The Johari Window A New Vision for Selfand Team Development

Transcription

1 The Johari Window A New Vision for Selfand Team Development By Drew Carey, ACC, BCC Career Management Coaching Executive Coaching 2016 Present Solution-Focused Coaching Services All rights reserved (317) drew@solution-focusedcoaching.com Johari Window illustration created by Drew Carey. All photos obtained from Pixabay.com or Google Creative Commons and released for commercial usage.

2 The Johari Window is a conceptual model developed by two American psychologists who combined their first names to create the name, Johari: Joseph and Harry. It has long been used in corporate and coaching settings as a way to help individuals, team members and leaders to better understand themselves at a micro level and project the impact of their personal characteristics and traits on the team. The assumption behind it is that as individuals, we decide what and with whom we share certain aspects of our lives and personalities. Certainly we spend enough time with our co-workers that they too begin to understand us and how our lives and personalities are played out in the workplace. Sometimes we too know these elements; sometimes we are not aware of them but they are quite obvious to our team. There are even aspects of ourselves that we are not aware of and neither are our co-workers. We can apply these same principles to a relationship, a family, a church community any place two or more are gathered. During individual, one-on-one coaching, the Johari window can serve as a powerful tool for our own selfexploration and understand the consequences of hiding aspects of ourselves from others. In extreme cases, situations in which neither party has knowledge, the effects can be disastrous leading to breakdown of teams, loss of productivity, a culture of mistrust and management difficulties. On a personal level, these hidden parts can lead to an eggshell existence, rebellion and even divorce. In those cases, professional mental health therapy may be the answer or the services of an external, expert facilitator in team dynamics and change management may need to be engaged. The ultimate goal of the Johari window exercise is to bring a suitable level of awareness of our own idiosyncrasies, to shine a light on behaviors that effect relationships so that they may be understood and healed. The Johari window is presented as a window with four panes of glass, four arenas or four quadrants. Each pane demonstrates a progressive level of awareness and knowledge. See the illustration on page 4 to begin your study of the four sections. Quadrant 1, the Open Self: These are the traits, characteristics, experiences, beliefs that you know about yourself and others around you know it too. This is the sweet spot of getting it all out in the open so true communication and dialogue can occur. Only in this place can lasting change happen. In this arena, there are authentic, open lines of communication at play. Here, misunderstandings, slights, hurt feelings, offenses are far less likely to happen.

3 Quadrant 2, the Blind Self: In this pane, others know things about you that you do not know about yourself, or for which you do not accept responsibility. You may stridently deny these aspects of yourself when they are pointed out to you. This is the bull in the china shop pane. Imagine yourself walking through life, blindfolded and flailing your arms about as you walk through a store filled with delicate, precious merchandise. If you aren t getting angry with others, you are defensive and have a tendency to withdraw from the group feeling misunderstood. Quadrant 3, the Hidden Self: In this way of being in the world, you know things about yourself that you do not want others to know about you. You keep this information locked securely away from prying eyes. This is often referred to in psychological terms as the Shadow self. These may include fears, secrets, sensitivities, doubts, experiences, and your history. Often, this is the Fraud or Imposter Syndrome that gets played out in workplaces, especially at the beginning of someone s career. What if others find out I don t really know what I am doing? What if people discover I am just a big fraud? It is a fear of being called out as the emperor who walks the streets with no clothes. This may cause the person to lash out in anger or frustration when someone gets too close to the truth. Others may describe you as aloof, antisocial, hard to get to know, introverted. Ironically, we believe we are keeping this side of ourselves hidden, but others can sense something is not quite right about us. We may be seen as cagey or hiding something, and we are! Those who report to us may clam up around us; those we work with may inherently not trust us; and our bosses may not see our full potential and pass us over for promotions or raises because they can t quite put their finger on it but he or she is not a good fit here." Quadrant 4, the Unknown Self: It is worth noting that this area can represent both very positive elements that the person does not know about him or herself and others do not know it either, as well as more negative ones. This could include hidden talents or untapped skills that a perceptive manager could bring out in a person. This could also include dormant biases and feelings that may only present themselves when a person is under extreme stress. An undiagnosed illness could fall into this area. Someone with fibromyalgia may spend years questioning a lack of energy and various pain symptoms. They may be labeled as lazy, unmotivated, having a lack of ambition. A bipolar condition that is unknown and untreated can take a significant toll on a person and their team.

4 After reading these descriptions, how would you adjust your own Johari window? Is it more like Number 1 below, you are an open book, with a few hidden or unknown areas? Or are you more like Number 2, much less open, with many parts of your personality remaining unknown to you. Are you more Number 3, more closed-off, private, not allowing others to see the real you? Or are you more like Number 4, unaware of many parts of your personality? What percentage of each quadrant do you currently embody? 1. % 2. % 3. % 4. % = 100%

5 Disclosure The solution to increase the Open area of ourselves and our teams is to balance out systematic feedback on the part of the team and management to a member of the team, along with the person disclosing more of their hidden self to the team. It should go without saying but the feedback must be gentle and respectful of the person receiving it. The disclosure must be authentic and given freely for the purpose of improving the team. Feedback Looking back at your percentages on the previous page, how would you like to change those through coaching, if at all? 1. % 2. % 3. % 4. % = 100%

6 1 Pre-Assessment Reflection Questions What are those aspects of yourself that you are comfortable sharing with others? Why are these okay to share and not other aspects? What is one additional piece of information about yourself you could commit to sharing with others? What would have to happen to achieve this?

