Self-Directed

3 Self-Awareness

The Importance of Self-Awareness in Self Development

The Johari Window : Finding my Blind Spot

3 Model the Way (It's about telling an inspiring story …)

Finding Meaning

Emotional Intelligence : New yardstick for success

On Becoming Focussed

‣ Stress Management

‣ Manage Attention

‣ Manage Energy

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Chapter Synopsis

Managerial Leadership Engagement focuses on one of the manager’s key

accountabilities to maximise self and team engagement. This module therefor addresses

the importance of self and social awareness to master social and emotional

competencies needed to apply agile supervisory leadership; self-regulation to establish

and manage effective working relationships to maximise team engagement and

Managerial leadership practices to build a safe and trusting and accountable working

environment where people can come to do their best.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module, students should be able to:

Understand the importance of social and emotional competencies and how they

relate to the teams output

Apply techniques to master the needed social and emotional competencies in order to

manage both self and others more effectively

Take accountability to regulate their own mindsets and behaviours to deal more

effectively with ambiguity and lead change positively

Manage own and other’s energy to maintain productivity and to stay focused.

Understand the drivers of employee engagement

Assess own as well as team engagement levels to identify factors negatively impacting

on engagement

Design and execute an action plan to increase team engagement

On successful completion of this module, students should be able to:

Use personal vision to self motivate

Take accountability to regulate one’s own mindsets and behaviours to create desired

change

Manage energy and attention to maintain productivity

Develop a strong support network

Leave one’s comfort zone and commit to opportunities

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Becoming Self-Directed

In a few hundred years, when the history of our time will be written from a long-term

perspective, it is likely that the most important event historians will see is not technology,

not the Internet, not e-commerce. It is an unprecedented change in the human

condition. For the first time – literally – substantial and rapidly growing numbers of people

have choices. For the first time, they will have to manage themselves. And society is totally

unprepared for it.”

– Peter Drucker

Most of us spend more of our adult lives working than we do engaging in any other single

waking activity.

While not denying the value and importance of external expertise, successful

organisations will try to transfer that expertise to the individual employee through extensive

training, and then expect that employee to be self-directing and become part of the

solution.

Self-direction creates an awareness of the need for, or possibility of, change. Employees

are able to look at themselves and begin identifying the changes they might wish to

consider making in such areas as work, problem-solving, conflict management, and

learning.

We can no longer afford to muddle through on our way to new knowledge and new skills.

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The greatest challenge of the future is social, not technological. In the excitement

generated by the latest technological marvels, from fibre optics to the Internet, to new

drugs and medical breakthroughs, we tend to forget that our major problems are people

problems.

Becoming Self Directed

Read

Sharlyn Lauby writes a short but to the point article on the topic of self-

directedness. Follow the link to read this article.

Introduction to self directedness : The business case for self-direction

�

Individual Action

Lauby emphasise six principles of self-direction which will help you to

develop the ability to not only successfully bridge the “old” to the "new”,

but will also enable you to contribute to the fast changing organisations of

today and to be prepare to fulfil the requirements of tomorrow.

Know yourself : Self Aware

Do meaningful work

Be part of the solution

Managing conflict effectively

Learn how to learn

Manage to change

�

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The Importance of Self-Awareness in Self Development

“I think self-awareness is probably the most important thing towards becoming a

champion...”

- Billy Jean King

One of the most important aspects in increasing your own level of influence is self-

awareness. Self-awareness can assist to allow you the opportunity to know who you are,

what you want and how to go about getting it! No man is an island, or so the saying

goes. We all live and work in groups and have to have an understanding of how we fit

into the various groups in our lives, the effect we have on other members of the group

and their effect on us.

To become self-aware and gain self-knowledge, you need to allow yourself to connect

with all facets of your being; to embrace “your all” (also the parts you deny at times).

Even that part of you that you are not aware of. To do this you also need to be prepared

to receive feedback and disclose yourself to others (also see Johari window that follows a

little later). Self-awareness is one of the main ingredients in becoming authentic (not

plastic or made in Taiwan). An increase in self-awareness bridges the gap between ‘who

I am’ and ‘who I am expected to be’ (socially).

The following pages contain a helpful model that explains the importance of our abilities

to receive and deal with feedback and our ability to make ourselves vulnerable by

showing (self-disclosure) ourselves to the world; and how we integrate all the information

to assist us to become authentic and real where thoughts, feelings and actions are

aligned and congruent (according to our friend Carl Rogers). One’s growth potential lies

within the abilities to embrace both strengths and development areas. The way you

embrace “it all”, actually increases your level of influence as you will be enabled and

empowered to model the way…

Self-Assessment

To assess self-awareness, follow this link

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The Johari Window : Finding my Blindspot

The Johari window model is a simple and useful tool for illustrating and improving self-

awareness, and mutual understanding between individuals within a group. The Johari

window tool can also be used to assess and improve a group's relationship with other

groups. The Johari window model was developed by American psychologists Joseph Luft

and Harry Ingham in the 1950's, while researching group dynamics. Today this model is

especially relevant due to modern emphasis on, and influence of, 'soft' skills, behaviour,

empathy, co-operation, intergroup development and interpersonal development.

The Johari window model is also referred to as a 'disclosure/feedback model of self-

awareness' and by some people an 'information processing tool'. The Johari window

actually represents information – feelings, experience, views, attitudes, skills, intentions

and motivation – within or about a person in relation to their group, from four

perspectives, which are described below. The Johari window model can also be used to

represent the same information for a group in relation to other groups.

Johari window terminology refers to 'self' and 'others': 'self' means oneself, ie, the person

subject to the Johari window analysis. 'Others' mean other people in the person's group

or team.

The four Johari window perspectives are

called regions or areas or quadrants. Each of

these regions contains and represents the

information - feelings, motivation, etc - known

about the person in terms of whether the

information is known or unknown by the

person, and whether the information is known

or unknown by others in the group. The Johari

window's four regions are as follows (showing

the quadrant numbers and commonly used

names):

“EVERY step we take – no matter how small –

Self-Assessment

To find your blindspot, follow this link to assess yourself

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to understand the needs of the people we strive to serve will increase our bond with them,

and move us in the direction of a higher standard of leadership.”

- Mahatma Gandhi

Johari window four regions

What is known by the person about him/herself and is also known by others open area,

open self, free area, free self, or 'the arena'

What is unknown by the person about him/herself but which others know - blind area,

blind self, or 'blind spot'

What the person knows about him/herself that others do not know - hidden area, hidden

self, avoided area, avoided self or 'facade'

What is unknown by the person about him/herself and is also unknown by others -

unknown area or unknown self

Miscommunication frequently occurs because our open window is so limited; we are not

in touch with what we feel and cannot respond to what we hear. As the open window

increases, there is not only greater variability in individual’s behaviour, but also greater

openness in interpersonal relationships in the group.

The Johari Window is a useful Model to try and explain what the role is of self-discovering.

This self-discovering is base on two fundamentals:

‣ Feedback from others

‣ Self-disclosure

Both essential elements to ensure my wellness, my ability to disclose information about

myself and my ability to receive and integrate feedback from others and my

environment.

When you look at the theory of the Johari Window, are you ale to plot yourself in the

quadrants with examples in each? Try to do it…

All tasks following, is an attempt to enlarge the Open/free area and to minimise the

unknown area. Bringing you in a better position to connect with yourself and then with

your manage.

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If you are interested in your own level of self-awareness, please click to do a self-

assessment to start your journey.

In the next chapters we are going to look at emotions, where they come from and how

they influence our present. We will also indicate the relationship between our thoughts,

feelings and behaviour and to what extend we have control over the way we feel, think

and act or behave. It might shed some light on the statement I have heard so many times

in the past: “The boss/husband/wife/child makes me so angry...”

