Johari Window Model

Updated on: 07 July 2025 | 8 min read

Exploring the Johari Window Model?

Johari Window Template

AI Johari Window Template

Strong teams are built on trust, self-awareness, and clear communication. The Johari Window model is a powerful tool that helps individuals and teams better understand themselves and each other to improve collaboration. In this guide, we’ll explore how using the Johari Window theory can foster trust, enhance communication, and support personal and team growth.

What Is the Johari Window?

The Johari Window is a psychological model developed by Joseph Luft and Harrington Ingham in 1955 to improve self-awareness and interpersonal understanding. It helps individuals explore how they see themselves versus how others perceive them, making it a valuable tool in personal development, team building, and organizational growth.

The Johari Window theory divides awareness into four quadrants: Open Area, Blind Spot, Hidden Area, and Unknown Area. Through self-disclosure and feedback, individuals can expand their Open Area, strengthening trust and communication.

What Are the 4 Quadrants of Johari Window?

The Johari Window model is divided into four distinct quadrants—Open, Blind Spot, Hidden, and Unknown—each representing different aspects of self-awareness and perception.

Johari Window Quadrant 1 - Open Self

The Open Self quadrant includes everything both you and others know about you—like your skills, behaviors, experiences, and feelings. It’s the foundation of trust and strong team relationships. The more this area grows, the easier it is to communicate and collaborate effectively.

To expand the Open Self quadrant:

Share information openly – Talk about your role, experiences, and strengths during team interactions.
Encourage open communication – Make it easy for everyone to express ideas and concerns.
Create a safe, inclusive environment – When people feel respected, they’re more willing to share.
Hold regular feedback sessions – Honest, constructive feedback helps uncover shared understanding.

Expanding this quadrant builds transparency, reduces misunderstandings, and leads to better teamwork.

The Blind Spot includes things others notice about us—but we don’t see ourselves. This might be a habit, tone, or attitude that’s clear to your team but invisible to you. If left unaddressed, blind spots can hurt communication and slow down progress.

Here’s how to reduce blind spots:

Encourage honest feedback – Create a space where feedback is welcomed and seen as helpful, not critical.
Keep it judgment-free – Make sure feedback is shared with care and a focus on growth.
Ask for feedback regularly – Don’t wait for reviews—check in often to learn how others see you.
Reflect and adjust – Take what you hear seriously, and look for ways to grow from it.

Tackling blind spots helps build stronger connections, clears up misunderstandings, and improves how teams work together.

Johari Window Quadrant 3: Hidden Self

The Hidden Self includes things you know about yourself but choose not to share with others. This might be personal beliefs, feelings, fears, or experiences that you keep private.

Some key examples:

Personal info – Preferences or values you feel aren’t relevant to share at work.
Sensitive topics – Emotions, fears, or past experiences that might affect how you behave.
Privacy vs. usefulness – It’s important to know what’s okay to keep private and what, if shared, could help the team understand you better.

Why hiding too much can be a problem:

Miscommunication – Without full context, others may misunderstand your actions.
Trust issues – Holding back can make teammates feel left out or unsure of your intentions.
Lower team performance – Teams work best when important information is shared openly.

Finding the right balance between privacy and openness helps build trust and strengthens teamwork.

Johari Window Quadrant 4: Unknown Area

The Unknown Area covers parts of yourself that neither you nor others know. These hidden factors can quietly influence your behavior.

They include:

Hidden talents you haven’t discovered yet
Habits shaped by past experiences without your awareness
Deep emotions that affect how you react

How to explore this area:

Self-reflection: Take time to think deeply and try new things to uncover hidden strengths.
Feedback from others: Listen to what others notice about you that you might miss.
Team activities: Group work can reveal hidden skills and behaviors.
Professional support: Sometimes coaching or counseling helps uncover deeper, unconscious issues.

Exploring the Unknown Area can open the door to personal growth and new possibilities.

How to Use the Johari Window Model

Step 1: Identify Personal Characteristics

The first step in using the Johari Window model is self-assessment. Reflect on your own behaviors, attitudes, and skills, and consider how you are perceived by others.

