Blind spots are things you unintentionally do, or not do, that can have unexpected and often negative influences on the relationships with the people around you. Some of these behaviours show up when you are stressed or when you overusing your greatest strengths. Sometimes it is a failure to meet expectations you were not aware the people around you have. If you are not aware of your blind spots, they can become serious problems for your career, whether or not you are a leader.
How can you check your blind spots and make adjustments? In 8 Ways to Conquer Your Leadership Blind Spots, Bruna Martinuzzi offers the following tips:
- Raise your awareness of the top blind spots
- Don’t hire in your own image
- Establish a peer coaching arrangement
- Examine your past history
- Understand your habits
- Place a high priority on relational skills
- Consider the downside of your strengths
- Take an assessment to identify your blind spots
For tip #1, I recommend checking out the following articles:
- Discover Your Leadership Blind Spots (Business Week)
- Why Your Blind Spots Can Stop You Cold On Your Career Path (Huffington Post)
- How Successful People Cure Their Blind Spots (Forbes)
- How to Detect Your Blind Spots That Make Your Colleagues Disrespect You (Forbes)
Because blind spots are about how other people respond to your behaviour or actions/inactions, they will change as you work with different people, move to different roles or when there is a change in your environment. It is important to find ways to regularly get the feedback you need, even if it is uncomfortable.
Do you know what your blind spots are? What do you do to check them?
Sockets and Lightbulbs 
November 5, 2014
Career, Leadership