In a rapidly changing and complex world characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA), effective leadership is more crucial than ever. It is becoming increasingly clear that the type of leaders needed to meet new challenges like AI, climate change, or new regulatory environments are Purposeful leaders. A Purposeful Leader’s flexibility, adaptability, and capacity to build strong relationships, inspire others to innovate rapidly, and achieve great things are the foundation of successful organizations.
Here’s the good news: contrary to common belief, these skills can be developed and nurtured through self-development work.
Purposeful leaders are self-aware.
Self-awareness is the foundation on which leaders can build and refine their skills. However, becoming more conscious is a journey that requires time and introspection. Psychometric assessments can play a pivotal role, offering valuable insights on the journey to self-awareness. They can act as mirrors to reveal one’s strengths and areas for improvement.
Among the various psychometric assessments available, two are excellent indicators of effective leadership while aligning with purposeful leadership: EQ-360 and Leadership Circle.
EQ-360
The EQ-360 measures emotional intelligence (EQ), a critical factor in leadership success, especially purposeful leaders. The assessment measures five composite scales: self-perception, self-expression, interpersonal, decision-making, and stress management.
By understanding their strengths and weaknesses in these areas, leaders can focus on developing competencies that increase empathy, enhance communication, foster collaboration, and encourage adaptability.
Purposeful leaders foster a sense of shared purpose in a team. Leaders with high EQ can better understand each team member’s needs, motivations, and aspirations. They can connect the team’s work to a broader purpose, boosting motivation, increasing commitment, and driving performance.
Leadership Circle
On the other hand, Leadership Circle is another valuable psychometric tool that delves into the realm of effective leadership and counterproductive tendencies. The competencies measured in this assessment correlate strongly with effective leadership as it provides a multi-dimensional view of the leader.
The Leadership Circle evaluates the effectiveness of leaders across various behavioural dimensions and provides insights into how their behaviours influence their effectiveness. It is exciting to understand how leaders tend to act when under stress.
Leadership Circle focuses on creative competencies (relating, self-awareness, authenticity, systems awareness, and achieving) and reactive tendencies (controlling, protecting, complying).
A good assessment of both these capacities can help leaders grasp how they might inadvertently impede their leadership effectiveness through reactive behaviours, and how strengthening creative competencies can enhance their leadership.
It is also important to note that there are gifts in reactive behaviours, but they come with a cost attached to them. The Leadership Circle shows where leaders stand and what skills could be further developed.
Psychometric Assessments and the Development of Purposeful Leaders
In conclusion, the path to purposeful leadership starts with self-awareness, and psychometric assessments are invaluable tools in this transformative journey. Leaders can gain insights into their strengths, weaknesses, and unconscious behaviours. Leaders can use these insights to develop a personalized plan for leadership development.
The EQ-360 and Leadership Circle assessments comprehensively understand emotional intelligence and effective leadership qualities, respectively. For aspiring and established leaders alike, incorporating these assessments and professional coaching can unlock untapped potential and pave the way for meaningful growth and impactful leadership.
Embrace the power of psychometric assessments and become the purposeful leader the world needs.