Step 2: Draw Diagram and Fill Quadrants

Create the Johari Window using a template to map out the four quadrants. Populate each area with information based on self-assessment and feedback from others.

Step 3: Define Your Goal

Set clear objectives for what you want to achieve with the Johari Window model, such as improving communication, increasing self-awareness, or building trust within the team.

Step 4: Ask for Feedback

Engage team members in providing honest and constructive feedback. Regularly review and update the Johari Window based on new insights and ongoing feedback.

Step 5: Using Creately to Implement the Johari Window Model

Use Creately’s drag-and-drop tools to create and customize your Johari Window diagram. Organize traits with sticky notes and color-coded labels on an infinite canvas. Creately AI helps suggest traits and spot patterns, speeding up analysis. Add comments and notes for context, then export or present your diagram with ease.

Johari Window Templates to Get a Headstart

Johari Window Template

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AI Johari Window Template

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Personal Development Johari Window

Resources

Kapur, R. (2023). Understanding the Relevance of Johari Window. [online] Research Gate. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/376958357_Understanding_the_Relevance_of_Johari_Window.

‌Swart, J. (2022). The Johari Window as a Coaching Tool to Create Awareness. [online] ResearchGate. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/365374732_The_Johari_Window_as_a_Coaching_Tool_to_Create_Awareness.

‌Esposito, R.P., Mcadoo, H. and Scher, L. (1978). The Johari Window Test: a Research Note. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, [online] 18(1), pp.79–81. doi:https://doi.org/10.1177/002216787801800113.

FAQs About the Johari Window Model

What are the main goals of the Johari Window model?

The Johari Window model aims to build trust, improve self-awareness, and enhance communication within teams. By encouraging open sharing and feedback, it helps individuals expand their Open Area, uncover blind spots, and better understand themselves and others. This leads to stronger collaboration and fewer misunderstandings.

What is the history of Johari Window model?

The Johari Window model was created in 1955 by psychologists Joseph Luft and Harrington Ingham. The name “Johari” comes from combining their first names. It was originally developed as a tool to help people better understand their relationships with themselves and others, and has since become widely used in psychology, coaching, education, and team development.

When to use the Johari window?

The Johari Window is most useful during team-building exercises, leadership development programs, coaching sessions, or any situation where improving self-awareness and communication is a goal. It’s especially effective when honest feedback and open sharing can enhance collaboration and trust.

What are the benefits of Johari Window?

Using the Johari Window model can lead to greater self-awareness, stronger relationships, and more effective teamwork. It helps uncover blind spots, encourages open communication, builds trust, and supports personal and professional growth by revealing hidden strengths and areas for improvement.

How does the Johari window work?

The Johari Window theory divides self-awareness into four areas: Open, Blind Spot, Hidden, and Unknown. By sharing personal insights and receiving feedback, individuals can expand their Open Area—what’s known to both self and others—leading to better understanding and improved group dynamics.

Who can use the Joahry Window model?

Anyone can use the Johari Window model—individuals, teams, leaders, educators, therapists, or coaches. It’s a flexible tool that works well in both personal and professional settings where self-reflection and communication are key to growth and connection.

What are the 56 adjectives of the Johari Window?

The 56 adjectives of the Johari Window are descriptive traits used in the original model to help individuals select words they believe describe themselves. Others also choose from the same list to describe the individual, helping reveal overlaps and gaps in perception. These adjectives include terms like adaptable, brave, calm, dependable, kind, mature, sensible, and trustworthy. The selections help populate the four quadrants—especially the Open and Blind Spot areas.

How to reduce blind spots in the Johari Window?

To reduce blind spots in the Johari Window, encourage honest and regular feedback from others. Create a safe, judgment-free environment where team members feel comfortable sharing observations. Ask for input proactively, reflect on what’s shared, and be open to making adjustments. Over time, this feedback expands your Open Area and shrinks the Blind Spot, leading to stronger communication and trust.

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Author

Chiraag George Communication Specialist

Chiraag George is a communication specialist here at Creately. He is a marketing junkie that is fascinated by how brands occupy consumer mind space. A lover of all things tech, he writes a lot about the intersection of technology, branding and culture at large.