Oprah Winfrey: A Great Leader - Essay Example

Oprah Winfrey: A Great LeaderOprah Winfrey is not a politician but I adore her as a great leader. In most cases, politicians are often treated with great esteem by virtue of being great orators but in this case, I think Oprah is just a unique leader. Though I have never met this icon, I am strongly convinced that she has maximised her skills/traits to achieve great leadership. During her childhood, she experienced negative consequences like child sexual abuse and she learned a great lesson from this experienced.

Instead of being vengeful about the experienced, she took it upon herself that she should take a leading role in fighting this problem. She used every opportunity to speak against child abuse and she utilised her communication skills to charm the targeted audiences so that they could share the same vision with her. To date, Oprah has risen through the ranks to become a renowned leader across the globe and is well known for her humanitarian assistance to the less privileged people particularly orphaned girls and has opened schools to cater for such children in different parts of the globe.

She is also known in the media circles as a force to reckon with as a result of the fact that her work has benefited a lot of people. She flourished under difficult conditions to become a star in the media industry and she now owns a production company and is the first African American woman to become a billionaire (Academy of Achievement, 2014). She is also credited for popular talk shows that have significantly changed the lives of many people. Oprah is a charismatic leader and she appeals to the interests of all people regardless of their race, creed, poetical affiliation or religion.

Today, “She appears on every list of the world's leading opinion-makers, and has been rightly called "the most powerful woman in the world,” (Academy of Achievement, 2014). She has leveraged her leadership skills through focusing on issues of importance to different human beings. I have learned that respect in society is earned and to become a great leader, you should strive to be exemplary.The other person I have met who has been of significant influence in my life is my English tutor. Apart from being a teacher, I think this person is also a very good leader.

He always tries to uphold high principles of professionalism when dispensing his duties and he is particularly interested in seeing all of his students excel in his subject. One most leadership trait I admire about this person is that he is a good listener and is very patient. I am of the view that effective leaders are also good listeners. I currently apply this lesson in my life since I always try to pay attention to other people when they are talking. I listen carefully to whatever they say and I have this attitude of treating every person as equal.

I often see some people looking down upon others but this is against my principles. My tutor has molded my behaviour for the better. References Academy of Achievement (2014). “Oprah Winfrey Biography.” Retrieved from: http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/win0bio-1