Techniques The power of personal development

Gael Lindeneld

Self-improvement is increasingly desirable at individual and organizational levels. Leading psychotherapist and trainer, Gael Lindeneld, reviews the subject and provides guidelines. Is it panic, pragmatism or perhaps pure philanthropy that is fuelling the current boom of interest from managers in personal development? I am sure that it is a powerful and enduring mixture of all three. Some are, no doubt, reaching out in confused desperation to a nurturing world which is offering hope and enlightenment, in contrast to the prevailing cynicism and despair of the culture that surrounds them. Others have undoubtedly been convinced by the results of scientic research, and the insights of the renowned management gurus such as Handy, Peters, Covey, Moss Kanter, Tichy and Sherman. As shrewd businessmen and women, they are investing in personal development because they know that people empowerment can increase productivity. Finally, there is a growing number of others who seem to be genuinely motivated by an altruistic concern. They are seeking inspiration and ideas for self-improvement programmes in the hope that they can transform their organizations into more ethical, caring, sharing communities. They are seeking emotional and practical support for their commitment to managing organizations in which every worker has a chance of maximizing and enjoying their individual potential and making an effective contribution to society. Even in these competitive recession-bitten times, a few can be seen to be courageously giving these kinds of people concerned priority over prot. But do such reasons matter? Personally, however intrigued I may be, I do not intend to spend too much energy wondering and theorizing about what is behind this sudden interest. I have been waiting a professional lifetime for this kind of breakthrough, so I am keen to make the most of the momentum whatever the motivation!

The author Gael Lindeneld is one of the UKs leading psychotherapists and trainers in personal development, now specializing in work with high achievers in the UK and at her centre in southern Spain. She is the author of ve best-selling books, including Assert Yourself, Super Condence and Managing Anger, all published by Thorsons, a division of HarperCollins. Her new book Self-esteem will be published in March 1995. She has also produced a series of self-help programmes on cassette and a trainers pack on super condence. On 27 March 1995, Gael will be presenting a business brieng on Super Condence at Work for Ashridge Management College in London. For details of her products, programme and training consultancies, she may be contacted on 01962 855801 or at 11 King Alfred Place, Winchester SO23 7DF. Abstract There is a current boom of interest from managers in personal development. Describes inner and outer selfcondence. Presents some examples of wares which are available from the current personal development market, in particular, one kind of course which the author has successfully run with various organizations.

Personal development market

In this article, I therefore intend to concentrate on setting out and describing some examples of wares which are available from the current personal development market, and describe in particular one kind of course 28

Management Development Review Volume 8 Number 1 1995 pp. 28-31 MCB University Press ISSN 0962-2519

The power of personal development

Management Development Review Volume 8 Number 1 1995 2831

Gael Lindeneld

which I have successfully run with a number of different organizations. If I had to choose an enticing billboard to hang over the market stall, it would have to be:
Self-condence for sale!

So what exactly are these two groups of managers missing if they choose to ignore the message on our personal development billboard?

This is, after all, a product that the world of business already knows it both needs and wants in vast supplies. Furthermore, most managers are well aware that the stocks are dangerously low in many departments! A psychologically stabbing phrase which reoccurs all too often in appraisals in one form or other is What you need is more condence. Perhaps you have said or written it yourself many times. Who would blame you? The go-ahead modern managers whom I meet are no longer seduced by supercial egoboosting thrills from yes people and robots. Instead, understandably, they long for selfassured socially skilled staff who can be trusted to: work efciently and creatively, either on their own or co-operatively in the new autonomous teams that our atter decentralized organizations now demand; and have the psychological nerve to cope with high levels of pressure that are so inevitable in the ever-changing, insecure working climate we know we have to endure for very many years to come. The ruthless big guns have got one answer. They are sacking the wimps and using psychometric tests and even graphology to recruit new, tougher mettle. Many of them are resolutely and defensively locked into the oldfashioned belief that people cannot change, but there are others who know better and still choose to dismiss personal development as an unnecessary expense. Only the humiliating pain of a massive crisis appears to have the power to send these kinds of boss in the direction of my kind of stall! A more merciful group of managers are themselves doing their very best to support those oundering under the current pressures. But, increasingly, many of these are nding the task of condence building frustratingly time-consuming and unrewarding. So even against their better nature, we can observe them falling back on authoritarian leadership, or resigning themselves to early burn-out by doing the jobs of the psychologically weaker staff themselves. 29

What is self-condence?
Before describing some of the specic products for sale on my stall I have usually found that most managers nd it helpful to clarify their understanding of the nature of selfcondence. This not only helps them to understand the relevance of many of our courses, but also helps them to make more discerning and cost-effective choices. After 20 years of professional work and even more years of struggling to build up my own condence, I have come to accept that sound, durable self-condence is made up of not only a wide range of learned social skills but also some specic deeply-rooted positive personality attributes. I now subdivide these under the headings of outer and inner condence. The outer set of components gives us the kind of condence which most people would instantly recognize. When we possess them, we visibly demonstrate our self-assurance and self-control through our appearance and behaviour. We have well-developed social skills in four areas: communication; self-presentation; assertiveness; and emotional control. Inner condence is, on the other hand, much less obvious to the outside world because it is essentially a more privately felt experience of inner peace and psychological strength. Its main components are: self-love; self-knowledge; clear personal goals; and positive thinking. If we are lucky enough to have a full quota of both sets of components, we have what I call super condence. Because one kind of condence feeds the other, we tend to have more than the sum of the two parts, and we nd we have ample psychological strength, not only to live life to the limit of our potential but also to cope with any personal and professional crises we may encounter on our way. Most organizations have a minority of people who seem to ooze this kind of gold-star condence effortlessly out of their every pore.

The power of personal development

Management Development Review Volume 8 Number 1 1995 2831

Gael Lindeneld

They are usually those who have had the perfect childhoods and charmed adult lives. They are thriving in the new competitive selfdirected worlds of work. I am pleased for them; they have a right to thrive, but so do all the others who now nd themselves so sadly lacking in some of the important aspects of condence. New advances in the science and art of psychology and personal development training have given us the ability to help such people in every single area of condence. No one today needs to remain a born loser, a born pessimist or a born back-seat driver of any description. And no organization should accept excuses for such personal failings if they are genuinely prepared to offer staff the means to develop and change.

How to start
So how would an organization new to personal development training start to help? In my experience, most initially choose to offer an introductory self-condence course. Other personal development trainers tell me that favourite starter courses include stress management and effective communication and Assertiveness. The most appropriate route into this kind of work for your company will not only depend on the specic training needs you have identied, but also the degree of staff motivation for doing this kind of work, and the particular expertise of the trainers who you have available. the style tends to be highly participative As dramatherapy and other creative techniques have played an inuential part in my own training, and I enjoy using them, the style of my own courses tends to be highly participative and action-oriented. Participants are encouraged to learn by experience and therefore exercises and role plays are often used to reinforce the learning of the theoretical input. A typical programme for my two-day Super Condence at Work courses which I have now run for a wide variety of groups ranging from secretarial and reception staff to senior managers and consultant pathologists includes the following modules: Self-esteem building exercises are used to help participants to value their individual 30

strengths and past achievements, and make more commitment to looking after themselves both at home and at work. Self-awareness exercises are given to help participants to gain more understanding of their own individual personality proles, their personal value system and self-sabotaging habits. Goal-setting participants are taught strategies which can help them to clarify their personal goals and encourage them to take more responsibility for setting their own challenging but achievable targets both at home and at work. Positive thinking participants are taught self-help strategies which they can use to re-programme their minds if they are inclined to think and act in a negative manner. Effective communication exercises and guidelines are given to develop a range of skills including active listening, matching body language and running effective meetings. Self-presentation participants are taught to appreciate the power of rst impressions and are given guidelines on how to dress appropriately and present their work in a professional and condent manner. Assertiveness participants are taught how to recognize the difference between assertive, passive and aggressive styles of behaviour and are given the opportunity to practise some basic strategies. This component often includes exercises on how to give and take constructive feedback. Emotional control participants are introduced to simple stress management techniques and strategies for keeping their frustration and anger under control. Action planning at the end of every course, participants are asked to complete a personal action plan to encourage them to make a commitment to using the selfhelp techniques and strategies which they have learned to continue their own personal development.

Personal outcomes
On completing such courses, most participants report that not only have they received a tremendous boost of condence and positive energy, but they have learned many practical skills and strategies. However, even more importantly, I can see that they have made the

The power of personal development

Management Development Review Volume 8 Number 1 1995 2831

Gael Lindeneld

most important personal development leap that any of us can make. They have acquired or reconrmed the conviction that they can change both their feelings and their behaviour and are therefore much more willing to take responsibility for both. As a result, they frequently go on to seek more specic help on particular issues such as the management of anger or stress or assertiveness. Previously they may well have been revolving helplessly on a victims merrygo-round of blaming their colleagues, boss, mother, father, or even fate for their problems. But another important consequence of such courses can be that participants return to work with increased expectations for others including their managers! The good news is that more and more senior people are now willing to consider personal development for themselves. In 1994, I was asked to do a talk at the Institute of Directors on super condence. The main thrust of my presentation was about how directors and managers can maintain and

build the self-condence and morale of their staff. I was surprised (and delighted!) when many people came up to me afterwards and said in one form or other: That was great Gael, but why didnt you give us any tips on how to keep our own condence and selfesteem in good shape. This new openness to personal change at senior levels of organizations has prompted me recently to join forces with some other colleagues to set up a new company, Extended Horizons, which is offering an advanced personal development service specically tailored to meet the needs and busy schedules of high achievers. I am pleased to report that a workshop entitled Positive under pressure which we ran for the IOD in London last November was packed to capacity. As a result of its success, we have had numerous requests for more. Five years ago, who would have believed that a group of such distinguished British leopards would have been so willing to change some of their spots?

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