Johari Window

During a psychology class while working on my leadership certification, I was exposed to the concept of the Johari Window. It has been one of the enduring concepts in my mind, and provides great insight into knowing how to lead individuals. Developed in 1955 by Joseph Luft and Harry Ingham (emphasis added to show where the name of the model comes from), it helps to explain the way that all of us are aware of ourselves. There are lots of areas of our own makeup that we are both aware of an unaware of, and same for others knowledge of us. 

                                 

The top left box (quadrant II for the mathematicians out there), is the open pane of glass, where certain aspects of our personalities are clear to everyone. Generally there is little discovery to be had here, and it is easy for all parties to identify strengths, weaknesses, likes and dislikes. It is an easy place to start when working with someone new, and comfortable for all sides. It is also the easiest place to come back to when a person is not working at full capacity or seems to be losing focus on their priorities.

The bottom right quadrant (quadrant IV) is what is hidden from everyone, including ourselves. The things that we don't know about ourselves, nor does anyone else. When something from this quadrant surfaces, it is a surprise to everyone involved. There is nothing as a leader we can do to be proactive for items buried deep in this area. When these do come to light, there may be a lot of pieces to sort through and put back together.

As leaders that want to be change agents, the quadrants of Known and Unknown to Self and Others are where we need to focus. But tread carefully here. Trust must be established before either of these can be tackled well.

The Unknown to Self but Known to Others Quadrant (quadrant I) is the person's blind spot. It's like a two way mirror, where others can see in but we cannot see out. This is where the biggest changes can happen, and also cause the most discomfort for the individual. It will probably come with some denial of facts, maybe some initial anger, but with good questioning backed up with some evidence this is where change can occur. 

I remember a small blind window with one of my teachers. He was a great planner of lessons, got along great with his students, but whenever he was presenting to the class he always looked over his students heads, and not at them. It was as if he was playing out a scene of a movie rather than actually focusing on how his lessons were impacting his students. So much of what we can assess as teachers or leaders is by reading the facial reactions of our students. When I asked him if he was aware he did this, he was astonished. But then he realized it was true, and worked to change this behavior. He quickly came to realize how much more engagement and formative assessment he was able to gain simply by looking at his students rather than over their heads.

The last quadrant is the hidden quadrant (quadrant III), where there is something we know about ourselves but keep others from knowing. This is also a great area to be able to make change, but is the most vulnerable spot for people to be in. Tread lightly, with caution and only after establishing trust, into these areas. This is where effective listening, and hearing what is really meant by what is said, not said, or carefully avoided, comes in handy. There is a reason the person has kept this hidden, and while it may be crucial to their development, it can lead to a lot of emotions when these become known.