Reflection

At the end of the discussion, and afer you have reflected on this specific

topic, summarise your own thoughts and opinions and eventually your

understanding of the topic.�

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FINDING MEANING

There are two important days in your life. That is the day that you were born, and the

day you come to understand why …

Mark Twain

When Daniel Goleman published Emotional Intelligence: Why it can matter more than

IQ in 1995, using the phrase “the new yardstick for success”, this generated an incredible

amount of interest in the role that emotional intelligence can play in our daily lives. There

were, however, a number of people who were concerned that this was just a new fad!

The fact is, however, when Goleman went to press in 1996 with his findings, he had

already assessed more than 2 million employees trying to determine what the

competencies are that predict or determine success in the workplace. With his

publication he clearly indicated that our success in the workplace are only 15%

determined by our technical skills and the other 85% is determined by what he called

emotional intelligence (EI), previously also referred to as emotional literacy.

Now, in order for me to explain what EI is, let me introduce this whole concept to you in

the same way my mentor and colleague, Pieter van Jaarsveld, does as it starts the ball

rolling very effectively...

Think about somebody who has really played an important role in your life. List all the

qualities, traits or characteristics of this person …

Think about somebody who has really played an important role in your

life. List all the qualities, traits or characteristics of this person

�

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Emotional Intelligence (EI) refers to:

Personal

Social

Emotional

Survival skills

Innovation

Though the latest research indicate the following seven (7) social and emotional

competencies of highly effective teams:

Team Identity

Motivation

Emotional

Communication

Stress tolerance

Conflict resolution

Positive mood

Comparing EI with that of IQ, the Difference seems to be...

Cognitive Intelligence: (IQ)

Predicts success at school

Predicts 6% – 15% success at job

IQ peaks at late teens / early twenties

Culture-bound

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Can not be developed

Emotional Intelligence (EI)

No cultural differences

No gender differences on average

Ladies higher: empathy, social responsibility, and interpersonal

relationships

Men higher: stress tolerance, personal mastery

EI can be developed.

From balance sheet driven mentality ...

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within

us.”

– Oliver Wendell Holmes

As mentioned earlier when we were discussing leadership and the modern organisation,

there has been a total paradigm shift within the way we do business today and how it’s

going to be done in the future. The change is so dramatic that some experts even use the

word radical. There is a clear shift from the traditional command and control way,

balance sheet driven, to an acute awareness that the bottom-line dollar and the wellness

of an organisation depends on the wellness of the employee and the amount of job

satisfaction and how it adds to the employee’s need for recognition and to be

empowered to participate in his/her own destiny. The only way to become empowered

to control one’s own destiny will be when organisations are focussed on engaging all

employees and addressing the basic need of individuals to succeed and to make a

difference.

There is also overwhelming evidence that there is a positive correlation between the level

of the employees’ engagement in the organisation and financial performance. Further,

people engage best when the following elements are present :

Know yourself

Meaningful Work Page ! I The Da Vinci Institute I AngloGold Ashanti118

Be part of the Solution

Manage Conflict Productively

Learn how to Learn

Manage Change

For years we have only spoken about so-called buy-in of all stakeholders. This concept

forms the basis of leading businesses’ and cutting edge models. People create their own

realities and if people are involved with and in the co-creation of processes within the

organisation, engagement is significantly enhanced. As Tucker (2007) said:

“Engagement is reciprocal: Participation in the co-creation processes enhances

engagement, and enhanced engagement enhances communication, openness to

innovation, and therefore ultimately enhances engagement”.

Now, bearing all that in mind and the fact that we create our own realities, the next stop is

to see what is the influence our perceptions, and how does it determine our realities...

A reality that so often contaminate our ability to live up to our basic (intrinsic) need and

expectation, to succeed. Or as the Transactional Analysts would say: to be a Prinz (a

winner)! As said earlier:

Born to win... Conditioned to lose (Froz)!

The human mind has been created with such potential that no scientist has had the ability

to establish it’s full potential as yet. It is said that we only currently know about 5% of the

human mind. We live in a world that provides more opportunities than we could possibly

pursue. We were created with a free will, to make of ourselves whatever we wish. If this is

the case, why do the ‘clever’ people tell us that we are not using more than between 1%

and 14% of our potential? They say the brain has more than a 100 billion neurones. Each

neurone has the capability of my laptop!

When we look at the life of Leonardo da Vinci, we realise that true utilisation of the brain is

to become whole-brained, which will lead to real brilliancy.

Leonardo da Vinci was undoubtedly the most accomplished person in the following

disciplines: art, sculpture, physiology, general science, architecture, mechanics, anatomy,

physics, invention, meteorology, geology, engineering, and aviation. He could even sing

and compose music! Was he a freak of nature?

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No! If we say we are talented in a specific area and not in others, this does not necessarily

mean that we are unable to do other things. It merely means that our potential in other

areas is lying dormant and could in fact be developed with the correct nurturing and

training.

Buzan says the following about the brain: “The pattern-making capability of the brain is so

great that the writing thereof would take a line of figures, in normal manuscript

characters, more than 10,5 million kilometres in length!”

If we have this incredible brainpower, why are the majority of people unable to do

mathematics? And for interest sake, let’s compare the brain of the humans with that of

the animal kingdom. Let me explain…

So, does this prove that we, as human beings, clearly do not use our utmost potential?

Why not and what went wrong then?

Maybe we should briefly explore possible answers to the above questions.

Self-fulfilling Prophecy

The self-fulfilling prophecy is a very important concept in our daily lives. It implies that other

people have had a major impact on our beliefs and our attitudes.

Conscious and Subconscious Mind

In answering the question of what influences our

perceptions and realities, we need to go back to

the day that we saw first light on this earth and the

events that followed thereafter.... right up to this

very moment. (To understand this space you are in,

and maybe also to start a process in your mind

where you might become aware of or recognise

patterns of thoughts, feelings and behaviour that

might keep you back.)

Over the last ten years, wonderful research was done to help us to understand a little

better. Particularly research confirming the ability of the human mind. I would like to stop

here for a while as I want to make you aware of how our thoughts, feelings and behaviour

could be hijacked by a part of our brain called the Amygdala, depending how it was

programmed. Yes, you heard correctly, how it was programmed. We will, however, be

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Conscious Mind Can only distinguish between right and wrong and true and false

Subconscious Mind Cannot distinguish between right and wrong and true and false

coming back to the ability of the human mind and its ability to either give us wings or

bring us down confirming that we are losers.

Heard the Recent News? You have been Hijacked!

Many years ago, when we were all still in the trees only

a small part of the brain as we know it today existed –

called the Amygdala. And the function of the

Amygdala (I like to refer to her as Mrs Amygdala) was

to scan the environment for danger and make sure we

are safe. So, as this part of the brain was the only

known part, pathways that stimuli followed within the

brain were very simple: scan…if danger, instruct to

run!). But as we became more complex the rest of the

brain developed, called the new cortex and with this, pathways became more complex

as “other neighbours” moved into the “top storey” with Mrs Amygdala. These “other

neighbours” started to deal with some specialised functions. Stimuli therefore did not go

like in the past directly to Mrs Amygdala, but to a part of the cortex responsible for

decoding it into brain language, then off to another part and eventually sent to Mrs

Amygdala who would then use the information to determine whether we are safe or not

(remember she still has the function to protect us…or one of her functions).

As to ensure our safety, one can understand that this complicated business in the top

storey led to Mrs Amygdala’s neurosis. So, in a way she felt that she lost too much control

and that the complex pathways (the way s that stimuli follow in the brain before we can

give meaning to...) within the brain took too long to get to her, placing her host (you and

me) at risk. Mrs Amygdala decided she needed to take things in her own hands to get this

information into the brain quicker and faster. Her solution was literally to eavesdrop on all

the information coming into the brain.

Now the only way for me to explain the consequence of her eavesdropping is to

compare it with someone who is listening to a conversation through a door. What’s the risk

in listening to a conversation in this way (apart from the fact that you might also be

caught out)? You might not get the full story! Or you might only get the tail end of the

conversation. Keep in mind that she now makes major decisions on the information

available to her…

Keeping in mind that every experience you and I have had since birth, good and/or bad,

is literally stored in little pictures in the Amygdala: what I call Mrs Amygdala’s art gallery.