7 Pre-Assessment Reflection Questions 2 Quadrant 2 is known as the Blind Self. What are your blind spots? What have others told you that might be considered a blind spot for you? How might you solicit feedback from others (current and former co-workers, trusted friends, family members) to reveal more of your blind spots to yourself? Who will you become as you integrate this information into your daily professional and personal life?

8 Pre-Assessment Reflection Questions How has your Hidden self (those aspects of yourself that you do not wish reveal to others) served you? How has it held you back professionally or personally? What might be the advantage to you to disclose more of yourself to others? What is one aspect of yourself currently hidden from others that you could safely reveal today? 3

9 Pre-Assessment Reflection Questions How does having an unknown self serve us and others? Please list 5 ways you could employ to discover more of your unknown self. What could be the effect of having more of this knowledge available to you on your personal and professional lives? 4

10 General questions for consideration How do you personally like to receive feedback? What are the most effective ways to give feedback? How might you deal with a co-workers who you believe may be extra sensitive to feedback or who may take it personally?

11 How could you create an atmosphere of open sharing among those you work with? What advice would you give your CEO for implementing a culture that supports open, honest feedback that supports the overall improvement of the organization? How could you share with your colleagues how you personally like to receive feedback?

12 What other thoughts do you want to capture about giving and receiving feedback or how you could encourage others to disclose more about their hidden selves to the rest of the group? What else do you think about this concept of the Johari window?

13 Assessment Now that you better understand the concept of the Johari Window, it s time to put it into practice. You will review the following list of adjectives and decide which 6 describe you the best. Then, share this same list with friends, family members and/or current and former co-workers. Ask them to pick the top 6 adjectives they feel best describe you, then return their list to you. You may print out this list which can be found in the back of this workbook.

14 Example Now that you better understand the concept of the Johari Window, it s time to put it into practice. You will review the following list of adjectives and decide which 6 describe you the best. Then, share this same list with friends, family members and/or current and former co-workers. Ask them to pick the top 6 adjectives they feel best describe you, then return their list to you. So, I described myself as caring, cheerful, kind, passive, relaxed and responsible. My co-worker described me as anxious, demanding, kind, temperamental, tense and pretending. Ouch! Let s map this out on the next page using the Johari Window...

15 Quadrant 1 The Open Self Adjectives that both people chose. Kind Quadrant 2 The Blind Self Adjectives on the list that others chose but not me (the participant/client) Anxious, demanding Temperamental and pretending Quadrant 3 The Hidden Self Adjectives on the list chosen ONLY by me (the participant/ client) but not others. Passive Quadrant 4 The Unknown Self Any adjectives not chosen by the client or his peers are placed in this quadrant. Aggressive, ambitious, annoying...

16 Quadrant 1 The Open Self Adjectives that both people chose. Kind Quadrant 2 The Blind Self Adjectives on the list that others chose but not the participant/client Anxious, demanding Temperamental and pretending Quadrant 3 The Hidden Self Adjectives on the list chosen ONLY by the participant/client but not others. Passive Quadrant 1 The Unknown Self Any adjectives not chosen by the client or his peers are placed in this quadrant. Aggressive, ambitious, annoying...

17 Johari Window Adjective List Client: Please review the following list of adjectives and choose up to 6 that best describe you. Then share this same list with your family, friends and co-workers (current and former) and ask them to consider their relationship with you in whatever context they know you and to choose the top 6 adjectives that best describe you. Have them return this sheet to you to compare your answers with theirs. Send them the last page of this workbook. aggressive jealous rejecting ambitious kind relaxed annoying lazy religious anxious lively resentful authoritative logical reserved bitter malicious respectful calm manipulative responsible carefree maternal sarcastic careless mature satisfied caring modest scientific cheerful naïve self-accepting clever negative self- conscious cold nervous selfish confident neurotic sensible cranky noisy sensitive critical normal sentimental cynical objective serious demanding oblivious silly dependable observant skilful disciplined obsessive sociable dogged organised stable domineering overburdened strained dreamy over confident strong dutiful paternal stubborn efficient patient sympathetic energetic perceptive tactful extroverted perfectionist temperamental fair persuasive tenacious flexible passive tense flirtatious pleasant thoughtful fussy powerful tough greedy precise trusting giving pretending trustworthy guilty progressive unassuming happy protective uncertain hard proud unconcerned helpful questioning understanding imaginative quiet unreasonable immature rational vain inconsiderate reactionary vulnerable independent realistic warm intelligent reasonable wilful introverted reassuring wise irresponsible rebellious witty irritable regretful worried Adapted from Andrew DuBrin in his book, Essentials of Management (1990)

18 Now add the adjectives from your list and ones you got back from your friends, family and coworkers to the window below. Quadrant 1 The Open Self Adjectives that both you and others chose. Quadrant 2 The Blind Self Adjectives on the list that others chose but not you. Quadrant 3 The Hidden Self Adjectives on the list chosen ONLY by you but not others. Quadrant 4 The Unknown Self Any adjectives not chosen by you or others are placed in this quadrant. Thinking about these adjectives and where they fall in your Johari window, sit for a while with the questions on the next few pages and write down the thoughts that come to you.

