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The Conscious Leader: 9 Principles and Practices to Create a Wide-Awake and Productive Workplace
As the author "I have spent a lifetime studying the psychology of people and work, marvelling at how much trouble we can get into when we don't understand ourselves and what makes other people tick." The Conscious Leader brings you the nine principles and practices needed to create a wide-awake and productive workplace. Doing business today requires navigating the psychological terrain of people at egos that run amok and put personal success ahead of corporate achievement; palpable, underlying anger that surfaces in response to company policies; ill treatment by one particular manager, or your own grandstanding; and fear so contagious that people spend most of their time trying to keep their jobs instead of doing their jobs. In the incredible pressure cooker that is the modern workplace, how do you keep your eyes on a ball that is increasingly invisible? By understanding basic psychology of people at work, you can gain the essential knowledge needed to create a more successful and productive team.
- GenresLeadership
224 pages, Hardcover
First published December 2, 2013
4 people are currently reading
57 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
April 26, 2018
I found this book to be very valuable. Dr. Reciniello’s nine principles are excellent reminders of all the baggage each of us brings into a work environment. The overall theme is that we bring this baggage into the workplace unconsciously and thus unknowingly sabotage a productive and supportive environment.
Each of the nine principles I think it worth mentioning on its own:
Principle #1: “Human beings are not rational, and every day their illogical, unconscious minds are walking into offices with hidden agendas.”
This is an excellent reminder that each person, no matter how seemingly successful, smart, empathic, engaged and self-aware brings his or her own hidden agendas into the workplace. I think this statement keeps you aware that everyone has their issues and we often try to bury these issues into the unconscious mind in order to avoid dealing with them.
Principal #2: “Self-delusion is the single biggest trap for a leader.”
Being unaware of the issues you bring into the workplace, and how others perceive you as a result, can damage or thwart any potential success. You can’t displace any workplace issues on others entirely. You bring your past, both bad and good, into the workplace and being aware of that and how others perceive you as a result will help you in the long run.
Principal #3: “Everyone can’t be like me.”
You will interact with others who are not like you and who will push your buttons as a result. “All human beings have traits…which are really defense mechanisms.” Dr. Reciniello goes through a thorough list of defense mechanisms that are well-known but still should be recognized and discussed: denial, repression, projection, identification with the aggressor, displacement, intellectualization and splitting.
Principal #4: “Organizations repeat family dynamics.”
“We project qualities from old relationships, or from relationships that live only in our fantasies…onto the people we work with.” We want to belong to companies like we want to belong to familes and feel part of the group. We want to feel needed and wanted from our colleagues and bosses like we do from our parents, siblings and other loved ones. This one can seem obvious on the surface but can nonetheless present itself unknowingly in the ways we interact with others at work.
Principal #5: “People regress in groups.”
People can feel less and less secure in organizations and thus people want to regress, often unknowingly, to fit into a group in order to feel protected like from a parent.
Principal #6: “Everyone has preconceived notions of others and these are largely unconscious.”
This is an excellent reminder that we bring our unconscious prejudices towards others, especially when they are different from us, into the workplace. What’s interesting to see highlighted, is that the prejudice can work against people like us as well. When trying to promote diversity in terms of race or gender, Dr. Reciniello points out instances when a minority or woman was actually limiting opportunities for others like them rather than promoting or helping. The unconscious beliefs of that person and how he or she thinks someone like him or her should look or act actually limited and hurt the workplace environment of those like them.
Principal #7: “Conflict, anger, and power are forces you must work to master or they will master you.”
This one is a big one. People often want to avoid conflict and productivity suffers as a result. People also often don’t know how to deal with their anger in a healthy and respectful way. Anger is often just an initial reaction to an inconvenience or perceived slight. What lies beneath is often a misinterpretation or unintentional consequence as a result of that anger. Power is also often misused and abused in the workplace and leads to mistrust. Managers who misuse power will drive productive employees out of organizations who might have had a bright future.
Principal #8: “Change is a constant in every workplace.”
People don’t deal well with change since change leads to unknown situations. Change also means that people are dealing with something that will never be the same, and on an unconscious level are dealing with a fear of death as well, which is the ultimate and ever-lasting change. Dr. Reciniello does not mention a fear of death but I think that also contributes to fear of change.
Principal #9: “Bad mental hygiene destroys thinking, productivity, creativity, and your ability to own the other eight principles.”
This summing principle ties a bow on everything we should think about when bringing our unconscious issues into the workplace. I think it’s summed up best from two quotes in the book that stuck with me the most:
“The more honest you become with yourself, the more your unconscious cooperates with your rational mind.”
“A person cannot become truly mindful if the unconscious is not made conscious.”
Each of the nine principles I think it worth mentioning on its own:
Principle #1: “Human beings are not rational, and every day their illogical, unconscious minds are walking into offices with hidden agendas.”
