Life Learning: Becoming a Leader - Assignment Example

Life Learning: Becoming a Leader Life Learning: Becoming a Leader Personal growth and effectiveness in leadership are two interrelated concepts in the contemporary society. Leadership is a gradual process that one gains over a lifetime of activities and hard work. It does not come with age, because even young people who are class prefects in school are on the path to become great leaders. By definition, leadership is not just a title on a business card that defines a person’s success. Leadership is a process in which a person actualizes a goal or a vision into reality. Dreamers and entrepreneurs are separated based on the successful actualization of a dream. Even so, there are some lessons and experiences that one must undergo before becoming a leader. Based on the Kolb-Fry model, one has to undergo an effective learning process that sees one go through the stages of a concrete experience, observation and reflection of the experience, analysis and conclusion, which eventually results in new experiences. Through such experiences, undergoes enough tests to gain leadership traits. While leadership may be inbuilt, at times it involves intensive training before one acquires desired leadership qualities. Through training, one understands the need to inspire and empower others. This lies under psychological leadership in which a person reads the psychology of followers and understands exactly how to direct them to realize organizational objectives. The number of natural born leaders is very few in the current society. I have experienced several leadership mishaps in the organizations I have worked in over the years. To enhance effectiveness in leadership, it is essential for one to train them in lieu to the setting they find themselves at that time. Great leadership is about one’s actions, and not about what they know about leadership. Naturally, I am an outgoing, generous, and carefree person. I am smart can learn anything fast, and have a great memory. I have always had a lot of friends at home, school and work. I have always been a leader and I understand how to take on a task and complete with quality. People look up to me at my workplace, and I have been the motivator in the departments I have worked at. Leadership training is at times ineffective. Naturally, leaders are not trained; they are developed. I learnt that it is nearly impossible for a person to tell another on how to lead. Developing a leader is easier and much more effective than training a leader. That is the reason as to why most leadership training programs are ineffective. Sometimes one is just not born to be a leader, and forcing them into programs may be detrimental to both them, and the people that they will lead in future. Training is not as productive as people think it is because it does not develop the ‘inside’ leader in a person. It merely equips one with the skills to offer guidance and direction. In addition, it emphasizes on the need for processes and systems in the leadership process. This is detrimental because it may fail to teach one to adapt to different leadership settings. In today’s multicultural and dynamic society, there is the possibility of meeting people from different backgrounds, cultures, and level of understanding. As a result, although one may have adequate training on the leadership process and techniques, they may encounter a new situation in which they do not know how to handle a situation. There are some basic things I have learnt about leadership that have helped me hone my leadership skills. Firstly, it is necessary to maintain credibility with people. Credibility ensures that followers believe in a person and believe what they say. Without credibility, followers may lack faith in a person and see them as distrustful. For instance, it is essential to keep promises, even simple ones like buying colleagues lunch. Although it is often a challenge to keep promises and maintain credibility, credibility is one of the qualities that confirm great leadership. At a personal level, it makes one a better person, while on a professional level, it enhance trustworthiness and improves interpersonal relationships in a work place. Secondly, it is essential to maintain proper dressing and etiquette that reflects a leader. In the contemporary society, one is often judged by their dressing, and it is necessary that followers understand a person’s seriousness based on their outlook. Based on my aspirations and image, I have always desired to be seen as serious person whose dressing is a source of motivation for success. Although casualness is necessary at times, for instance, during weekends, business suits make one appear ambitious and focused. The name ‘business suits’ reflect business, and focus in one’s activities. This image often transmits to other employees, and creates a level of seriousness at the workplace. It is easy for a leader to enforce a particular mode of dressing at work, only if they dress appropriately. The reverse is true, as inappropriate dressing creates a carefree culture in an organization. Thirdly, to become a perfect leader, ne has to maintain good relationships with everyone in the team. The current dynamic work setting makes one meet all forms of characters, some of whom may be displeased with aggressive leadership styles. As a leader, one has to ensure that everyone receives equal treatment irrespective of his or her background