19 Post-Assessment Reflection Questions Why do you suppose the adjectives in Quadrant 1 are known by both you and others? How are the adjectives that others chose for you in Quadrant 2 (but you did not choose them) blindspots for you? Choosing one of these Quadrant 2 adjectives, propose a plan for accommodating it in your life?

20 Post-Assessment Reflection Questions How might you solicit additional feedback from others in a way that would make them feel safe sharing with you? Were you surprised by any of the adjectives listed in Quadrant 2? Where is the truth in them? Which ones do you consider to be positive adjectives? What might have stopped you from acknowledging those positive adjectives about yourself?

21 Post-Assessment Reflection Questions How do you feel knowing that you have successfully hidden one or more adjectives about yourself from others? What circumstances would have to be in place for you to feel safe disclosing one or more of these parts of your hidden self?

22 Post-Assessment Reflection Questions What could be the effect of sharing more of yourself with your co-workers on your professional life? Reviewing the rest of the adjectives not chosen in Quadrant 4, which ones would you like to incorporate into your life? How are they important to you?

23 Name (I am filling this out based on my experiences with and knowledge of) : Johari Window Adjective List Instructions: I am using this exercise to learn more about myself and how other people see me. Please review the following list of adjectives and choose up to 6 that best describe me. You can return the sheet to me without your name, so you can feel free to be as honest and candid as possible. I really value your feedback and will use it to better myself! aggressive jealous rejecting ambitious kind relaxed annoying lazy religious anxious lively resentful authoritative logical reserved bitter malicious respectful calm manipulative responsible carefree maternal sarcastic careless mature satisfied caring modest scientific cheerful naïve self-accepting clever negative self- conscious cold nervous selfish confident neurotic sensible cranky noisy sensitive critical normal sentimental cynical objective serious demanding oblivious silly dependable observant skilful disciplined obsessive sociable dogged organised stable domineering overburdened strained dreamy over confident strong dutiful paternal stubborn efficient patient sympathetic energetic perceptive tactful extroverted perfectionist temperamental fair persuasive tenacious flexible passive tense flirtatious pleasant thoughtful fussy powerful tough greedy precise trusting giving pretending trustworthy guilty progressive unassuming happy protective uncertain hard proud unconcerned helpful questioning understanding imaginative quiet unreasonable immature rational vain inconsiderate reactionary vulnerable independent realistic warm intelligent reasonable wilful introverted reassuring wise irresponsible rebellious witty irritable regretful worried Adapted from Andrew DuBrin in his book, Essentials of Management (1990)

24 Drew Carey, ACC, BCC Board-Certified Coach Drew Carey spent his professional career in health care marketing for Indiana s largest health care providers. He has extensive experience in marketing, branding, corporate communication and public relations. He received his undergraduate training in journalism and has always considered himself to be a communicator above all else. Heeding a lifelong calling to enter into a helping profession, he completed a coach training program at Erickson College in 2012 and opened his coaching business, Solution-Focused Coaching Services, in September He took his own leap of faith and left his job in March of 2013 to devote himself full-time to coaching. Drew considers coaching to be a natural extension of his identity as a communicator. Today, his clients are diverse, from college students trying to find their way in the world to retirees seeking to establish their personal legend. He works primarily, though, with midcareer professionals who seek to reconnect to their passion for the work they do in order to be more effective leaders and future executives. He does this by assisting his clients to release self-doubt and hypercritical self-talk and instead claim their own perfection and strengths. He completed the certification requirements and passed the examination from the Center for Credentialing and Education to become a boardcertified coach (BCC). He is also an Associate Certified Coach (ACC) through the International Coach Federation (ICF), In addition to marketing and communications, Drew worked several years as a corporate trainer. He became a master certified trainer and a certified instructional designer through Langevin Learning Services. Drew incorporates adult learning principles into all his workshops to ensure an engaging, interactive experience for attendees. Drew s natural humor creates a relaxed environment conducive to learning and an overall enjoyable experience. Drew Carey, ACC, BCC Drew Carey is available for individual coaching, team facilitation, and consulting. He offers workshops and keynote addresses of any length on the following topics: Employee Satisfaction Team Development Conflict Resolution using Non-Violent Communication (NVC) and the principles from the book, Crucial Conversations Values Development and Integration Passion and Talent Identification Strengths-Based Personal Success Planning Appreciative Inquiry in the Performance Review Process Basics of Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP) Leadership Coaching Skills, or Manager as Coach Corporate and Personal Branding Marketing for Small Businesses Goal Development and Achievement Time Management Interpersonal Skill Development Effective Career Management Office and Mailing Address 1060 East 86th Street, Suite 61-J Indianapolis, IN Office and cell phone: (317) Website: drew@solution-focusedcoaching.com