So, when she scans the environment for danger using information available to her and she

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might find a slight match on a picture of the past, she will start tapping! To illustrate this,

let’s use an example.

To understand why our potential and achievement are reflected by conditioned beliefs

we need to look at our conscious and subconscious mind. Without going into

psychological jargon, for our purposes it can be said that our mind consists of the

conscious and subconscious.

It is like an iceberg: the conscious is the smaller part and the subconscious the bigger part.

A very important factor that must be kept in mind is that the conscious can distinguish

between what is right or wrong, true or false, whilst the subconscious cannot differentiate

between right and wrong or true or false. It is like the memory of a computer. Whatever is

put in, will stay there. It cannot even be deleted or destroyed by a virus. The only way to

get rid of the information is to reprogram it.

The subconscious is, therefore, like a plot of fertile soil - whatever is sown will grow. We all

know that if you plant bean seeds, you cannot expect to reap anything other than beans.

If negativity is programmed into the subconscious, you will get back negativity and self-

critical behaviour. It is, therefore, logical that whenever your subconscious has accepted

a belief or an idea, be it true or false, it will continue to feed you with thoughts to support

that belief. You will see later on how these ideas/beliefs/pictures/patterns of thinking can

affect your brain and of course your behaviour. At this point in time, it is enough for us to

realise that the subconscious, which is the bigger part of the mind, affects our thoughts,

mind, attitude and behaviour.

Conditioned Beliefs

Depending on how the subconscious mind has been programmed, is what determines

the glasses that you and I put on our faces and how we look at the world…creating our

reality.

Le Roux & De Klerk (2001) tried to explain conditioned beliefs as follows (though they refer

to it as assumptions in an attempt to reiterate that assumptions are not always based on

facts or rational processes):

“Consider the following: A person’s core beliefs (that includes our assumptions,

preconceptions and prejudices) can be described as his “truth”, his belief about how

things work and ought to work. These convictions are learnt from early childhood onwards

and form a large part of a person’s make-up. People are brought up with certain

preconceived ideas with which they test life”.

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With this they mean that all these socially learnt and conditioned beliefs together forms a

very strong system that is used as a paradigm to assess, understand (explain) and give

meaning to our environment and all thoughts, feelings and behaviour. How we assess,

understand (explain) and give meaning to space we find ourselves in at a specific

moment, will create our reality. This reality might therefore differ from person to person

depending on a person’s programmed belief system (all stored in the subconscious mind.

Using one’s belief system in giving meaning to our perceptions and experiences, we

attempt to file all in little boxes with a label so that we understand it. It seems to be very

important to the human being to be able to ‘box’ experiences and perceptions and it

creates a feeling of having control over one’s environment and destiny. As soon as we

have difficulty in fitting these elements into our created boxes, the feeling of not

understanding increases, also then the feeling of not having control which most often

increases anxiety. Behaviour might reflect the difficulty of coping with our own realities.

These belief systems are so strongly imbedded and real and form part of our daily

existence that we very seldom actually challenge them or just think of the possibility that

some of these belief systems might be either distorted, untrue or irrational. Confronting

one’s own belief system and facing up to a possibility that it could be untrue, confronts

one’s whole being and existence. In order to keep the ship more even keeled when

waters might become somewhat rough, we often rather stick to past conditioned beliefs

to give meaning to our own realities. The thought of changing these beliefs are so

traumatic that people might even prefer to abdicate their own realities, no matter how

destructive it might be. The fear to move to a different reality (by changing irrational

beliefs), even knowing that changing might lead to a more constructive, fulfilled and

meaningful life, might be so deeply routed that they might decide to rather “keep things

as is”.

An example: Why do you think a woman who gets beaten-up and is abused by her

husband goes back to him every night? Simple! It is easier to live with a certainty that

when her husband comes home tonight, it’s most likely that he is going to be drunk,

verbally and physically abusive towards her (it’s near a guaranteed fact), and it creates

less fear than considering the option to move into an unknown reality, even though the

evidence might be strong enough to indicate a better life. Eventually accepting a belief

that this is how life is – difficult, intended to suffer – and though they might acknowledge a

different meaningful reality, they have also come to believe that this different reality is for

other people and not meant for them.

Beliefs are usually the result of absolutist thinking about yourself, others and the world and

promote beliefs like: “If something bad can happen in this situation, it will happen to me”

or “I must be the best in everything in order for other people to accept me”, or “I should

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not say too much because others will notice how little I know.” And as indicated earlier,

these destructive and irrational belief systems become a self-fulfilling prophecy! We will

later come back to this idea during our journey.

!

As a manager our belief systems will give meaning to:

What do I believe about... Relationships... Own and others’ needs…The world… My or

others’ rights… The roles I play…

Mistakes… Feelings… Problems…Trust…

Said differently, depending on my own programmed / conditioned beliefs whether

positive or negative, I will take information (rational or irrational) from my environment that

will either confirm old beliefs I have or disproof new options to a perceived reality. For

example: If I have a limiting self-belief dating back to when I was a child where my father

continuously told me that I am just as stupid as my mother’s family, every perceived failure

in the present and future will be an confirmation that my father was right! I am as stupid as

my mother’s family! Keeping not only your own low self-worth in place but it also defines

your criteria for success.

Here is a short exercise Le Roux & De Klerk (2001) suggests that might help: Page ! I The Da Vinci Institute I AngloGold Ashanti124

Test your negative deep-seated assumptions as hypotheses – take all the information into

account:

All words, situations and events which could prove that you are accepted even when you

are not the best. Experiment in order to prove your assumptions incorrect. Look at the

way people react to you in testing the assumption “I am without value.” When you

accept a new assumption (belief) e.g. “I am valuable,” be open to facts which prove this

correct, such as people greeting you, caring about you or your doing something of value

for another person. Start with a low risk assumption and test it.

A new belief may be the opposite of the old one or the absolutist belief may be qualified;

for instance:

“I find it difficult to cope with new situations, but I am able to if I really try.” It takes time to

believe in a new assumption. Be on the lookout for evidence (events/experiences) from

your past which prove your new assumption to be correct. It may be that people have

always talked to you easily and cared about you, but that you have lost sight of this. Your

assumptions and convictions have developed over a long time and they may take long

time to change.

The first step is just to realise that they might be wrong! It is important to get to the bottom

of your assumptions. You can do this by asking yourself a few questions about them, for

example: “I should not say too much because others will realise how little I know.”

Ask yourself: If that is true what will happen? “They will not like me.”

If that is true what will happen? “I will be alone and will feel rejected.”

Do this until you come to the heart of it in order for you to do something about it or to

realise how irrational your assumptions are.

CONVICTIONS/ASSUMPTIONS/PREJUDICES

ARE LEARNT BY

CONDITIONING

(Continues reinforcement and repetition)

WHICH LEADS TO

CERTAIN EXPECTATIONS

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WHICH HAVE CERTAIN

BEHAVIOUR AS A RESULT.

THIS BEHAVIOUR BECOMES A HABIT.

If you live according to a certain frame of reference, e.g. “I will always have a problem

and will never be successful,” you’ll have the expectations that this will always be true.

Everything which happens around you and to you will be from this perspective and you

will only see that which confirms your expectations.

You will ignore the positive events or think of reasons why they are not applicable to you.

You only believe in what you want to believe and what proves your convictions to be true.

When your employer gives you a compliment you will reject it with various reasons as to

why he did it, e.g. “He wants something from me.”

“Be careful what you look for because

you will find it.”

- Anonymous

Positive assumptions give energy to enjoy yourself and your relationships. Look carefully at

the following quotation from Victor Frankl:

“I discovered the ultimate freedom, the ability to choose your attitude irrespective of

circumstance.”