or societal standing. A good leader should treat supervisors and janitors with equal measure of respect. The way a leader treats and maintains good relationships determines the relationship that employees have amongst themselves. Becoming a leader involves ensuring that all employees are contented at the workplace and they all feel useful and part of the team. For instance, a simple gesture of greeting in the morning and evening creates a friendly atmosphere in the workplace. Fourthly, it is essential to show a level of commitment to one’s personal growth. A business is only successful if one is committed to personal, spiritual, and professional growth. Professional growth involves one realizing that learning does not end. It is essential to do refresher courses that advance and develops one’s subject of mastery. For instance, if one is at a masters’ level of learning, he/she can enroll for doctoral studies to boost their level of education. This signifies a level of commitment to growth, and naturally transmits to employees. As one grows, the team also grows, because naturally, followers emulate a leader. Another way of growing is developing a reading culture, or research-based activities. It is always refreshing to enjoy a good read, or learn new information and share it with colleagues. This confirms that becoming a leader involves a series of steps that may take time to develop. I learned Microsoft access 2013 at work, and currently working at accepting a new quality assurance position soon. Coupled with my leadership proficiency, I believe that I will be able to serve in the quality assurance position with diligence. Leadership involves having goals and a strategy. It is easy to succeed when one knows where they are going, and for that reason, I have set up some personal goals. Firstly, I plan to improve my health and wealth status. I plan to maintain a healthy diet and avoid junk food, in addition to going to the gym. As well, I plan to enhance my level of responsibility at a personal level and make service an essential part of everyday life. Responsibility is essential because it enhances positive relationships with others at both a personal and a professional level. I intend to enhance my quality of life through following my childhood dream to become a billionaire. I will do this through working on my talents in various fields, and enhancing an identity that enables me to discover other talents. This personal development is also useful at the professional level because it can enable me to help in assessment systems what require my input an individual level. Lastly, and most importantly, I learnt the need to receive criticism from employees and other colleagues at work. Feedback should not be necessarily taken as criticism, and at the same time, criticism should not be considered as negative feedback. Becoming a leader involves one having the latency to appreciate feedback from others and use it in a constructive manner to better oneself to become a better leader. For instance, if a colleague or employee highlights a challenge in effective communication, a leader should take it positively and devise strategies on bettering the way he/she communicates. In the end, such actions train a person to become a better and mature leader. I have accomplished several tasks that prepare me to become an effective leader. Although I have not yet graduated from college, there are several leadership positions that I have held, that have been useful in my professional development. Besides, my interests in several activities such as graphic and web design means that I interact with several people, who have different levels of experiences. The need for leadership at times springs out of nowhere, and one if forced to demonstrate leadership qualities. There are times when there is no elected or nominated leader in a group, but the group needs guidance. In such cases, I have been able to offer my guidance informally, and eventually realize that I have inborn leadership traits. At a professional level, I attend faculty development seminars and coordinate with my department chair faculty development series. Faculty development seminars have been integral in the development of my leadership skills. In such seminars, we are taught the need to respect others to enhance teamwork. Through this insight, I wish to serve in university committees and even vie for student leadership positions. I believe this will help me in my professional field and aid in development of my confidence, leadership skills, and cooperation with students and colleagues. In addition, it is also beneficial for my future as I intend to start my own company and lead employees into success. I also have hobbies and talents that augment my desire to demonstrate leadership. For instance, I love photography and have freelanced at work on a few projects with corporate photo shoots. I really want to do something with my photography, Photoshop, and light room skills. Someday I would like to own my own design company. In this company, I would like to lead people to success and develop a profitable business. I love digital art and photography. Working from the age of fourteen helped me know responsibility and become the man I am today. The ability to coordinate my skills from an early age put me in a suitable position to develop early leadership skills. I make goals for myself, and when I achieve them, I set them higher and keep pushing. Spiritual Most