Ego Management: Teaching and Fostering True Professionalism CAMRT Annual General Conference June 9 12, 2016, Halifax, NS

Transcription

1 Ego Management: Teaching and Fostering True Professionalism 2016 CAMRT Annual General Conference June 9 12, 2016, Halifax, NS 1

2 Disclosure Nothing to disclose 2

3 EGO MANAGEMENT OBJECTIVES: I. Discuss why ego is considered to be a false identity, and understand how egoism (having an ego) is antithetic to professionalism II. Discuss how ego management promotes the development of true professionalism traits and characteristics III. Discuss how educators can teach and evaluate ego management skills

4 The Problem professionalism in the workforce is declining. the decline in professionalism is accelerating since it is most pronounced among younger workers. (Goals Institute, 2016;

5 The Evidence

6 Good communication IS important 6

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8 Characteristics and traits of PROFESSIONALs Honesty/ Integrity Altruism Good Communicative/ Interactive ability High Moral/ Ethical standards Self-awareness Competence Accountability/ Responsibility

9 Personal Growth Maslow s Hierarchy of Needs altruism, creativity, spontaneity, problem solving, lack of prejudice, acceptance of facts

10 Maslow s Characteristics of a Self-actualizing Person Honesty/ Integrity Altruism Humble/ listens to others carefully Lack of prejudice Realism Self-awareness Good at problem solving Dedicated to some work, task, duty, or vocation Common Characteristics of a Professional Person Honesty/ Integrity Altruism Good Communicative/ Interactive ability High Moral/ Ethical standards Self-awareness Competence Accountability/ Responsibility

11 Personal Growth Maslow s Hierarchy: A Model For Personal Growth and the Development of Professional Traits T R U E S E L F altruism, creativity, spontaneity, problem solving, lack of prejudice, acceptance of facts F A L S E S E L F

12 Freud s View of Ego. Freud defined the ego as the self or one s identity Id (primal, base instincts of a sexual and violent nature) ego (identity) Superego (conscience; moral compass)

13 The false self Deepak Chopra is an endocrinologist, spiritualist, and teacher.

14 The false self Ego means selfidentification with thinking; to be trapped in thought, which means to have a mental image of me based on thought and emotions. So ego is there in the absence of a witnessing presence. - Eckhart Tolle Eckhart Tolle is a Canadian spiritualist and public speaker educated in psychology and philosophy at London University and Cambridge.

15 The False Self 15

16 It s just a MASK

17 BIG egos have little ears 17

18 18

19 The True Self 19

20 Traits of Self-Actualized people Realistically oriented Can perceive and understand human nature Serene, characterized by a lack of worry Responsible for themselves, and their own behavior Unflappable Able to retain dignity amid confusion and personal misfortune Spontaneous

21 Traits of Self-Actualized people Can be alone and not feel lonely Honest and seek justice for all Have a fresh appreciation of people and all things Moment to moment living is exciting Retain childlike qualities while possessing a far-seeing wisdom Intimate relationships are profound, sincere and long-lasting Altruistic

22 Traits of Self-Actualized people Sense of humor is philosophical rather than hostile (can laugh at themselves but do not make jokes that hurt others) Have a uniqueness that carries over into everything they do Creative, inventive, uninhibited, and since they see the real and true more easily they are valuable. Motivated toward continual personal and community growth

23 Self-actualization

24 The Gump Illustration He accepted his frailties as neither positive nor negative He rejected labels He lived life without pre-conceived notions of how it should go He chose happiness He chose to see the good in others He valued LOVE A

25 Carl Jung on Self-actualization EGO MANAGEMENT

26 EGO MANAGEMENT

27 You don t need to join a monastery! 27

28 HOW DO PEOPLE BECOME SELF-ACTUALIZED? According to Maslow I. Experience things fully, vividly, and selflessly. II. III. IV. Choose growth over stagnation (risk over safety and security) Let the true self emerge. Try to shut out the external cues as to what you should think, feel, say, and so on, and let your experience enable you to say what you truly feel. When in doubt, be honest. V. Listen to your own tastes and be prepared to be unpopular. VI. Use your intelligence, work to do well the things you want to do VII. Make peak experiences more likely: get rid of illusions and false notions. Learn what you are good at and what your potentialities are not. VIII. Find out who you are, what you are, what you like and don't like, what is good and what is bad for you, where you are going, what your mission is. Opening yourself up to yourself in this way means identifying defenses - and then finding the courage to give them up.

29 Ego Management Guerilla Tactics ( Short-circuiting the Ego) 29

30 STRATEGY #1 MINDFULNESS The Ego is that constant dialogue running in the background, reaffirming to us continually who we think we are Since Ego is thought-based we need to learn how to cease any unnecessary thinking

31 MINDFULNESS Sit in a chair with both feet flat on the floor Sit erect but relaxed Do preliminary relaxation exercises Close your eyes and for 2 minutes & focus your attention on how one part of your body feels (lower legs for example) Now pay close attention to your senses - Do not interpret anything just feel it. Allow your thoughts to come and go (like leaves floating on a stream) When a thought persists remind yourself of your present objective, let go of the thought and return to your state of present awareness

32 STRATEGY #2 ASSESS YOUR BELIEFS Tackle what it is that makes thoughts about your persona persist What do you BELIEVE about yourself & your reality, and why?

33 ASSESS YOUR BELIEFS Try interrupting the incessant background thought dialogue by asking yourself, Why do I believe that about myself? Is it true? Does it matter?

34 STRATEGY #3 KEEP A SELF-REFLECTIVE JOURNAL

35 KEEP A SELF-REFLECTIVE JOURNAL Try making an entry every day Reflect on your entire day including your interactions with others as well as thoughts you have had about yourself What went well today, and what did not? Was there any interaction with another that was not satisfying? Why? What could YOU have done to make it more satisfying for all parties?

36 KEEP A SELF-REFLECTIVE JOURNAL Record the number of times you use the words I, My, or Mine in your conversations Did you have any thoughts about yourself that were untrue whether they were good or bad? What more accurate thought could replace those thoughts? Make weekly summaries of issues identified as well as progress made BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF

37 STRATEGY #4 Remove the focus from yourself by putting it on others in a positive way

38 Teaching and Evaluating professionalism and personal growth Teaching Point Professionalism Theory (why it is important, professional traits and characteristics, professionalism as self-actualization) Maslow s Hierarchy of Needs (selfactualization as the basis of professionalism) Ego Theory (Freudianism vs. Transpersonalism, narcissism) Ways and Means of Selfactualizing (Maslow s 8 practices) Ego Management (mindfulness, emotional detachment strategies, journaling, meditation) Evaluation Mechanism a) Traditional Testing b) Observational Assessment (performance appraisals) a) Traditional Testing b) Assignment (student selfassessment) Traditional Testing a) Traditional Testing b) Reflective Journal Submissions a) Traditional Testing b) Observational Assessment (performance appraisals)

39 The Battle of Two Wolves 39

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41 Thank You!

42 Bibliography G. Ross Baker, et al; The Canadian Adverse Events Study: The incidence of adverse events among hospital patients in Canada ( Barbara Starfield, et al; Is US Health Really The Best In The World? ( Steven H. Woolf, et al; A String of Mistakes: The importance of cascade analysis in describing, counting, and preventing medical errors ( Patrick J. Miller; Professionalism: The decline of a critical set of behaviors ( Eckhart Tolle; A New Earth: Awakening to your life s purpose (DUTTON Penguin Books 2005 Eckhart Tolle) Maslow s Hierarchy of Needs (