The following quotation relates to this as well:

“Attitude is the mind’s paintbrush – it can colour any situation.”

- Anonymous

Your interpretations regarding situations/events are strongly influenced by your beliefs

(assumptions/convictions) that you have. Irrational assumptions give rise to negative

interpretations. The fewer irrational assumptions you have, the more energy you will have

to enjoy yourself and your friends. Irrational assumptions are learnt early in life. They are like

a bad habit that can’t be unlearnt. Take a look at the following :

Beliefs

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Read the following general assumptions* and decide which of them describe how you

feel. Re-read them and indicate which are rational and which irrational.

Everybody must always like me,me and approve of my actions otherwise I feel

absolutely miserable and totally useless.

It would be pleasant if everybody liked me, but I can survive without the approval of

most people. It is only the approval of close friends and people with “power” over me

(like my employer) about which I should be concerned.I have to be perfect and

competent in all respects before I will regard myself as worth something.

My personal values do not depend on how perfect or competent I am. Although I try

to be as competent as possible, I am a valuable person irrespective of how well I do

things.

People who are bad, like myself should be blamed and punished to prevent them from

doing bad things in future.

It is important mot to repeat the same mistakes in future. I need not blame or punish

myself for what happened in the past.

It is a total catastrophe and so intolerable that I cannot bear it if things are not the way

I want them to be.

There is no reason why the world should be the way I want it to be. It is important to

cope with life as it is. I should not complain about the fact that things are not just or the

way I want them to be.

If there is a possibility that something really bad might happen, I will constantly think

about it as if it is indeed going to happen.

I will do my best to avoid future unpleasantness. Thereafter I will not concern myself

about anything. I refuse to be frightened by the question: “What if it happens?”

It is easier to avoid problems and the responsibility they entail than to cope with them.

In the long run it is easier/better to cope with problems and the responsibility they entail

than to avoid them.

I need someone stronger than myself to rely on.

I am strong enough to rely on myself.

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I have been like this since childhood and I cant change.

I can change myself at any stage during my life when I decide that it is in my interest to

do so.

I should get miserable and depressed when other people have problems.

To help other people and have empathy with them does not mean that U should get

depressed about it or get involved in their problems. How can I help them if I am

depressed myself?

It is bad and unbearable if I have to do things that I do not want or like to do.

I will not allow things that I cannot change to upset me.

OK, let me mention some facts to illustrate my point of what the impact of our

subconscious mind and the way it has been programmed has on our daily lives. Before I

go further, please understand that I am

not using the following examples to

illustrate how bad we were parented or

how bad we are parenting, but rather

to make us aware of how we were

conditioned. Also to have a laugh or

two as we start to understand this

process better. So first I want to share

this short video clip i got from an student

of mine... well, you will understand! It’s

called THE MOM’S SONG...

What can I Say...?!

Statements we grew up with

Taking the above into account, listed below is a number of remarks made by parents

whilst bringing up children. Please tick those that are of relevance to you, and think about

what these remarks have led you to believe about yourself and about life (PP van

Jaarsveld):

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Statement Yes No

“Be careful … you will get hurt.”

“Don’t interrupt me.”

“Children should be seen and not heard.”

“Don’t be stupid.”

“Be quiet.”

“Be nice.”

“Don’t be angry.”

“Don’t be lazy.”

“Remember God is watching you.”

“If you are naughty I am going to call the police.”

“Only sissies cry.”

“Don’t you question me.”

“What will other people think?”

“Don’t try to be smart with me.”

“Who do you think you are?”

“Be grateful for small mercies.”

“If you only get 65%, it means you did not know 35% of

the work”

“I did not expect that from you.”

“You may not be pretty, but at least you are clever.”

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Things that only a mother can teach …

Also for the fun of it, look at the following table: Things that only a mother can teach. Can

you associate with it? The way we think actually imprints on a cellular level...

My Mother taught me about ANTICIPATION:

“Just wait until your father gets home.”

My Mother taught me about RECEIVING:

“You are going to get it when we get home!”

My Mother taught me ESP:

“Put your sweater on; don’t you think I know when you are cold!”

My Mother taught me HUMOUR:

“When that lawnmower cuts off your toes, do not come running to me.”

My Mother taught me about GENETICS:

“You are just like your father.”

My Mother taught me about my ROOTS:

“Do you think you were born in a barn!”

My Mother taught me about JUSTICE:

“One day you’ll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you.Then you’ll see

what it’s like.”

My Mother taught me RELIGION:

“You had better pray that stain comes out of the carpet.

My Mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL:

“If you don’t straighten up, I am going to knock you into the middle of next

week!”

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My Mother taught me FORESIGHT:

“Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you’re involved in an

accident.”

My Mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS:

“Shut your mouth and eat your supper.”

Considering all the above, it becomes more evident that our minds and bodies are

inseparable. My colleague, Pieter van Jaarsveld, after a visit to the USA, tells the story

about a woman who had a heart transplant…

He began to read more about this and found several examples of cases to support this.

There are many people who have received a donor kidney, liver or heart and have in fact

begun to relive the memories of the donor. Still somewhat in disbelieve, he was

confronted by a person attending one of his workshops in Cape Town with the following

story…

These stories all point to one inescapable fact: that our mind and body are inseparable!

Our beliefs and thoughts affect our bodies, and are completely interrelated.

Looking at other research, Chopra refers to research where placebos were given to

patients. 30% of these patients experienced the same relief they would have, had they

been given the genuine painkiller tablet. The body is, therefore, capable of producing

almost any biochemical that the mind suggests.

This has remarkable implications for our well-being. We are able to programme our minds

to have a positive physical impact on our bodies, i.e. the mind can compel the body to

secrete positive hormones. We can even programme our minds to retain youthfulness,

through the power of the mind! It is enough to know that the mind and body are

intricately interlinked. Let’s investigate how this incredible fact can be used to determine

our well-being. Before we get to this, it may be interesting to look at the mind-boggling

evidence regarding the intelligence of the heart.

Intelligence of the heart

Children and Martin say that for many of us, the heart is merely an organ that pumps the

blood through our bodies – a function that is controlled by the brain through the

autonomic nervous system; nothing more than the pump house of the body. We are

inclined to forget that the heart begins beating in the unborn fetes long before the

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emotional brain or rational mind is formed. The emotional mind is in

existence long before the rational mind. The beating heart is there

before either of these. This tells us a great deal about the relationship of

thought to feeling!

Neuroscientists have discovered that the heart has its own independent

nervous system that can actually be called the ‘brain’ of the heart. There are signals sent

from the heart that can affect the Amygdala, thalamus and the cortex.

The brain usually sends a message to the heart, and the heart responds to this message. It

is, however, evident that the heart responds selectively to the message from the brain and

can even slow down its response, rather than merely responding automatically to the

message. The heart’s response is thus dependent on the specific task of the moment. The

heart can even send a message back to the brain, which the brain obeys. A message

from the heart can actually influence a person’s behaviour. The heart can influence our

perceptions, emotions and awareness.Intelligence and behaviour

Intelligence and Behaviour of the Heart

Research has shown that human beings, by focusing on the heart area and experiencing

feelings such as love, appreciation and care, can shift their heart rhythms, which leads to

the secretion of biochemicals that can affect every organ in the body.

Positive emotions such as happiness, appreciation, compassion, care, and love increase

the secretion of a very important hormone, namely DHEA. The level of DHEA is increased

and this boosts the levels of IgA (immunoglobulin P), which makes us more resistant to

infections and disease. The secretion of DHEA suppresses the stress hormone, cortisol.

Excessive cortisol is not only an indication of high stress levels, but can attack your

concentration, as well as your memory. It can even result in brain damage. DHEA, on the

other hand, is a vitality and anti-ageing hormone. It is not only a precursor of the sex

hormones oestrogen and testosterone, but research shows that people with major

diseases have low levels of DHEA. This emphasises the importance of DHEA for a healthy

body!

As previously mentioned, it suppresses the secretion of cortisol.

