Encyclopedia of Leadership

HOW TO USE THIS LEADERSHIP TOOL

“The further down the scale of health you go, the greater the dislike people feel towards

change of any sort, because it’s much more painful for them to face their defects.”

—Robin Skynner and John Cleese, LIFE AND HOW TO SURVIVE IT

Self-awareness is a critical aspect of leadership success, yet it’s exceedingly difficult to look

objectively at one’s own defenses. After all, defenses, by their very nature, are usually outside

of a leader’s conscious awareness. One suggestion is to sit down with a coach or trusted col-

league, someone who will be frank and completely honest with you, and use this tool to dis-

cuss which defenses you tend to use and when. Think of concrete situations or incidents in

which you have used some of these defenses. In what way have these defenses been appropri-

ate or limited your effectiveness? Think of and plan alternative behaviors that will serve you

better in the future.

In the workspace provided here, circle the defenses that you use on the job, then plan a

few action steps to improve your responses and to avoid, or at least minimize, your use of

unhealthy defense mechanisms.

RELATED LEADERSHIP TOOLS

6.1 Logic Errors 12.7 Dealing with Conflict 13.6 Attribution Theory

8.7 Active Listening 13.1 Coaching 15.3 JoHari Window

FOR FURTHER ASSISTANCE

Skynner, A. C. Robin, and John Cleese. Life and How to Survive It.W. W. Norton & Co., 1996.

SECTION 15 TOOLS FORTAKINGCARE OFYOURSELF 471

Anticipation

Suppression

Sublimation

Altruism

Humor

Repression

Isolation

Intellectualization

Displacement

Reaction Formation

Fantasy

Projection, Paranoia

Masochism, Hypochondria

Acting Out

Healthy defenses Midrange defenses Unhealthy defenses

Steps you can take to make appropriate use of healthy defenses:

Steps you can take to minimize your use of midrange defenses and avoid using unhealthy defenses: