We can find wisdom anywhere we look. Sometimes we don’t even have to look that hard. It just jumps up and smacks us in the head. One of my favorite sources is comic strips. For me, The Far Side is a constant spring of priceless life lessons. One of my father’s favorite quotes came from Walt Kelly’s cartoon, Pogo, which originated in 1948. Pogo, the title character said, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” While it may be grammatically imperfect, the wisdom is flawless.
Most people would not knowingly become their own enemy, but it happens all the time. This one line from a 50-year-old comic strip reminds us that we create many of the problems we confront. Worse than that, Pogo’s words reveal that we are often ignorant of our own culpability. We go through life blaming others for problems that we could have avoided. Self-awareness – rather the lack thereof – lies at the root of these challenges. Self-awareness can be exceptionally difficult and discomforting. That is why many of us choose to overlook this obvious solution and find ourselves repeatedly making the same mistakes.
Throughout my career, I have found myself taking on projects or accepting new roles without fully considering whether I was truly well-suited for them. Sure, I would think about whether I had the skills and abilities the job required. I would take into consideration whether I thought the role would be enjoyable. I might even consider how the opportunity fit into my long-term career aspirations.
Unfortunately, I rarely considered how well the role aligned with my beliefs and values. Therefore, I should not have been surprised when I found myself working for bosses whose beliefs and priorities conflicted with my own. Nor should I have been disappointed when the organization I worked for valued things that I did not. The problems originated with me, not my bosses or organizations. Had I gone into these situations with greater self-awareness, I would have been better prepared. I might have still chosen to take the same path, but I would have done so deliberately.
So how can we address this common mistake? How can we become more self-aware? How do we help those we lead do the same? First, make self-awareness a priority. ‘Tis the season of resolutions, so resolve to invest time in learning who you are. Take stock of your character. Then, next time you are confronted with an opportunity, you will be prepared to answer these questions:
By knowing ourselves and then acting on that knowledge, we can meet ourselves before we become the enemy.