Recommendation
Introduction: What Makes Leaders Who Grow Exceptionally Different?

[STEP 1 Self-Awareness]
Chapter 1: I Thought I Was a Good Leader_ Looking at Myself Objectively
- Can you evaluate yourself objectively?
Why a leader's "inwardness" is dangerous
Chapter 2: Why Feedback Doesn't Work for Him: How to Work with Underperforming Team Members
- We consider our abilities to be above average.
- Don't blame yourself for team members who don't change.
* Self-Awareness Checklist

[STEP 2: Acceptance]
Chapter 3: I'm concerned about what others think of me: Dealing with negative feedback
- The depth of acceptance determines the size of growth.
- Take a step back and create some mental space.
Chapter 4: When You're Feeling Powerless After Being Pushed Away for a Promotion - Accepting Frustration
- Don't avoid problems, face them head on.
- A moment of frustration, a fresh look at myself
* Introspection Checklist

[STEP 3: Change your perspective]
Chapter 5: How to avoid being swayed by trivial situations: _Taking psychological control
- Separate the given situation from my reaction.
- We need to keep our distance from each other emotionally too.
Chapter 6: Why It's Difficult to Change Even When You Admit a Mistake: Changing Your Mindset
- Why can't he change even though he knows the problem?
- How to break out of a negative frame
Chapter 7: Feeling like I'm going to collapse if I make even the smallest mistake - Breaking free from perfectionism
- An excellent leader is not a perfect leader.
- Success and perfectionism are not related.
* Perspective Change Checklist

[STEP 4: Overcoming Limitations]
Chapter 8: Everyone is afraid of new challenges - Just try it.
- Leverage your strengths but acknowledge your vulnerabilities.
- As you gain new success experiences, your perspective changes.
Chapter 9: People Are Harder Than Achievements: Overcoming Relationship Conflict
- Why you must win people's hearts first
- Move hearts with gentle communication.
* Limit Overcoming Checklist

[STEP 5 Resilience]
Chapter 10: True Leaders Learn from Failure: Overcoming Defeat
A growth mindset increases resilience.
- Excessive self-criticism is toxic.
Chapter 11: When a Rejection Shrinks Your Heart - How to Overcome Rejection
- Wise leaders learn from rejection.
How to Deal with the Anxiety That Comes After Being Rejected
Chapter 12: When Your Company is Caught in Public Criticism: How to Turn a Crisis into an Opportunity
- In a crisis, leaders step forward.
- A true apology that demonstrates leadership
* Resilience Checklist

[STEP 6 Sustainability]
Chapter 13: Stagnation After Rapid Success: Finding Growth Engines
- The dangers of chasing only the immediate goal
- Compassion for myself leads to motivation
Chapter 14: I Don't Want to Lose Myself as I Continue to Grow - Making My Goals Specific
- Haven't we achieved only the goals given so far?
- Wise decisions come when you have enough mental energy.
Chapter 15: Can Introverted Leaders Succeed? _ Sustainable Leadership
Why Introverted Leaders Are Getting the Attention
Empathy and Inclusion: Becoming New Competitive Edges for Leaders
* Sustainability Checklist

[STEP 7 Self-Boundaries]
Chapter 16: Common Mistakes Successful Leaders Make: Beware of Pride
- Don't you consider the organization a tool for advancement?
- The mind also needs appropriate compensation.
Chapter 17: Why Do Kids These Days Want Things to Be Easy? _How to Avoid Becoming a Knock-Off
- Don't force your own way of success
- A leader's character comes from a relaxed mind.
* Self-Boundary Checklist

Conclusion: In the end, the leader who understands the heart wins.
Acknowledgements
Appendix Self-Leadership Study
References

* “How Great Leaders Manage Their Mental Health”
- The mental management methods of the top 1% of leaders, revealed through 20 years of practical consulting.

The COVID-19 pandemic has reminded us that even ordinary people find it difficult to manage their own minds.
Leaders at the forefront of organizations, in particular, have had to adapt to the severe economic downturn and rapid market changes, and there has been an increase in complaints of stress and anxiety.
In fact, the American business journal Harvard Business Review has seen an explosive increase in articles on organizational psychology and mind management before and after COVID-19.

A recent leadership study found that while before the pandemic, employees preferred leaders who empathized with their struggles, after the pandemic, they now much more prefer leaders who manage their emotions well.
In unstable situations like a pandemic, the ability of leaders to understand and manage their emotions has become crucial.
This book emphasizes the power of "introspection" as a crucial skill for leaders in these uncertain times.
Looking into your heart means becoming aware of who you want to be, what you're good at, and what you lack, while simultaneously reflecting on how you can complement your vulnerabilities through collaboration.
Many leaders in Korean society are so busy with work and performance pressures that they fail to take care of their own minds.
However, leaders who are ahead of the curve have long recognized the importance of mental management and are pursuing inner growth through deep reflection.
In this book, the two authors, who have collaborated with top leaders, offer solutions on how leaders can manage their mental health and lead their organizations to sustainable growth.


