What is the Self-Aware Leader Model?

The Focus

Self-awareness is about slowing yourself down to speed yourself up. You become deeply attentive to your surroundings so you can be informed and intentional. It moves you beyond just out working the work into leading cross-functional teams.

You see details that create direction, drive work, and rally teams. Self-awareness is a game-changing leadership skill that accelerates productivity, engagement, and inclusion. SAL helps you reframe success as one team so you can scale the business.

The Self-Aware Leader model connects three reinventions to four pillars validated in research. The reinventions focus leaders proactively on what their next pivot is and why. The pillars work together to activate the how in this model.

Beneath each of the four pillars are six specific leadership behaviors that are validated in research. Through reflection and focus, leaders can prioritize what behaviors will serve their reinvention best.

“The Self-Aware Leader model activates a comprehensive and sustainable approach to leading personal and organizational growth in a way that can become a competitive differentiator.”
Ron Dufresne, Ph.D., Professor of Management
Saint Joseph’s University

Three Reinventions

Reinventions are all about how leaders create value — through self, others, or the business. Self-aware leaders proactively anticipate the next reinvention. They prioritize which reinvention is needed next to grow the business, the team, as themselves. 

Through reflection and an intentional pivot, learn the new leadership behaviors to prioritize, how to grow new skills or relationships, and why adding different elements of value in your work will create new momentum for you individually.   

Scale your leadership and pay if forward. Use inclusion and cross-functional collaboration as a tool for increasing the productivity of others and therefore also yourself. Create more value through rallying others to create more value. 

Think like a general manager (GM) by looking at work in terms of profits, products, services, and people. Anticipate spaces for profitable growth and become more disciplined and more effective at pinpointing and prioritization. 

“SAL offers a standout approach to drive trust and profitable growth through cross-functional collaboration. This is a game-changing model that balances people/culture with business/productivity.”
Jim Multari, Vice President of Operations
Insomnia Cookies

Four Pillars

If the reinventions are about how leaders create value (output), then the pillars are about how leaders activate reinvention (input). The four pillars are very interdependent, meaning leaders must activate all four together to achieve full success.

An above average support system and network connects you to others to be influential and productive. This creates followership as well as connections to stay informed and navigate. 

Proficiency in critical and systems thinking considers both process improvements and related relationships. It recognizes the cross-functional effects of decisions. 

Savvy perspective of the political landscape identfies who has power and clarifies amplifiers versus blockers.It challengs you to anticipate conflict and lean into preventions.  

Courageous drive for magis (more for the good of others) highlights team success over individual accomplishments. This drive to do good is received as authentic and committed.