Leadership Awareness: The Skill Every Effective Leader Has (And Most Overlook)
- Jamal Hegwood
- Jun 11
- 3 min read
What separates a good leader from an effective one? It’s not charisma. It’s not confidence. It’s not even experience. It’s awareness.
The best leaders don’t just do, they discern. They understand not only what needs to be done, but also how they naturally lead, how others experience that leadership, and how to adjust when needed.
That’s what leadership awareness is, and it's the foundation of every strong team, every healthy culture, and every mission that actually goes somewhere.
But here's the truth most leaders don’t realize:
You can’t grow what you won’t name.
That’s why we created the Effective Leadership Test (ELT); to help leaders move beyond surface-level feedback and into deep, strategic awareness.
Why Leadership Awareness Matters
Leadership awareness isn’t about being perfect, it’s about being present, to your tendencies, your blind spots, your team, and your impact.
When a leader lacks awareness:
They often confuse control for clarity
They repeat the same patterns with different people
They struggle to understand why their team isn't responding the way they expect
But when a leader is aware:
They lead with intention, not assumption
They leverage their strengths without overusing them
They position others with confidence and humility
In short, they don’t just lead harder; they lead smarter.
Insights from the ELT: What We’ve Learned About Awareness
After hundreds of assessments across industries and ministry spaces, here are some key findings from the ELT:
1. Most leaders have no idea what their natural leadership edge is.
Many default to what they’ve seen modeled or what feels safest. The ELT helps reveal your true edge! The leadership strength you’re naturally wired to lead with.
Our five core edges are:
Vision – Big-picture thinkers who inspire others forward
Empathy – People-first leaders who build trust and connection
Structure – Detail-oriented leaders who create stability and results
Democracy – Inclusive leaders who empower collaboration and shared input
Empowerment – Laid-back leaders who give others room to own the process
Most people lead from one primary edge and may blend in a secondary. Knowing your edge changes how you communicate, make decisions, and manage conflict.
2. Awareness shifts everything, but only if you act on it.
Taking the test is one step. But the transformation happens when leaders reflect, adapt, and apply what they’ve learned. Awareness should lead to alignment.
3. Awareness strengthens culture.
Teams that understand their leader’s edge, and their own, experience less tension, clearer expectations, and greater trust. Why? Because clarity removes confusion.
What It Looks Like in Real Life
Let’s say you have a leader with a strong Vision edge. They’re great at seeing the future and rallying people toward big ideas. But without awareness, they might unintentionally bulldoze through details or neglect team feedback. Once that leader knows their edge, they can bring in team members who complement their blind spots and lead with far more balance.
Or imagine a leader with a Structure edge who values precision, process, and results. If they’re not aware of their tendencies, they may come across as rigid or unapproachable. But with awareness, they can soften their delivery, build relational equity, and gain the team’s trust without sacrificing excellence.
That’s the power of self-awareness. It allows you to stay yourself, but lead with more wisdom.
Where Do You Begin?
Right here.If you’ve never taken time to truly reflect on how you lead and how others experience that leadership, this is your moment.
👉🏽 Take the Effective Leadership Test (ELT). It’s quick, insightful, and designed to help you unlock your leadership edge, understand your current level, and identify practical ways to grow from where you are.
Because once you know your edge, you can sharpen it. And when you lead with awareness, everything gets better: your decisions, your relationships, your outcomes, and your confidence.
You don’t have to change who you are to lead well.
But you do need to understand who you are.
Awareness is the key to effectiveness. And effectiveness is the difference between leaders who try hard and leaders who actually lead well.
Let’s be the kind of leaders who know ourselves, grow ourselves, and lead others with intention.
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