This is an excellent reminder that each person, no matter how seemingly successful, smart, empathic, engaged and self-aware brings his or her own hidden agendas into the workplace. I think this statement keeps you aware that everyone has their issues and we often try to bury these issues into the unconscious mind in order to avoid dealing with them.
Principal #2: “Self-delusion is the single biggest trap for a leader.”
Being unaware of the issues you bring into the workplace, and how others perceive you as a result, can damage or thwart any potential success. You can’t displace any workplace issues on others entirely. You bring your past, both bad and good, into the workplace and being aware of that and how others perceive you as a result will help you in the long run.
Principal #3: “Everyone can’t be like me.”
You will interact with others who are not like you and who will push your buttons as a result. “All human beings have traits…which are really defense mechanisms.” Dr. Reciniello goes through a thorough list of defense mechanisms that are well-known but still should be recognized and discussed: denial, repression, projection, identification with the aggressor, displacement, intellectualization and splitting.
Principal #4: “Organizations repeat family dynamics.”
“We project qualities from old relationships, or from relationships that live only in our fantasies…onto the people we work with.” We want to belong to companies like we want to belong to familes and feel part of the group. We want to feel needed and wanted from our colleagues and bosses like we do from our parents, siblings and other loved ones. This one can seem obvious on the surface but can nonetheless present itself unknowingly in the ways we interact with others at work.
Principal #5: “People regress in groups.”
People can feel less and less secure in organizations and thus people want to regress, often unknowingly, to fit into a group in order to feel protected like from a parent.
Principal #6: “Everyone has preconceived notions of others and these are largely unconscious.”
This is an excellent reminder that we bring our unconscious prejudices towards others, especially when they are different from us, into the workplace. What’s interesting to see highlighted, is that the prejudice can work against people like us as well. When trying to promote diversity in terms of race or gender, Dr. Reciniello points out instances when a minority or woman was actually limiting opportunities for others like them rather than promoting or helping. The unconscious beliefs of that person and how he or she thinks someone like him or her should look or act actually limited and hurt the workplace environment of those like them.
Principal #7: “Conflict, anger, and power are forces you must work to master or they will master you.”
This one is a big one. People often want to avoid conflict and productivity suffers as a result. People also often don’t know how to deal with their anger in a healthy and respectful way. Anger is often just an initial reaction to an inconvenience or perceived slight. What lies beneath is often a misinterpretation or unintentional consequence as a result of that anger. Power is also often misused and abused in the workplace and leads to mistrust. Managers who misuse power will drive productive employees out of organizations who might have had a bright future.
Principal #8: “Change is a constant in every workplace.”
People don’t deal well with change since change leads to unknown situations. Change also means that people are dealing with something that will never be the same, and on an unconscious level are dealing with a fear of death as well, which is the ultimate and ever-lasting change. Dr. Reciniello does not mention a fear of death but I think that also contributes to fear of change.
Principal #9: “Bad mental hygiene destroys thinking, productivity, creativity, and your ability to own the other eight principles.”
This summing principle ties a bow on everything we should think about when bringing our unconscious issues into the workplace. I think it’s summed up best from two quotes in the book that stuck with me the most:
“The more honest you become with yourself, the more your unconscious cooperates with your rational mind.”
“A person cannot become truly mindful if the unconscious is not made conscious.”
February 26, 2015
Corporate psychologist Shelley Reciniello reveals the top nine most important psychological issues that undermine companies and leadership today.
What are the most common causes behind failed leadership?
What hinders talented employees from reaching their fullest potential?
More often than not, the root cause behind these issues exists beneath the surface as individual underlying psychological issues that “unconsciously” lead to problems in the company.
The Conscious Leader offers a fascinating look into the psychology of good (as well as bad) leadership. Shelley Reciniello examines these issues with a Freudian approach, sharing unique insight and experiences from her career as a Corporate Psychologist through amusing anecdotes and real-life examples.
An excellent book for those in leadership roles who want to better understand the root motivations behind challenging behaviors in the corporate environment. While Reciniello offers some interesting insight in the book, I do wish that there had been a stronger effort to create a more concise “plan of action” to help the reader rectify the issues they may be dealing with in their work environment. In this regard, I feel that perhaps there were too many anecdotes and too few instructive ideas on ways to improve employee/employer relations. However, for those interested in examining these issues from a Freudian-based psychological perspective, this book offers a wealth of information.
I received a free copy of this book from LID Publishing in exchange for an honest review.
Check out this review on my blog: EpicBookQuest.com
December 9, 2020
Bonito, soñador.
January 31, 2016
A must read for any one in the workplace. Well written and insightful. As you read through you will identify everyone in your workplace, even yourself, and you will take away so much. If I owned a business this book would be a prerequisite for any new employee and mandatory for all employees to read.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews