How Good Leaders Should Manage Themselves

Self-awareness is one trait of a good leader that is often overlooked. While a leader is responsible for the actions and performance of their team members, good leaders know themselves as well as they know other people. The ability to understand and manage your own emotions is a key component of emotional intelligence.

As Director of Operations at Estate Law Center and former director of Cosmo Horizon and Contact Sports, Inc., Kye Giscombe has managed many people over the span of his storied career. Kye Giscombe advises, “Your own emotions and moods can affect and influence the people around you. For this reason, it is crucial to have self-awareness as someone in a position of authority. You can’t relate well to people or influence them in a positive way if you’re ruled by your own negative emotions.”

No leader is perfect and every leader has thoughts and situations that test their patience. It is easy for anyone to make rash, impulsive decisions when they are driven by their emotions. In light of this, good leaders should have the self-awareness to recognize their own weaknesses and plan accordingly.

Kye Giscombe continues, “If you know what type of situations upset or frustrate you, you should make a plan for dealing with them in a professional, constructive manner. Good leaders don’t wait until they’re faced with a difficult situation to formulate a plan of action. You can start by taking a deep breath, asking people you trust for feedback, and regulating how you feel in any negative scenario.”

Understanding your own emotions is also the first step to identifying how others feel both in stressful and seemingly mundane situations. While people’s personalities can be very different, identifying your own emotions can be a useful tool for putting yourself in someone else’s shoes. Once you have mastered your own emotions, you will be more effective at identifying emotional information and managing the different personalities in your workplace.