leaders have a personal relationship with a divine being, or a religious inclination that serves as a source of inspiration. Spiritually, I intend to improve my relationship with God. A spiritual conscious makes one want to become a better person. After serving a mission in school, I learnt the value of unselfishness and being available for other people when they are in need. This is transferable to leadership qualities because a good leader always has the best interests for a team. It is not always just about personal achievement based on selfish interests. The abundant blessings I have in life allow me to appreciate other people and understand their challenges. Through observation of biblical teachings, I plan to engage in volunteering services in both church and schoolwork. This spiritual attachment is bound to help me in my professional goals in terms of humility and responsibility. A positive working environment is only achievable through maintenance of positive relationships with fellow employees. In lieu to my preparation to becoming a better leader, I got my GED in 2004 went to the Art institute in Dallas TX for 2 years for visual communications, but stopped going when my mom got ill. Went to Westwood college in Dallas TX for graphic design for a year, but ended it when I found out they are not an accredited school and my credits would not transfer. I finally found Letourneau University from a coworker at work telling me about it. I am going for my bachelors in business management, but also want to get back into graphic and web design after accepting my diploma. I thought an art degree needed something I could fall back on, so going for business since I seem to be good at it in my career. I currently pursue a Bachelor of Arts, Business Management, Letourneau University, Longview, TX, and hopes to graduate in fall 2015. At a professional level, I have been able to assert the concrete experience of leadership qualities. Currently, I am a service and administrative professional with more than 10 years of experience leading teams and providing exceptional customer service to clients. I am dedicated to transitioning knowledge and skills from previous experience to build a solid career in the auto finance field. I worked at LA QUINTA, Dallas, TX, from 2002 to 2007, as a front office manager, where I conducted administrative operations, served as first point of contact for all guests, and attended customer phone calls to make room reservations. In addition, I coordinated bookings for conventions, tours, and groups of 50+ people, and collected payments on past due accounts, and issued payments to vendors as necessary. I later joined A TOUCH OF CLASS, Grand Prairie, TX, from 2007 to 2009, as a housekeeping supervisor, in which he managed 24 apartments and 12 housekeepers. The management of the housekeepers taught me on the need to manage time and meet deadlines. Clients always want to enter and leave rooms at their own timing, despite the policies of a hotel. In the end, as a leader one must be flexible in terms of instructions, and understand the varied needs of different visitors, who may interfere with the normal functioning or schedule at work. I addressed errors and shadowed housekeeper during correction, finished make-readies, and performed service follow-up evaluations to ensure customer satisfaction. My experience in leadership goes further than that, as it extends to other organizations. From 2009-2010, I worked at THE CMI GROUP, Carrollton, TX, as a CRC- First Party Agent, where he was nominated to represent agency for corporate demonstrations and maintained customer service satisfaction score of 100% throughout employment. While in the company, I contacted customers on behalf of client to collect past due balances, attended client calls that have been escalated to authorize extended payment arrangements, and informed clients on hard disconnects, and soft interrupts of services to retrieve payment. I successfully maintained customer service satisfaction score of 100% throughout employment. Finally, I joined NMAC, Irving, TX, where he has worked as a transaction processor since 2010 to present. My duties at NMAC included processing customer payoff checks and electronic payoffs for lease accounts, researching auction and second-sale buybacks to determine account action for original value, issuing charge-off reversals, authorizing overpayment refunds on retail accounts. In addition, I analyzed and corrected account errors to clear discrepancies on reconciliation reports, and coordinating Leader Cast leadership seminar for more than 150 senior leads and managers, and served as the primary trainer for the Payoff & Financial Department. I successfully increased the average monthly productivity of 8200 to exceed department standard of 7900. As seen above, leadership involves a cyclic process in which a person gains new experiences or undergoes the same experiences. The new experiences provide a baseline on actions and prepare one to understand the functioning of the dynamic society. After gaining an understanding of the concept of leadership, I made comparisons with other experiences and determined inconsistencies that exist in different scenarios. Through this, I gained new ideas and modified some of my existing concepts on leadership. Finally, through my several work experiences outlined above, I applied my leadership skills to the world around me and saw positive experiences. Read More