LEADERS, IS YOUR EGO AN ASSET OR LIABILITY?
Matt M. Starcevich, Ph. D.
(For individual use only, not to be reproduced or used in any way without permission)
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Ego: a person's sense of self-esteem or self-importance. Often a negative connotation is associated with ego: My leader has an ego, her ego gets in the way or, we need less not more egos around here. The issue is not whether a person has or is lacking an ego we all have one. As a leader the issue is perhaps, is my ego helping or hurting me, damaging or building relationships in my organizations, a benefit or roadblock to my career?
David Marcum and Steven Smith argue that if out of balance, too much or too little ego is a liability for a leader. Currently 63 percent of business people say ego negatively impacts work performance on an hourly or daily basis, while an additional 31 percent say it happens weekly. (Marcum, David and Smith, Steven. Egonomics: What makes ego our greatest asset or most expensive liability? Fireside a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc. New York, NY. 2007. Pp. 20)
Although not exhaustive this quiz will help you understand if your ego is an asset or liability. Unbiased self-evaluation is tough; if it helps, select the response that those who know you would say is “typical of you”.
Would others say you?
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