Is self-reflection as an individual, team or organization worth it?

Recently Jonathan Betts, Dianne Lee, Jackie MacRitchie, Renos Savva, Elisabeth Mortimer Cassen and I met to discuss the upsides and downsides of reflection.  We decided it was, and identified ways to maximise effectiveness.

Upsides


One of the most compelling reasons is to learn as an individual or indeed to strive to be a learning organization so that mistakes can be learned from, and goals can be achieved more effectively. Importantly, reflection is a chance to celebrate and recognise the accomplishments that you have made, building confidence and motivating you for future activities. Effective reflection enables innovation by stepping back from the details of a situation so you can see the bigger picture and make connections.  Finally, when reflection is done well it enables you to draw a line and move on.

Downsides

 

Reflecting with your team can lead to “group think” especially in a group that is not diverse in experience and thinking styles. If honest and open discussion is not valued, reflection session are not impactful. It can also be very unproductive.  As individuals we recounted stories where we had received negative feedback which had led to years of reflection as we processed in ways that were not helpful. We’ve seen or experienced spirals of anxiety or inaction resulting from feedback that was not understood or actionable.  Sometimes we are self-critical and negative feedback can change our behaviours negatively for years.

What are the top tips for effective reflection:

As a team leader:

  1. Create a climate where honest and open feedback is valued rather than a blame culture which will shut down meaningful learning.
  2. When giving feedback remember your words could have deep impact so reflect on how you handled and check to see whether your words have been received in line with your intent.
  3. Use group processes to structure reflection, for example the Lean Sigma After Action Review, Agile’s retrospective or the continuous reflection and assessment in Dynamic Work Design. Consider approaches that will get insight from people with varied leadership styles and who have diverse perspectives.
  4. Expect organizational leaders and your team to reflect, for example, taking time to enjoy the positives coming out of reflections and celebrating the successes rather than just letting them pass by, as well as asking why goals weren’t achieved and learning from that experience.

As an individual:

  1. Consider the environment you will reflect in.Walking outside, using your commuting time, switching off from external noise can all enable you to have insightful reflection time
  2. When reflecting on feedback you have received, remember it’s a choice to accept or reject that feedback. Seek wider feedback to check the reality of an individual’s perspective.
  3. In reflecting, consider how you felt in different situations as well as the facts. Emotions can both cloud your judgement and act as an alert to handle things differently
  4. As an individual use the “What” (did you notice), “So what” (was the impact), “Now what” (will you do) framework
  5. One five-minute daily reflection routine you can incorporate is to write down three things – what you have done, what you have loved doing and what you are grateful for.If this is done at the end of the day you can end up feeling good about what has happened and are prepared to relax into the evening and be ready for the following day.
  6. Ensure you move on from your reflection “pause to go faster”.

How do you reflect in a way that leads to personal and organizational growth?

#leadingforchange #leadership #reflecttogrow