Observation and the effective leader

Good leaders understand the value of observation.

One of the underlying difficulties in understanding just how effective leaders work is the depths one must go to observe.  Casual observation of effective leadership fails to take into account many aspects.  Upon closer look, one would notice that effective leaders tend to be very observant when it comes to personal matters. 

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Good leaders know how to observe themselves work, be it by introspection or through feedback from the people they lead.  By knowing and observing what they see in themselves, good leaders are aware of their own flaws and areas for improvement and can work toward self-betterment in due course.

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Fortunately for many who strive for leadership positions, the inner observer that is vital to the emotional development of a leader is present in some form in all people.  The task of developing this inner observer falls to the person.  Ways to accomplish this include, among others, undergoing performance evaluations and remembering criteria for judging performance.

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A clear understanding of oneself through one’s inner observer can help a leader develop and grow emotionally, which in turn can help the leader effectively guide and influence people to reach their common goals.

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Authentic engagement: The first task of genuine leadership

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Honest. Courageous. Resilient. Real. These are some of the things employees look for in a leader with authenticity. As Forbes contributor Margie Warrell pointed out, “people crave authenticity,” which is why the most inspiring and influential leaders are recognized not "because of what they do but because of who they are."

This is something that Emile Haddad, a Seattle, Washington-based business mentor, agrees with. A genuine leader requires more than the usual set of management skills. Genuine leadership calls for authentic engagement which requires "a sense of presence to one’s environment."

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However, the path toward authentic engagement is not an easy road to take. Leaders need to be vulnerable in order to "get real," something that is not innate for most people as it goes against self-preservation. Leaders need to embrace their individuality without alienating those around them. They must learn to listen not only to their own ideas but to those they work with as well.

All leaders “have the capacity to inspire and empower others,” wrote George, et al. in the article Discovering Your Authentic Leadership published in the Harvard Business Review. However, they must be willing to devote time to personal growth and development to be genuine leaders. Unlocking the power of authenticity may be a tough task to accomplish for some, but those who are able to do so will foster a working environment where innovation, transparency, and enthusiasm thrive.

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Leadership essentials: Veering away from mental constructs

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Mental constructs, social norms, and conventions have made people slaves to a certain system, creating a barrier that may be preventing them from exploring new and potentially better things. Such constructs predispose them to certain assumptions or belief systems that influence their relationship to reality. Because they serve as “protection” to risks associated with life, these belief systems often restrict people from becoming productive citizens of the world.

Seattle, Washington-based business expert Emile Haddad writes that “when we are externally focused, we become unable to be present to what is alive in front of us in the moment; instead we are more likely to be responding to projections of our assumptions and mental constructs.” He compares such a set-up to impaired senses, where people only sort and filter for the familiar things that they want to hear or see. “In a way we are not quite connected to our center, nor are we connected to the environment around us; we are sitting at the edge of ourselves.”


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When projection is placed too far from reality, the thrill of life is diminished to its minimum. In business, for example, leaders and professionals in general are forced to comply with pre-determined tools, analytic criteria, forms, and processes. While these make thing organized, they also leave employees ungrounded and act in a less organic way. They may experience being directed to do the work, but not genuinely guided to display their best self.

“[Mental constructs] obscure us from the core experiences of reality, a reality in which each other’s humanity can be touched and attended to; an authentic experience in which our human frailties and vulnerabilities are accepted and attended to rather than avoided,” adds Mr. Haddad. Vulnerabilities serve as the epicenter of the human condition; acknowledging their existence can open doors to a myriad of possibilities.


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A perfect example: Innovation in the IT sector

Business coaches agree that if there is one industry that continues to generate fresh ideas and foster new thinking, it is information technology (IT). In fact, IT companies are among the most innovative in the world, and not surprising, a good number of them are also included in the list of best companies to work for.

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Innovation is a key factor why IT companies are among the most successful businesses today. Even in its infancy, the IT sector showed potential in delivering trailblazing products and ideas. And it continues to do so today, that even the United Nations acknowledged how significant the developments from the IT sector were. Its current impact on manufacturing and industry of all types, and on individual lifestyles is indisputable. Indeed, the significance and impact of information technology is believed to be no less substantial as the invention of electricity.

