Leadership Style Getting the work done - Term Paper Example

“Leadership Style” Getting the work done! By 10 November Leadership Style – Getting the work done! Many argue that leadership is an inborn trait and leaders are born the way they are. I believe that leadership is a study and application of set of theories and proven principles. It is not a genetic capability but a quality acquired through a variety of experience and biological background. The world has seen great leaders in all fields of life each one having a style and a cognitive process of their own.

But researches and studies have shown links between leaders and their behaviours and the have categorized these styles into different labels. “Leadership style is the combination of traits, skills and behaviours leaders use as they interact with the followers.” (Lussier and Archua, 2010) The two extremes of leadership style are the autocratic style and the democratic style and the remaining leadership styles like paternalistic, participative, delegative lie between these styles. I may not be a great leader but I have my unique style of leading.

As studies have shown that leadership is more behavioural than trait oriented and that behaviour can be learned as opposed to traits that are simply acquired. Various aspects of my life and the numerous experiences have moulded me into the kind of leader I am and the qualities that I posses as a leader. The leadership style I use is more situational based rather than trait or behaviour based. I modify my style according to the demand of the situation. Generally my traits and my behaviour take me towards the right hand side of the style continuum and I mostly work between the participative and delegative style of leadership.

“The suitability of a person’s leadership style is determined by whether the situation is favourable or unfavourable to the leader.” (Daft and Marcic. 2011) My philosophy for my role as a leader is of guiding people and not commanding them. I believe that valuing people and their emotions will give results straight from the heart and will have a long term effect on everyone involved in the activity. I was once a part of the rescue management team for dealing with an adversity that resulted as fire broke down in a nearby restaurant.

In this crises situation I lead through management by example, motivating my team that it is not too late and much can be done to save the destruction. Our team worked with the fire fighters and under my guidance and high moral we defeated the fire and won hearts and lives of many around us. The use of leading by example is mostly result oriented and in a crises situation helps to instigate peoples' views and action. In my view a leader should have the power to step forward and this power has to come from deep inside in order for the followers to believe in it.

A leader should be confident enough to know what is best for the interest of the whole rather than the part and should align the thoughts and actions of his followers along with his own. When interning for an organization I was given the task of guiding a new intern and assign him the appropriate work load. After giving him the necessary directions and work load, I noticed that he was willing and motivated but unable to cope up or perform the work. So I decided to intervene showing him how the work is done, designing a guide that would help the fresh entrant to perform a more focused level of activity and eventually get the work done.

I kept on monitoring his performance frequently and praising the sincere efforts that he was putting in the work assigned. In this way I managed to motivate and get the new entrant familiar with the organization. I helped him achieve his goal of settling in the organization and this in turn helped me in developing a greater desire to become a successful leader and smoothly address the situations and scenarios faced. A very interesting task that took my leadership to a new level altogether was when I was assigned to work with a group of students who showed a recent drop in their grades and level of motivation.

This situation called for the path-goal clarifying behaviour in which the students had to be told that grades and motivation are pre-requisite of their future success and are the parts and parcels of a successful life. The realization of the long term effects of a goal achievement becomes important in situations like these. I used assertive communication style and an inspiration appeal to motivate the students. I tried to motivate them with examples from my experiences as a student. Explaining them and setting their proper study hours both at school and at home and giving clear and concrete tasks helped the student.

Positive reinforcement in terms of additional marks for completing the task on time etc., instead of negative marking and venalities motivated the students to do their best. The entire group of students showed great improvement in their grades and their overall approach to studies and life at the end of the academic year. Therefore I believe that the most important task of the leader in to motivate his followers. Leadership is a state of mind, to lead is a passion not a task and I hold this passion very close to my heart.

I think that in today’s fast paced world, getting the work done in a timely manner is very important in order to take lead in the race of life. For me getting the work done is through guiding the people and not commanding them. With intelligence, emotional support, necessary interventions and positive reinforcement I have always aced through the difficult situations faced by me as a leader. References: Lussier, R. N., & Archua, R. F. (2010). Leadership: Theory, application and skill development. (4 ed., pp. 70-71). Mason: South Western Cengage Learning. Daft, R. L.

, & Marcic, D. (2011). Understanding management. (7 ed., pp. 382-384). Mason: South-Western Cengage Learning