Can you define these 5 common words?
Written, spoken, or signed, we use words to communicate. We tend to use words we are familiar with more frequently, but it can be tricky to define these common terms. Taking time to study the definition of words is a good exercise to practice occasionally. So, let’s look at some words commonly used words in a personal growth, business, or organizational setting. The formal definitions for these words were all obtained through Bing and the Oxford Dictionary. I’ve picked these five words because knowing them, and their definition, is very helpful to being a good leader, having a strong organization, and being successful.
Let’s start with insight: “the capacity to gain an accurate and deep intuitive understanding of a person or thing.” This is a great place to begin because having insight, this capacity for understanding, is a great advantage both in business and for your personal growth. It separates you and your company from others that are just going through the motions, repeating the same behaviors without thought or analysis. Without insight you have ignorance, and many instances, ignorance is costly.
So, use your insight for our next word, introspection: “the examination or observation of one's own mental and emotional processes.” This is a wonderful word and very helpful growth tool. Examine your strengths and weaknesses, styles, preferences, and triggers. Knowing your processes can be so helpful when interacting with others. Take some time to recognize what you’ve achieved and how you like to celebrate your success. Also take some time to think about what obstacles you are facing and what methods you are comfortable with for addressing them.
Next is assessment, and I think this definition is so beautiful. Assessment is “the evaluation or estimation of the nature, quality, or ability of someone or something.” Kind of like introspection, in that you are evaluating, but this time it not solely an internal exercise. Assessment is how we uncover the culture and functions of organizations, teams, and groups. Having insight into these categories helps understand the current state of a business, the impact of certain leadership styles, and the areas which have the most potential for growth.
After introspection and assessment, I picked the word innovate. To innovate is to “make changes in something established, especially by introducing new methods, ideas, or products.” If you have a clear picture of your processes and the culture of your organization you can innovate to strengthen weak areas, make processes smoother, maybe invent new processes all together. To do that might require a bit of our last word for this exercise.
Training: “the action of teaching a person or animal a particular skill or type of behavior.” Notice here that the skill or behavior doesn’t have to be new. In some cases, honing strengths can be just as helpful as learning a new one. I often say that no matter your expertise in a topic, there is always something to learn. Training will have the most impact if it targets the right areas. Using insight to gain understanding of the current state and through introspection and assessment you can pick training topics and focus efforts on innovating to make the changes you want to see, a reality.
Sources: Oxford Dictionary