We will go into too much detail regarding how the feelings of the heart reduce the

activity of the sympathetic nervous system (responsible for higher heart beat and the

release of stress hormones), and increase the activity of the parasympathetic nervous

system (slows the heart rate, relaxes the body), since that is for the academics. Page ! I The Da Vinci Institute I AngloGold Ashanti132

From the quantum-physics we know that our thoughts are changed to biochemical

messages. These biochemical messages are distributed through the blood to all the cells

of the body. Every “cell” thus feels exactly what we are feeling. We must remember that

our thoughts allow us to have control over the functions of the cells. It is important that we

remember the following, for both our physical well-being and stress management:

The mind and body are inseparably one.

Our thoughts affect our entire body.

The heart has an intelligence that can be used to determine our physical well-being.

The use of emotions such as love, compassion, courage, tolerance, patience, sincerity,

forgiveness, appreciation, and care can reduce symptoms of stress, such as a high

heart rate, insomnia, fatigue, tension, indigestion and body aches.

Negative thoughts and feelings, such as anger, jealousy and judgemental thoughts

tend to deplete our energy.

We need to be able to manage our emotions if we want to live a healthy and fulfilling

life.

DHEA and IgA are positive hormones, necessary for a healthy life.

Cortisol is the stress hormone, and a high level of this hormone has damaging effects on

the body.

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Techniques to Overcome Emotional History

Reframing

In its purest form, reframing is an applied thinking technique, where you change the

context under which a person would view something. Having set this new context, you

then ask that the person to imagine the issue at hand from this new context. This means

that you ask an individual to examine something from a completely different perspective

from their usual comfort zone. An applied example would be to ask security officers to

look at their areas of protection from the perspective of criminals - this approach gives

new insight and often leads to applied creativity. In essence you create a number of ways

of looking at assumptions.

Changing Self-Talk

Out of control emotions can make intelligent people behave in a stupid way. A more

realistic self-talk can lead to a higher emotional competence and more effective

behaviour. Unrealistic, negative self-talk can lead to negativity, negative feelings, and

depression. Negative feelings lead to the secretion of cortisol and suppress the secretion

of DHEA, affecting the body’s immune system (Ig A).

Read

Reframing Organisations (Bolman & Deal, 2008)�

Reflection

At the end of the discussion, and afer you have reflected on this specific

topic, summarise your own thoughts and opinions and eventually your

understanding of the topic.

�

Reflection

At the end of the discussion, and afer you have reflected on this specific �

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Visualisation

Through visualisation, we can use our mind power to achieve our desires and goals.

Visualisation is the use of one’s imagination to see oneself in a future situation that has not

yet occurred. A person pictures the results he wants to achieve. Through visualisation, a

person is able to mentally achieve what he physically wants to achieve. The reason for this

is the nervous system cannot tell the difference between an imagined or real goal. A

major reason for people not achieving their dreams and desires is that they do not utilise

visualisation.

Positive Affirmation

By programming the subconscious in a more positive manner, negative and self-critical

attitudes can be changed into a more positive belief system that would lead to a more

positive outlook on life, as well as higher levels of self-confidence and self-regard. Personal

mastery would lead to star performance. Positive self-esteem would generate more

positive emotions, resulting in the secretion of positive hormones such as DHEA and

endorphins, as well as an increase in Ig A levels.

Reflection

At the end of the discussion, and afer you have reflected on this specific

topic, summarise your own thoughts and opinions and eventually your

understanding of the topic.�

Reflection

At the end of the discussion, and afer you have reflected on this specific

topic, summarise your own thoughts and opinions and eventually your

understanding of the topic.�

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Some help..

More Accurate/Rational Beliefs

Reflection

At the end of the discussion, and afer you have reflected on this specific

topic, summarise your own thoughts and opinions and eventually your

understanding of the topic.�

More Accurate/Rational Beliefs False/irrational Beliefs

You have the right to change your

mind

You do not need the approval of

others in order to cope

You have the right to say you “don’t

know” or “don’t understand”

You may make decisions without using

logic

You must never make mistakes as they

can inconvenience others

You should never change your mind

once you have committed yourself as

you will be seen as irresponsible

It is very important that people like you

as you need the cooperation of others

to survive

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More Accurate/Rational Beliefs False/irrational Beliefs

You have the right to say “I don’t care”

You have the right to choose to help

someone or not – others problems do

not have to become yours

If you don’t know or understand the

answers to any questions you are

irresponsible and need to be controlled

by those who know better

You must follow logic because it makes

better decisions than any of us

You must always strive to be perfect

You cannot refuse someone asking for

help

Any Others you can think of... Any more you can think of...

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Time to Practice

A B C D E F

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Let’s start at the beginning – with myself!

“The longest journey we will ever take”

My levels of Influence (how I impact on my world…)

Now, as leadership refers to someone’s level of influence or impact, let’s do the following

exercise:

Level of influence : Closer to home

Now, lets bring it even closer to home. Think about the level of influence (impact) YOU

have at :

Please think of a person, anyone who you would say had a great impact

on your life. This maybe in a personal or occupational capacity. Then

think what that impact was and why; and also how it still impacts on your

life today�

Marital Relationship

�

Children :

�

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Your Community

�

Now, please list some of your sub-ordinates, and think how you might

impact on their lives (personal or occupational) – difficult one, but I need

you to think about it…

Name How do YOU influence their life’s

�

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Your reflection after this exercise ….

�

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Change Readiness : A Metaphor of understanding

Capture your transformation journey

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Current Story?

Write your personal storie that will reflect your current state of functioning. You are most

welcome to write or show case your story in any format you wish to. If you struglle, use

the folowing questions to (only) guide you with writing your story?

Introduce yourself

Start by introducing yourself. Consentrate to introduce the person who

you are today; not the persoan you were or even who you would like to

be. The person modt peole would recognise as you introduce yourself.

State who you are, where you live, work and what you do for a living.

Describe yourself :

Physically

Your Personality (the type of person you are …)

The things you enjoy in life

Things that gets your back up in life

With whom do you share your life with (important others) …

�

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How would you describe the quality of the relationships your have in your life and indicate how importnat these relationships are to you…

How do they make your life different? How do they influence your life?

How would you judge your current experience of personal life :

Based on your judgement above, and explain why you chose to rate your current life experience as “………………………………”

Do you think it can change (Improve or getting even better?)

What do you think needs to happen in order for you to inprove on your current state of happiness?

�

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Your current work environment

Please go ahead and do exactly the same with your work situation, as you have just

done reflecting on your current state of your personal life.

How would you describe the quality of your working relationships and indicate how importnat these relationships are to you…

Thinking about the above, how would you judge your work experience :

Based on your judgement above, list the things in your life that currently contribute to your current experience.

What do you think needs to happen in order for you to inprove on your current state of happiness?

What have you done up to now to change your experience of your current state?

�

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How you relate to change

The intent of the following section is to reflect on how you perceive change and how it

impacts on you both personally as well as at work. Remember this is for your eyes only;

so please be as honnest with yourself as you can.

How do you perceive change?

Discibe how change effects …

You?

Your family?

Your relationships?

Your work environment?

Your ability to be an effective supervisor and execute your accountabilities?

�

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List the areas of your work that change effect most

How does change effect you :

Emotionally

Behavior

Thoughts

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Finding Purpose and Meaning

There are two important days in your life … The day you have been born and the day

you find out why …

Mark Twain

Unfortunitely too many people look for this answer their whole life, never to arrive at in

this space where meaning, happiness and the ability to grow into your true potential

How do you perceive change?

Discibe how change effects …

You?

Your family?

Your relationships?

Your work environment?

�

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Your ability to be an effective supervisor and execute your accountabilities?

List the areas of your work that change effect most

How does change effect you :

Emotionally

Behavior

Thoughts

The law of attractionPage ! I The Da Vinci Institute I AngloGold Ashanti149

The law of attraction

What do you really want from/out of life?