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The IT sector is the perfect example of how valuable innovation is in an organization. The relentless drive to innovate has made the field highly successful. And this constant dose of innovation can be attributed to leaders who take a proactive role in being curious and being inquisitive so that they can mine the imagination of those they work with. These are the leaders who are comfortable in pushing the edge, asking tough why questions, and exploring unfamiliar territories. These are what experts call transactional leaders.

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Business mentor Emile Haddad of Seattle, Washington, believes that a transactional leader drives a culture of innovation in the workplace. Follow this Facebook page to read how an ordinary leader can be a transactional leader.

Are you an emotionally intelligent leader?

What makes a good leader? A recent survey notes that most managers of high-performing businesses do not only have operational smarts, but also have emotional smarts.

Indeed, an emotionally intelligent leader has the ability to influence others and build a highly functioning culture. Technical skills aside, the primary job of leaders is to influence and impact the people around them in a positive way, driving them to meet business goals. What differentiate an effective leader from a mediocre one are the skills inherent in their emotional intelligence, and as business coaches note, emotional intelligence is explicitly connected to how well a leader’s inner observer is developed.

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Emotionally skillful leaders can increase their success in influencing people in positive and productive ways. Leaders who understand the value of the people they work with and work intelligently to create a positive impact will build a contagiously positive culture where success results are the norm, not the exception.

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Leadership is definitely beyond IQ. As executives of successful corporations can attest, emotional intelligence and putting people first are keys to a well-run, values-centered company.

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Leadership matters. An emotionally intelligent leadership matters more.



Emile Haddad, a Seattle, Washington-based business coach, believes that emotional intelligence is a key to good leadership. Subscribe to this Facebook page for more leadership advice.

The transactional leader and his healthy sense of curiosity

One of the most challenging aspects in training business leaders centers on the work of emotional intelligence, which calls for developing a leader’s inner observer. And this requires two fundamental attitudes: curiosity and inquiry. Although not necessarily foreign concepts to most leaders, the challenge lies in practicing them consciously and consistently.

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A pressure-filled, fast-paced environment may result to some leaders quickly leaping to assumptions and conclusions that they have not carefully examined. However, this pitfall can be circumvented if leaders adopt an attitude of curiosity about their own assumptions and conclusions, and choose to do the same with others. This requires leaders to take a mental and emotional stance that will keep their own position flexible and open to be influenced by others’ input. Such a stance is achieved through a practice of inquiry, wherein a leader is curious about his inner and outer circumstances, driving him to inquire about his and others’ ideas, assumptions, and conclusions.

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And over time, an attitude of inquiry tends to build a larger capacity for curiosity, which allows for a stronger inner observer and a deeper propensity for emotional intelligence. Leaders become more “tuned-in” to their environment, team, employees, and the culture of the organization—the skills that will become the foundation of a transactional leader.

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Business memo: Tackling the harder task first

Business coach Emile Haddad believes that the way corporate tasks are organized can influence workers' attitude toward their work.

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When it comes to organizing tasks, Forbes suggests that workers can be more effective when they tackle the harder tasks first before moving on to the easier ones.

When harder tasks are on the bottom of the to-do list, workers perceive them as problems and they tend to procrastinate in order not to face them.

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The following is a scenario featuring an employee who chooses to face the harder tasks first: An employee of a credit card company has scheduled to call the CEO of a top coffee chain in Seattle. The CEO is intimidating and demanding, so the credit card employee is a bit uncomfortable with the forthcoming phone conversation. Despite this apprehension, he calls the CEO first thing in the morning before doing his other tasks. Relieved after talking to the CEO, he moves on to do his next tasks normally and energetically.

Tackling the harder task first is more productive because workers do not need to save a lot of courage and energy to face it at the end of the day. They have the luxury of time to do other tasks instead of wasting the day conditioning one’s mind for the hardest part. Being able to handle the harder part early also gives workers a sense of accomplishment that provides them with momentum until the end of the day.

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