Jung and our personality blind spots
Last week we discussed how personality blind spots, parts of our characters that we are unaware of, can be detrimental to our business dealings and our leadership skills. There are two bodies of work that provide a great start for our self-analysis on this subject. The first is Jung.
He believed there was a very strong connection between our ‘blind spots’ and our ‘shadow selves’. By shadow, Jung meant the areas of our personality that we are less able to consciously relate to. From Jung’s perspective working on our ‘blind spots’ revolves around increasing our self-awareness, embracing our shadow, truth-telling and engaging trusted feedback. We could begin this huge task by considering the following questions:
- Are there times when I behave out of character? In what circumstances do these instances occur?
- Are there qualities I see in others that bother me? Could these actually represent one of my blind spots?
- Is there anything I become particularly defensive about if criticised? What could the relationship be between these instances and my blind spots?
- Have I ever found myself rationalising away thoughtful feedback that could be useful?
Insights learning, and development uses a model that translates Jung’s principles into a simple and effective way for individuals to explore their conscious and unconscious behaviour.
You can find out more here:
www.insights.com