�

On a personal level?

�

Occupational level?

�

What stands in my way?

�

What have/can you do about that?Page ! I The Da Vinci Institute I AngloGold Ashanti150

Challenge you to watch

After you have watched the Secret, please go back to my earlier question on : What do

you REALLY want?

Do you want to adjust / change your answers? Then do it!

Now, how does your experience of the video impact on or add to the subject at hand? (If

any)

What have/can you do about that?

�

Other additional comments…

�

Now, how does your experience of the video impact on or add to the

subject at hand? (If any)

�

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The Programming of the Amygdala

With this task you are going to explore past experiences in your life as well as past FIRST

HAND EXPERIENCE being managed! To do this I need you to think explore the following

(Hopefully I will remember where this road is leading us shortly…)

Your feeling/perception of managed by your manager as a result of past experiences

within your working environment. Also consider the following before formulating your

answer:

Positive Experiences you had with your manager, with an example.

Negative Experiences you had with a manager, with an example

Looking back over your long career path (some of us cant even remember how long…),

think of two positive events that really added value to you as a person either personal or

professional.

Any other experiences…

�

How does that still impact on your way of doing still today?

�

Now do the same with your negative/traumatic experiences by naming

two examples and how does that still impact on your life today?�

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Now do the same with your negative/traumatic experiences by naming

two examples and how does that still impact on your life today?

�

As a Supervisor, think of (with examples) situations where your superior

gave you positive feedback/recognition for a task well done. How did

that impact on you then and still now?

�

Now do the same with examples of the most traumatic experience within

your working environment. How does that still impact on your life still

today?�

Now lets do the same with childhood experiences. First the positive and

then the negative. And how did that impact on your life and still today?

Past experiences impacts on our mindsets (the glasses through which

we look at Coaching). Determining our Attitudes towards Coaching

and Direct impact on the effectiveness and outcome (success)�

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We all have a history…

!

Keeping all the above in mind, how did that influence your …

My general view of the world. How I perceive and experience people in general, my

expectations from them (including husband, children, superiors, colleagues and sub-

ordinates) and this ONLY ADDS (=) UP to:

The way that I think about them will determine the way I will feel towards them and eventually will act/behave towards!

A. View of yourself:

�

B. Your Beliefs

�

C. View others

�

D. View the World�

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D. View the World

�

E. How you view your people reportig to you and how you influence

them…�

F. Impacts on how they work & perform

�

G. How they succeed …

�

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The research is very clear about this indicating how our Past Experience becomes the

glasses through which we look at managing people). Determining our attitudes towards

how you would interact and has direct impact on the effectiveness and success you will

have a s a supervisor.

Thus : Without patronising you, would you please translate this for yourself, what this

means for you as manager and how that relate to your levels of influence…

NOTE:

You remember the Lady living in the top story…? Remember the Five EQ Competencies:

Personal

Social Competencies

Emotional Wellness

Innovative Abilities

Ability to deal with Stress

All of the above have a direct impact on the success I would have as a leader or in this

case, how successful I would be as a manager.

Now, please list some of your sub-ordinates, and think how you might

impact on their lives (personal or occupational) – difficult one, but I need

you to think about it…

Mindset

Attitude

Altitude

�

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May I conclude this short introduction of our exploratative journey into ourselves before

continuing onto the next learning ?

We all have baggage! It means that we are not so different than anyone else… Just as

the past often (for us that are less emotionally intelligent) contaminates our behaviour in

the present, the same goes for my subordinates or those I will have to coach. The other

lesson from this is to remember that our past experiences does not only have the possibility

to hijack present behaviour it also impact on

How we Listen and what we Hear

And What we see ...

Please spend some time on the following questions (on your own). When you come back,

I promise I will not put you on the spot with specific content… So really be as honest as

you can and let your mind go…

Be very brave with yourself! Can you think of how the above principle

plays/playing itself off in your workplace. Situations where your attitude

actually could have limit the outcome/behaviour of a sub-ordinate?

Remember the examples again…�

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Prejudices

Let me ask the question again after your thoughts on the above:

Insert clips on Perceptions of our worlds

What is your view and prejudices impact on your relationships with people

and how will it impact on (add to/hinder) your process of becoming a good

Manager?�

Be very honest with yourself! Can you think of how the above principle is

enacted in your workplace? Situations where your attitude actually could

have limited the outcome/behaviour of a subordinate? Remember the

examples again…�

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Biases

The role of the most advanced “Tool” you and I have on our ability to recognize and

develop potential and human talent … (and this has NOTHING to do with how good or

how bad we are …!)

(Learning from the Neuro Sciences)

The 12 cognitive biases that prevent you from being rational

GEORGE DVORSKY on IO9SUPERLIST 1/09/13 10:20am

The human brain is capable of 1016 processes per second, which makes it far more powerful

than any computer currently in existence. But that doesn't mean our brains don't have

major limitations. The lowly calculator can do math thousands of times better than we

can, and our memories are often less than useless — plus, we're subject to cognitive

biases, those annoying glitches in our thinking that cause us to make questionable

decisions and reach erroneous conclusions. Here are a dozen of the most common and

pernicious cognitive biases that you need to know about.

Before we start, it's important to distinguish between cognitive biases and logical fallacies.

A logical fallacy is an error in logical argumentation (e.g. ad hominem attacks, slippery

slopes, circular arguments, appeal to force, etc.). A cognitive bias, on the other hand, is a

genuine deficiency or limitation in our thinking — a flaw in judgment that arises from errors

of memory, social attribution, and miscalculations (such as statistical errors or a false sense

of probability).

Some social psychologists believe our cognitive biases help us process information more

efficiently, especially in dangerous situations. Still, they lead us to make grave mistakes. We

may be prone to such errors in judgment, but at least we can be aware of them. Here are

some important ones to keep in mind.

Confirmation Bias

We love to agree with people who agree with us. It's why we only visit websites that

express our political opinions, and why we mostly hang around people who hold similar

views and tastes. We tend to be put off by individuals, groups, and news sources that

make us feel uncomfortable or insecure about our views — what the behavioral

psychologist B. F. Skinner called cognitive dissonance. It's this preferential mode of behavior

that leads to the confirmation bias — the often unconscious act of referencing only those

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perspectives that fuel our pre-existing views, while at the same time ignoring or dismissing

opinions — no matter how valid — that threaten our world view. And paradoxically, the

internet has only made this tendency even worse.

Ingroup Bias

Somewhat similar to the confirmation bias is the ingroup bias, a manifestation of our

innate tribalistic tendencies. And strangely, much of this effect may have to do with

oxytocin — the so-called "love molecule." This neurotransmitter, while helping us to forge tighter

bonds with people in our ingroup, performs the exact opposite function for those on the outside — it

makes us suspicious, fearful, and even disdainful of others. Ultimately, the ingroup bias causes us

to overestimate the abilities and value of our immediate group at the expense of people

we don't really know.

Gambler's Fallacy

It's called a fallacy, but it's more a glitch in our thinking. We tend to put a tremendous

amount of weight on previous events, believing that they'll somehow influence future

outcomes. The classic example is coin-tossing. After flipping heads, say, five consecutive

times, our inclination is to predict an increase in likelihood that the next coin toss will be

tails — that the odds must certainly be in the favor of heads. But in reality, the odds are still

50/50. As statisticians say, the outcomes in different tosses are statistically independent

and the probability of any outcome is still 50%.

Relatedly, there's also the positive expectation bias — which often fuels gambling addictions. It's

the sense that our luck has to eventually change and that good fortune is on the way. It

also contribues to the "hot hand" misconception. Similarly, it's the same feeling we get

when we start a new relationship that leads us to believe it will be better than the last one.

Post-Purchase Rationalization

Remember that time you bought something totally unnecessary, faulty, or overly expense,

and then you rationalized the purchase to such an extent that you convinced yourself it

was a great idea all along? Yeah, that's post-purchase rationalization in action — a kind of

built-in mechanism that makes us feel better after we make crappy decisions, especially

at the cash register. Also known as Buyer's Stockholm Syndrome, it's a way of

subconsciously justifying our purchases — especially expensive ones. Social psychologists

say it stems from the principle of commitment, our psychological desire to stay consistent

and avoid a state of cognitive dissonance.

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Neglecting Probability

Very few of us have a problem getting into a car and going for a drive, but many of us

experience great trepidation about stepping inside an airplane and flying at 35,000 feet.

Flying, quite obviously, is a wholly unnatural and seemingly hazardous activity. Yet virtually

all of us know and acknowledge the fact that the probability of dying in an auto accident

is significantlygreater than getting killed in a plane crash — but our brains won't release us

from this crystal clear logic (statistically, we have a 1 in 84 chance of dying in a vehicular accident, as

compared to a 1 in 5,000 chance of dying in an plane crash [other sources indicate odds as high as

1 in 20,000]). It's the same phenomenon that makes us worry about getting killed in an act

of terrorism as opposed to something far more probable, like falling down the stairs or

accidental poisoning.

This is what the social psychologist Cass Sunstein calls probability neglect — our inability to properly

grasp a proper sense of peril and risk — which often leads us to overstate the risks of relatively

harmless activities, while forcing us to overrate more dangerous ones.

Observational Selection Bias

This is that effect of suddenly noticing things we didn't notice that much before — but we

wrongly assume that the frequency has increased. A perfect example is what happens

after we buy a new car and we inexplicably start to see the same carvirtually everywhere.

A similar effect happens to pregnant women who suddenly notice a lot of other pregnant

women around them. Or it could be a unique number or song. It's not that these things

are appearing more frequently, it's that we've (for whatever reason) selected the item in

our mind, and in turn, are noticing it more often. Trouble is, most people don't recognize

this as a selectional bias, and actually believe these items or events are happening with

increased frequency — which can be a very disconcerting feeling. It's also a cognitive

bias that contributes to the feeling that the appearance of certain things or events

couldn't possibly be a coincidence (even though it is).

Status-Quo Bias

We humans tend to be apprehensive of change, which often leads us to make choices

that guarantee that things remain the same, or change as little as possible. Needless to

say, this has ramifications in everything from politics to economics. We like to stick to our

routines, political parties, and our favorite meals at restaurants. Part of the perniciousness

of this bias is the unwarranted assumption that another choice will be inferior or make

things worse. The status-quo bias can be summed with the saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix

it" — an adage that fuels our conservative tendencies. And in fact, some commentators

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say this is why the U.S. hasn't been able to enact universal health care, despite the fact that most

individuals support the idea of reform.

Negativity Bias

People tend to pay more attention to bad news — and it's not just because we're morbid.

Social scientists theorize that it's on account of our selective attention and that, given the

choice, we perceive negative news as being more important or profound. We also tend

to give more credibility to bad news, perhaps because we're suspicious (or bored) of

proclamations to the contrary. More evolutionarily, heeding bad news may be more

adaptive than ignoring good news (e.g. "saber tooth tigers suck" vs. "this berry tastes

good"). Today, we run the risk of dwelling on negativity at the expense of genuinely good

news. Steven Pinker, in his book The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined, argues

that crime, violence, war, and other injustices are steadily declining, yet most people

would argue that things are getting worse — what is a perfect example of the negativity

bias at work.

Bandwagon Effect

Though we're often unconscious of it, we love to go with the flow of the crowd. When the

masses start to pick a winner or a favorite, that's when our individualized brains start to shut

down and enter into a kind of "groupthink" or hivemind mentality. But it doesn't have to be

a large crowd or the whims of an entire nation; it can include small groups, like a family or

even a small group of office co-workers. The bandwagon effect is what often causes

behaviors, social norms, and memes to propagate among groups of individuals —

regardless of the evidence or motives in support. This is why opinion polls are often

maligned, as they can steer the perspectives of individuals accordingly. Much of this bias

has to do with our built-in desire to fit in and conform, as famously demonstrated by the

Asch Conformity Experiments.

Projection Bias

As individuals trapped inside our own minds 24/7, it's often difficult for us to project outside

the bounds of our own consciousness and preferences. We tend to assume that most

people think just like us — though there may be no justification for it. This cognitive

shortcoming often leads to a related effect known as the false consensus bias where we

tend to believe that people not only think like us, but that they also agree with us. It's a

bias where we overestimate how typical and normal we are, and assume that a

consensus exists on matters when there may be none. Moreover, it can also create the

effect where the members of a radical or fringe group assume that more people on the

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outside agree with them than is the case. Or the exaggerated confidence one has when

predicting the winner of an election or sports match.

The Current Moment Bias

We humans have a really hard time imagining ourselves in the future and altering our

behaviors and expectations accordingly. Most of us would rather experience pleasure in

the current moment, while leaving the pain for later. This is a bias that is of particular

concern to economists (i.e. our unwillingness to not overspend and save money) and

health practitioners. Indeed, a 1998 study showed that, when making food choices for the

coming week, 74% of participants chose fruit. But when the food choice was for the

current day, 70% chose chocolate.

Anchoring Effect

Also known as the relativity trap, this is the tendency we have to compare and contrast

only a limited set of items. It's called the anchoring effect because we tend to fixate on a

value or number that in turn gets compared to everything else. The classic example is an

item at the store that's on sale; we tend to see (and value) the difference in price, but not

the overall price itself. This is why some restaurant menus feature very expensive entrees,

while also including more (apparently) reasonably priced ones. It's also why, when given a

choice, we tend to pick the middle option — not too expensive, and not too cheap.

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The use of Self-Assessments in our learning journey

Referring back to the intent of the Johari Window, to enlarge the Open Area (increase

self-awareness …

Formal self-assessments of psychometric assessments is an objective way to come to

understand our own needs, preferences swell as those who reports to us.

Preference Profile

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)

Myers and Briggs were a mother-daughter team, both novelists. They were interested in

finding ways in which they could get to know what a reader’s preferences were, so that

they could write best sellers. With this question in mind, they went searching for answers in

different psychological theories and eventually ended up with Jung.

As they began to develop this questionnaire, the American Psychological Association

decided to become involved in the project. Their function was to see that this

questionnaire was scientifically founded.

Three factors are of the utmost importance when developing a questionnaire that is

scientifically founded:

One needs to know this is not a Huisgenoot/You questionnaire that has been thought

out overnight and published the next day.

If a person is tested today, in two weeks time or in two years time, the results should be

more or less the same.

If, for instance, we were to measure morals, we would have to make sure that we were

in fact measuring morals, and not aptitude for that matter. We must be able to

compare apples with apples, and more specifically, red apples with red apples.

Over the years a lot of research has been done on the MBTI and it is widely used in

industry. It is utilised to look at compatibility of teams, spouses and partners. This is not to

say that people are incompatible, but rather that because people differ from each other,

we are so much richer, as we can look at one problem from different angles and can

bring different creative solutions to the table. Because we differ from one another,

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however, we will be more prone to conflict. And because of this, we need to have

certain conflict management systems in place to deal with that conflict.

Today there is an international society on the MBTI, and an international conference was

held in South Africa in Sandton.

This project involving the development of the questionnaire was a life-long task.

Eventually the mother passed away and the daughter completed the project after 45

years. Most definitely not a huisgenoot/You questionnaire!

What is it all about?

It is important to note that the MBTI is a preference questionnaire, meaning that there are

no right or wrong answers. An example of how preferences work is: “I like coffee, but I

prefer tea” – this does not mean I don’t like coffee. In terms of the theory, there are eight

(8) preferences that cluster on four (4) poles:

!

For more information on the MBTI, please follow the link.

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The first letter in the personality type acronym corresponds to the first letter of the

preference of general attitude – “E” for extraversion and “I” for introversion.

The second letter in the personality type acronym corresponds to the preference within

the sensing-intuition dimension: “S” stands for sensing and “N” stands for intuition.

