24 Feb 2025
Using Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle to Strengthen Leadership
As leaders, we’re often caught in a whirlwind of daily tasks, focusing on getting things done efficiently. We spend most of our time performing—meeting goals, driving results, and making decisions. While performance is vital to success, it can sometimes hold us back from growing as leaders and creating sustainable change in our teams.
Reflection is one of the most powerful tools available for any leader looking to grow, improve, and adapt.
It allows leaders to gain insights into their experiences, pinpoint areas for growth, and develop a more mindful approach to leadership.
One of the most effective frameworks to help leaders engage in deep reflection is Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle.
Developed by Graham Gibbs in 1988, this reflective cycle encourages a structured approach to thinking about experiences and learning from them, promoting continuous improvement.
While it was originally designed for use in educational settings, its applicability to leadership development is undeniable.
Firstly, let’s look at the six stages of Gibb’s Reflective Cycle.
- Description: What happened? Begin by providing a clear and concise description of the situation or event. As a leader, this could be a team meeting, a decision you made, or a challenge you encountered with a colleague. Be specific and objective in your assessment, avoiding unnecessary opinions at this stage.
- Feelings: What were you thinking and feeling? Reflect on the emotional side of the situation. How did you feel during the event? Were you nervous, excited, frustrated, or motivated? Recognising your emotions can help you identify biases and personal triggers that influence your leadership style.
- Evaluation: What went well and what didn’t? Evaluate the situation by considering the positives and negatives. What worked and why? What didn’t work as expected? This step allows you to assess the effectiveness of your actions, identify areas for improvement, and understand the impact of your decisions.
- Analysis: Why did things happen the way they did? Dig deeper into the underlying reasons behind the outcomes. What factors contributed to the success or failure of the situation? By analyzing the root causes, you gain a clearer understanding of your leadership and can pinpoint specific areas for development.
- Conclusion: What else could you have done? From the insights gathered in the previous stages, reflect on what you could have done differently. What alternatives could you have considered? This step encourages leaders to challenge their own thinking and open themselves to new approaches.
- Action Plan: What will you do next time? Finally, create a concrete action plan. Based on the reflection, set specific goals for how you will approach similar situations in the future. This step ensures that reflection leads to tangible growth and improvement, rather than just insightful thinking.
By consistently applying Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle, leaders can enable continuous improvement in their approach to leadership.
The process encourages self-awareness and emotional intelligence, crucial traits for effective leadership.
We have to remember that leadership is a dynamic, evolving journey.
By making reflection a part of your routine, you equip yourself with the tools to grow both personally and professionally.
Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle offers a structured, actionable framework for leaders to think critically about their experiences, identify areas for improvement, and build better habits for success.
If you’re looking to enhance your leadership effectiveness and develop stronger teams, start integrating Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle into your practice today. The act of reflection will not only make you a better leader, but it will also foster a more resilient and adaptive mindset.