Building Business Awareness

When it comes to Business Awareness and Organizational Awareness – everything starts with Awareness.   If you’ve read my book, Bringing Spirituality into Business – your guide to KNOW yourself, GROW yourself, to LIVE LIFE EMPOWERED…. you know I call Awareness your SUPERPOWER and that it is.

It is the necessary and required element for all personal growth and development.   So much so I call it a Pre-Requisite to all other learning.   As one becomes aware, they develop Self-Awareness.   The queen of Self-Awareness work is Tasha Eurich and a must follow if you want to learn from where the work originated.  Her studies validated that “95% of people believe they are self-aware and yet only 10-15% actually are. “

From Self-Awareness we can step into the Observer role – from here there is a bit of detachment from an experience – just enough to see it in another perspective, through another lens if you will   The Observer is a valuable aid and tool to allow one to reframe the past to move forward with ease.  But an even greater aid in seeing and reading a room or situation factually.  

Once Self-Awareness is achieved one can advance to Social Awareness which builds so much of what is required and needed in the workplace today.   

Most all of the dysfunction and chaos has been a result of the many departures, disengagement, dissatisfaction, distractions, and division.   It’s not isolated to one industry or sector, it is broad and wide and runs deep into the bodies of all.  

While every dysfunction is rooted in a lack of awareness, don’t jump ahead because there is NO ONE MAGIC bullet for your success.   

This blog is to aid my training and book club presentation – BUT I know it will aid many others as well. 

Jumping forward to using Social Awareness to create Business and Organizational Awareness, I want to leave you with topics and ideas to take into break-out sessions  and further the discussion in and around Social Awareness to advance your team or department with greater Business Awareness. 

When ever I find someone who has excelled in delivering a message I am all about sharing their message and that is what I will do in this blog post.   There is no need to try to recreate the wheel. The accolades for this material go to goodfindings.com where they Create Happiness on Purpose.   The full article is here.    Below I share their theme with my added view.

They begin by sharing this overview.   Take a moment to look it over.   Credits belong to Good Findings. 

 

We’ll start by E X P A N D I N G  our  Awareness to the Social Signals.

Here are some of the highlights of this important area, which will get you started toward increasing Social Awareness.

• Eye contact — Never underestimate the power of this simple part of the social signals you are sending and receiving all of the time. Basically, just do it. Avoiding eye contact is a powerful rejection signal that never communicates anything positive.   Avoiding eye contact  often raises distrust and lacks the desire for connection.
  
• Facial expression — The research is clear that the expression on your face carries a huge amount of information. While it’s next to impossible to manipulate and force your desired facial expression, there is one that tend to both align you and the other and that is the smile. It benefits you personally, and it makes others much more likely to trust you.
• Posture and position — Side by side says, “We’re going in the same direction. We’re in this together,” whereas face to face is sometimes perceived as confrontational. Knowing this is a good way to avoid conflict. An erect posture is good for you and all of your interactions, not to mention your overall health and well being.  Crossing your arms across your chest can be received as blocked or rejecting something of someone.
• Touch — Be aware, be sensitive, and be careful…but don’t let that stop you from touching other people appropriately. Handshakes and hugs are generally safe, depending on the relationship. We need touch, and when you’re using this powerful nonverbal signal, you’re meeting a very basic need.  After COVID the networking groups I attend adopted a green, yellow, red sticker policy and all are instructed to pick the color that best describes their level of connection.   Green is touch is acceptable – these are the full on huggers, yellow means they are cautionary and maybe only a handshake, while red denotes a level of uncomfortableness with engagement through touch of any sorts.   

All of these areas are huge subjects in their own right. I encourage you to do further research on your own to learn how to master each one.

Next we’ll look at the Importance Of A Positive Social Perspective

A positive social awareness will lower your stress level, and greatly increase your ability to form healthy connections with other people.  One quick way to see where you stand in your overall social awareness is to answer this question.   Do you perceive the would as friendly or hostile?

• Humanity — Contrary to what mainstream media presents, there are far more kind, wise good souls on this planet than most realize. An optimistic view of humanity will serve you well in every aspect of your life.
  
• Assume the best — When you hold others in the highest possible regard, you are rising to a higher level of consciousness within yourself. And, you’re more likely to see the best coming from others, when you’re focusing on it and looking for it.  Truth is you will find what ever you look for.  I think of the word Namaste –  which is use in the Eastern world as a greeting.  It was first explained to me to mean, “The divine in me see and recognizes the divine in you.”   Talk about assuming the best.
• Recognize value — If you are looking for value, you will find it. And the more you practice this, the more skilled you will become. I see this as a Mastery skillset.  Appreciation is all about increasing value, so the best way to add value in your social awareness is through recognition and appreciation.  Make it genuine and authentic. 
• Seek connection — As human beings, we are all about making connections. We have far more in common than you might think when looking at our differences. Look for common ground, and you’ll find it. The more connected you are to other people, the smarter and healthier you will be.  If you notice your habit is to look for differences, you might challenge yourself to find two things you have in common for every thing you find thats different.    This is also a good practice for giving feedback… Sandwich the challenging feedback between two super positives to accentuate your respect, value and connection with the other. 

Next we’ll be Building Social Awareness Of Basic Needs

When you understand basic human needs, you will be much better equipped to develop strong social skills and build strong relationships.

• To love and be loved — This is the core of our humanity, and lies at the foundation of all of our basic needs. Be aware of this need in yourself, and that gives you an excellent starting point in approaching others. Set your intention to communicate love in all you do.  If you seek to love verses be loved, love will naturally find its way to you.   
• To be affirmed — The need for significance, to know that you matter. Although it is more obvious in some than others, we are all seeking affirmation and validation on some level, all of the time. Simply understanding your own needs and giving yourself what you need will keep you from projecting the need onto others. When you master the skill of affirming yourself and others with integrity and authenticity, you will be successful on many different levels.   
• To be recognized — Acknowledgment and recognition are some of the most basic needs we have as human beings. I’ve heard from many who are part of the great resignation, they are done working where they are not recognized and appreciated. Smiles, greetings and touch, followed by verbal acknowledgment and recognition can do wonders to strengthen connections with others, and enhance your relationships.  But taking it up a notch to acknowledge your team on a quarterly level at minimum is one way to begin to build team building and appreciation.
  
• To be entertained — Develop your sense of humor and your storytelling skills. When you can provide entertainment along with serious communication, others will hear and remember what we had to say.   When we can laugh and learn we look forward to learning.   Laughter is great medicine for the soul. 

Keep in mind that we need connection with each other. Develop a clear vision of yourself as you would like to be socially and in all of your relationships, and step eagerly into that bright future.

And now we get the Social Games And Integrity

Playing games and acting with integrity are basically opposite ends of the social spectrum. Games are based in force, deceit and hidden agendas, while integrity comes from authenticity, transparency and reliability.

 

• V-P-R triangle —  This is in many ways the most common game around, sometimes referred to as the Karpman Drama Triangle. Nobody wins, and everybody plays all of the positions, as you can see in the diagram below.   More on this in future posts and workshops.  There is plenty of drama, trauma, and chaos caused this triangle of  masks.
  

• Hidden agendas — Everybody has them. This is natural, and when you look closely at the basic needs described above, you’ll understand what I mean. We all want love and recognition, but of course we’re not going to tell anyone about that. Your focus needs to be on your own integrity, and let others do their own thing.  Often times one can be so strongly rooted in a belief that their agenda is to change your opinion.   This topic is proud and wide and these agenda can also be unconscious.  Best to check the ego at the doo
• Trust your gut feeling — You just can’t know everything. Learn all you can, and develop the highest possible social awareness. Then leave the rest up to your intuition…your gut feeling about who to connect with, where to set boundaries, and when to let go and have a good time.   
• Look for integrity — Integrity means that words, actions and feelings are in sync. Start with your own, and work toward personal integration. Then seek out relationships with people where you sense a high level of honesty and authenticity, where you get a sense of a solid individual. This is the basis for all healthy relationships.  Integrity is the byproduct when you activate and align with your four intelligence systems.   

This page is devoted to Building greater Social Awareness in the workplace to enhance Business Awareness and Organizational Awareness.  Just a few of the many rewards of implementing this awareness are greater connection and teamwork, respect and appreciation in the workplace.    Let’s face it when people get along, are ultimately happy, and enjoy what they do they are less likely to complain, leave and be disengaged.

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