Today we start to examine The 4 Pillars of Success with the first pillar, “Self Awareness.” Knowing yourself is the foundation to success. Leaders thrive by understanding who they are and what they value, by becoming aware of unhealthy blind spots or weaknesses that can derail them. Then cultivating the habit of continuous self-reflection and learning.

You can’t give what you don’t have! Socrates statement is profound because it causes you to constantly examine your values, beliefs, and priorities against what your personal and professional goals are. But if you don’t know who you are or what you stand for, how can you begin to lead others? Overcoming your personal doubts and insecurities about yourself, by being a demanding manager is no way to lead. Understanding and accepting your strengths and weaknesses is your personal foundation.

We’ve all heard the statement “being motivated by fear.” The fear of daily self examination draws fear to many if you don’t like the reflection in the mirror. This fear is there because you may have to make a personal change. And in order to change you first have to admit at some level you were wrong. And for some admitting you were wrong is a monumental task. The ability to daily reflect and refine one’s self, is someone who is headed on the path to greatness. This can only happen with a daily self examination and understanding how you’re personal S.W.O.T. (Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats) can lead others.

Here are 5 areas of focus on becoming a great leader:

1. Self-Awareness: The ability to recognize and understand you moods, emotions, and what drives you – and what drives you crazy.
2. Self-Regulation: The ability to control or redirect what drives you – and drives you crazy and change those disruptive impulses and moods. The propensity to suspend judgment to think before acting, or take a personal “time out” before acting.
3. Motivation:  Having a passion to work for reasons that go beyond money, status, or fame, and understanding what you stand for and how you inspire and champion other people.
4. Empathy: Being able to understand the emotional makeup of other people and be able to “walk a mile in their moccasins” – seek first to understand, than to be understood!
5. Social Skills:  Proficiency in managing relationships and building your personal networks is vital in becoming a leader. The best idea in the world can never happen if you can’t communicate it to others.

Again, your success path is not “Out There,” it all starts from within, you must have a solid personal foundation first, before you can seek success, properly manage others to greatness and have a profound impact on the people around you.

Hollywood is full of insecure, self doubting, narcissistic, successful millionaires who would love to be happy, and try to buy their happiness. But, you can’t fake happiness and you can’t buy happiness, it has to come from within… how about just becoming happy first then, work on the success part!

Next time, Pillar 2 – Ingenuity!