The third letter in the personality type acronym corresponds to preference within the

thinking-feeling pair: “T” stands for thinking and “F” stands for feeling.

The forth letter in the personality type acronym corresponds a person’s preference within

the judging-perceiving pair: “J” for judging and “P” for perception.

A Summary of Characteristics Frequently Associated with Each Type

Sensing Types Intuitive Types

ISTJ

Quiet, serious, earn success by

t h o r o u g h n e s s a n d

dependabil i ty. Practical,

matter-of-fact, realistic and

responsible. Decide logically

what should be done and work

towards it steadily, regardless of

distractions. Take pleasure in

making everything orderly and

organized – their work, their

home, their life. Value traditions

and loyalty.

ISFJ

Quiet, friendly, responsible, and

conscientious. Committed and

s t e a d y i n m e e t i n g t h e i r

o b l i g a t i o n s . T h o r o u g h ,

painstaking, and accurate.

Loyal, considerate, notice and

remember specif ics about

people who are important to

them. Concerned with how

others feel. Strive to create an

o r d e r l y a n d h a r m o n i o u s

environment at work and at

home.

INFJ

Seek meaning and connection

in ideas, relationships, and

material possessions. Want to

understand what motivates

people and are insightful about

others. Conscientious and

committed to their firm values.

Develop a clear vision about

how best to serve the common

good. Organised and decisive

in implementing their vision.

INTJ

Have original minds and great

drive for implementing their

ideas and achieving their goals.

Quickly see patterns in external

events and develop long-range

exp lanatory perspect ives .

When committed, organize a

job and car ry i t through.

Skeptical and independent,

h a v e h i g h s t a n d a r d s o f

competence and performance

– for themselves and others.

ISTP

Tolerant and flexible, quiet

observers unt i l a problem

appears, then act quickly to

find workable solutions. Analyse

what makes things work and

readi ly get through large

amounts of data to isolate the

core of practical problems.

Interested in cause and effect,

organize facts using logical

principles, value efficiency.

ISFP

Quite, friendly, sensitive, and

k ind. En joy the present

moment, what’s going on

around them. Like to have their

own space and to work within

their own time frames. Loyal

and committed to their values

a n d t o p e o p l e w h o a r e

important to them. Dis l ike

disagreements and conflicts, do

not force their opinions or values

on others.

INFP

Idealistic, loyal to their values

a n d t o p e o p l e w h o a r e

important to them. Want an

external life that is congruent

with their values. Curious, quick

to see possibilities, can be

catalysts for implementing

ideas. Seek to understand

people, and to help them fulfill

their potential. Adaptable,

flexible and accepting, unless a

value is threatened.

INTP

S e e k t o d e v e l o p l o g i c a l

explanations for everything that

interests them. Theoretical and

abstract, interested more in

ideas than in social interaction.

Quiet, contained, flexible and

adaptable. Have unusual ability

to focus in depth to solve

problems in thei r area of

interest. Skeptical, sometimes

critical, always analytical.

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Get to know your profile …

The MBTI is a non-threatening, learning document that you can now use to look at both

the positive areas, as well as your developmental areas. To help you with this, please do

the following:

1. Please read through your profile and highlight all that is applicable to you as a person.

Remember, this profile is written from the general population.

2. Then give it to someone who knows you very well. Other people often see aspects

within us that we are not aware of.

3. With all the information you have now, please summarize your profile:

ESTP

Flexible and tolerant, they take

a p r a g m a t i c a p p r o a c h ,

focused on immediate results.

Theo r ie s and conceptua l

explanations bore them – they

want to act energetically to

solve the problem. Focus on the

here-and-now, spontaneous,

enjoy each moment that they

can be active with others. Enjoy

material comforts and style.

Learn best through doing.

ESFP

O u t g o i n g , f r i e n d l y , a n d

accepting. Exuberant lovers of

l i fe, people, and mater ial

comforts. Enjoy working with

others to make things happen.

Bring common sense and a

realistic approach to their work,

and make work fun. Flexible

and spontaneous, adapt rapidly

t o n e w p e o p l e a n d

environments. Learn best by

trying a new skill with other

people.

ENFP

Wa r m l y e n t h u s i a s t i c a n d

imaginative. See life as full of

possibilities. Make connections

b e t w e e n e v e n t s a n d

information very quickly, and

confidently proceed based on

the patterns they see. Want a

lot of affirmation from others,

and readily given appreciation

and support. Spontaneous and

flexible, often relying on their

ability to improvise and their

verbal fluency.

ENTP

Quick, ingenious, stimulating,

a l e r t , a n d o u t s p o k e n .

Resourceful in solving new and

challenging problems. Adept at

g e n e r a t i n g c o n c e p t u a l

possibilities and then analyzing

them strategically. Good at

reading other people. Bored by

routine, will seldom do the same

thing the same way, apt to turn

to one new interest after

another.

ESTJ

Practical, realistic, matter-of-

fact. Decisive, quickly move to

implement decisions. Organise

projects and people to get

things done, focus on getting

results in the most efficient way

possible. Take care of routine

details. Have a clear set of

logical standards, systematically

follow them and want others to

do the same. Forceful in

implementing their plans.

ESFJ

Warmhearted, conscientious,

a n d c o o p e r a t i v e . W a n t

harmony in their environment,

work with determination to

establish it. Like to work with

o ther s to complete task s

accurately and on time. Loyal,

follow through even in small

matters. Notice what others

need in their day-by-day lives,

and try to provide this. Want to

be appreciated for who they

are and what they contribute.

ENFJ

Warm, empathetic, responsive,

and responsible. Highly attuned

to the emotions, needs and

motivations of others. Find

potential in everyone, want to

help others fulfill their potential.

May act as cata ly s t s fo r

individual and group growth.

Loyal, responsive to praise and

criticism. Sociable, facilitate

others in a group, and provide

inspiring leadership.

ENTJ

F r a n k , d e c i s i v e , a s s u m e

leadership readily. Quickly see

i l l o g i c a l a n d i n e f f i c i e n t

p rocedures and po l i c i e s ,

d e v e l o p a n d i m p l e m e n t

comprehensive systems to solve

organizational problems. Enjoy

long-term planning and goal

setting. Usually well informed,

well read, enjoy expanding their

knowledge and passing it on to

others. Forceful in presenting

their ideas.

Summary of My Profile

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Summary of My Profile

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After doing so, please list all the positive qualities within your profile

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Now do the same with the pitfalls within your profile. These are the

developmental areas you need to integrate into your greater development

plan.�

Bearing in mind the above, what is the value that you bring to the team?

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Get to know your profile …

ENFJ ENFP

Overview Overview

At Work At Work

Relationships Relationships

Resource Resource

Video Clip Video Clip

The Teacher The Champion

ENTJ ENTP

Overview Overview

At Work At Work

Relationships Relationships

Resource Resource

Video Clip Video Clip

The Commander The Visionary

ESFJ ESFP

Overview Overview

At Work At Work

Relationships Relationships

Resource Resource

Video Clip Video Clip

The Provider The Performer

ESTJ ESTP

Overview Overview

At Work At Work

Relationships Relationships

Resource Resource

Video Clip Video Clip

The Supervisor The Dynamo

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Get to know your profile … (comtinued)

INFJ INFP

Overview Overview

At Work At Work

Relationships Relationships

Resource Resource

Video Clip Video Clip

The Counselor The Healer

INTJ ISFJ

Overview Overview

At Work At Work

Relationships Relationships

Resource Resource

Video Clip Video Clip

The Mastermind The Protector

ISFP ISTJ

Overview Overview

At Work At Work

Relationships Relationships

Resource Resource

Video Clip Video Clip

The Composer The Inspector

ISTP INTP

Overview Overview

At Work At Work

Relationships Relationships

Resource Resource

Video Clip Video Clip

The Craftsman The Architect

http://www.truity.com/ Blog

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