* “Successful leaders grow along similar paths.”
Why leaders with high self-awareness achieve high performance

Leaders who solve their own problems and lead them to success have something in common.
After analyzing the growth paths of numerous leaders, the two authors systematized their paths to success and established a seven-step growth strategy for leaders.


Step 1: Self-Awareness: "Can I look at myself objectively?"
Step 2: Internal Acceptance: "How will I deal with negative evaluations?"
Step 3: Change Your Perspective: "Can You Avoid Being Swayed by Minor Situations?"
Step 4: Overcoming Limitations: "How to Adapt to People"
Step 5: Resilience: "Are you prone to excessive self-criticism?"
Step 6: Sustainability: "Have you plateaued after a quick success?"
Step 7: Self-Boundaries: "How to Work with Subordinates"
This book examines the challenges faced in organizational life through the "7 Stages of Leader Growth" and proposes solutions for each, drawing on the insights of leadership experts and psychiatrists.
After completing each step, you can self-assess your leadership skills.

The growth of a leader has many similarities to the epic of a hero.
After leaving home, the hero faces a period of harsh trials on the verge of success.
Leaders, too, inevitably go through a process of trials and training in the face of dramatic growth.
When your team's performance doesn't improve no matter how hard you try, when your relationships with team members deteriorate and you're losing confidence, when you're frustrated by unexpected limitations, you can embark on the path to becoming a true leader by not giving up and challenging yourself to grow to the next level.
Following the seven stages of leadership growth presented in this book will be a journey toward creating your own path to success.

* “People have psychological patterns that cause them to stumble at the same point over and over again.”
Clear solutions for everything from excessive perfectionism to interpersonal problems, feedback for underperformers, and burnout syndrome.

There are leaders who complain of suffering from excessive perfectionism, saying, “I feel like I’ll fall apart if I make even the smallest mistake” (Case in Chapter 7).
The biggest cause of this suffering is ‘anxiety.’
Perfectionism is pursued defensively because of the anxiety that failure to satisfy others could lead to serious problems.
However, in the unpredictable VUCA era (an acronym for Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity), being meticulous and thorough can actually be detrimental.
This is because the ability to flexibly adapt to rapid changes and creatively solve problems has become more important than paying close attention to details.
The two authors advise perfectionist leaders to understand that their anxiety is excessive worry and focus on completing tasks on time.
The standard of perfection varies from person to person and from situation to situation.
Because producing flawless results is an unrealistic goal to begin with, you need to have the mental space to objectively judge that even reaching 80 percent of your standards is a "success."
There are leaders whose mentality is shaken even by minor situations (Case in Chapter 5).
The two authors advise leaders to "separate the emotional response from the given situation" in response to the leader's concern that "the CEO walked out with a serious expression in the middle of an important presentation, and I completely ruined the presentation because I thought, 'Did my presentation sound weird?'"
To have a mature mentality, you must be able to separate the problematic situation from your emotional response to that situation and look at it objectively.
When similar problematic situations recur, it can be helpful to create your own 'ritual', such as exercising or taking a walk, to help you calm down from the overly gloomy emotional state and get away from the situation.
In addition, we share the challenges faced by real leaders, including startup CEOs who feel defeated by rejection, leaders who feel stagnant after a single success, team leaders who work with underperforming team members who don't respond to feedback, and executives who struggle with leadership due to introversion, along with the most realistic and professional solutions to these challenges.


* “In the end, the leader who knows the heart wins.”
― Mental leadership that protects me and grows the organization

There are leaders who achieve quick success through outstanding skills, but then feel empty or stagnant.
This is called the 'plateau effect', and when you reach a plateau, it's important to change your perspective and set new goals.
At this time, it is better to set your own long-term vision rather than a short-term achievable goal.
Leaders must not be satisfied with their own success, but must also play a role in expanding it into the success of the organization.
Those who have accumulated personal success but are unable to organize it are bound to have limited leadership potential.
Understanding the people in your network and connecting them to your vision and goals is a crucial step toward expanding your influence and expanding your experience of success as a leader.
We can see leaders in successful companies failing to sustain success and suddenly falling from grace due to problems such as abusive language and bullying.
The two authors emphasize 'self-vigilance', which means maintaining a humble attitude and guarding against arrogance even after reaching the heights of success.
Leaders must create channels through which they can hear any feedback without filtering, and they warn that the moment they only listen to flattery and pleasant words, their downfall begins.
The era of standardization is coming to an end, and organizations are rapidly transforming toward a direction that allows for the expression of innate human creativity and emotions.
In this age of change, the secret to leaders who achieve outstanding results is their 'mentality.'
An organization comes to life only when its leaders deeply understand themselves and run the organization based on a mature mentality.
This book provides valuable insights not only for leaders but also for future leaders who work with them, enabling them to move beyond one-time success to sustainable success through continuous self-reflection.
As KAITS President Lee Kwang-hyung recommends, “This book will serve as a true mentor to leaders in this era who desperately need a spiritual mentor,” this book will serve as the ultimate guide for leaders who struggle and fiercely lead their organizations in a chaotic and complex environment.