Alexander the Great - Essay Example

?Introduction Alexander the Great is considered as one of the supreme military genius and prodigy in the history of all time. Alexander III of the Macedon was famously known as the Alexander the Great, who helped to change the ancient world more than a decade. Alexander was born in the capital of Macedonia in 365 BC. Alexander the Great Was the Son of the King of Macedonia, Philip II, the famous philosopher educated Alexander. The king of Macedonia, Philip II was assassinated in 336 BC. Alexander inherited the kingdom which was powerful but yet volatile. Alexander the Great defeated the enemies which were at home and then reasserted the power of Macedonian within the Greece Empire. Alexander then conquered the Persian Empire. Over the period of total eighty years, Alexander has founded over 70 cities and led army over 11,000 miles. On the basis of Alexander as a leader was famous for visionary leadership style which helped to become one of the greatest leaders. The essay will argue in support of the following thesis statement. Thesis Statement “Alexander the great was famous for effective visionary leadership style which distinguished as one of the greatest leaders of all time” Discussion Alexander the great became King of the Macedon after the death of father, Philip II at the age of 20. Alexander engaged in a journey of conquest of around 11 years and fought over more than 70 battles. Alexander the great had able to conquer the half of the world from India to Egypt in 32 years. Alexander created an empire which was so vast that it covered two million square miles and it stretched across the three continents. The integration of dream and great achievement distinguished Alexander as one of the greatest leaders of all-time. During the 12 years of campaign, Alexander had defeated armies that were five times of own army, leading own armies of Macedonians in freezing weather and across deserts. Alexander faced tremendous hardships to unite and bring together the known world under a one single common unified vision. The main success of Alexander the great as a leader was the ability and passion to inspire and encourage all the men to think great things to think big and later achieve them with great commitment, passion and enthusiasm. Alexander’s main motive and dream was to unite Asia and Europe. Alexander called unite of Europe and Asia as “The Brotherhood of Man”. According to Alexander, brotherhood would help to unite and bring together different culture of different societies in to one unit which would be governed by spread of Hellenism. Alexander’s dream of brotherhood was attained at different aspects (Fox 82). Even after the empire of Alexander the great Greek was a common language. Due to the fact gospels were written in Greek it helped to reach large audience as it helped them to understand. The Alexander the great and the visionary leadership style is the classic combination of leaderships which is taught nowadays in military and business schools. Research done on the visionary leadership style of Alexander and it clearly shows that leadership style used by Alexander helps to communicate extensively with the people and resonate with their feelings and hearts. The strong case on business for the visionary style of leadership can be done by noticing at the pride in organization, retention of employees and shared sense of purpose and goals. Ronald Reagan’s speech of “Berlin Wall” and Martin Luther King’s speech on “I Have a Dream” are various examples of visionary leadership style which is same as Alexander the great. Visionary leaders used to have a clear picture on their minds and are able to go inside into the dreams and hopes of the people and would help to create destination. Creating destination among the people not only helps people to inspire but also would help them to challenge to be better (Martin and Blackwell 186). The effective visionary leadership strategy used by Alexander would help to stretch people’s gullibility just at the right moment of time. Felling the part of the process and connecting with the people gives people proper knowledge of purpose and apply it to achieve goals. Alexander the great was extraordinary strategist and brilliant tactician. Visionary leader have the uniqueness to employ various kinds of leadership styles depending upon the situation. The leadership styles employed by Alexander the great are Connective, Aggressive, Trusting, Marauding and commanding style. In practical world, it is said that leaders focus on goals, manager’s focus on control but visionary leaders like Alexander the great focus on change. Visionary leadership lessons learned from Alexander the great are as follows: Care own people to create strong bond On the battle against Darius, Alexander and soldiers travelled around four thousand miles in eleven days and due to the fact they were nearly dead from thirst. Some of the Macedonian scouts bought little water from distant river and helmet full of water for Alexander. Alexander gave the helmet back and replied that the water is not enough for everyone and rejected to drink the water as others will faint. Alexander cared own people (Adair 51). This helped Alexander to allow others to understand their importance in future. Lead by personal to inspire the people Alexander the great used to encourage every man by showing personal example to face danger and to work hard. One day old teacher named Lysimachus could not keep up with the pace of other army. Alexander fell behind of the other army to move with old teacher. Alexander noticed an enemy camp. Alexander killed two enemies with knife and then move on to other armies with burning stick. This is typical example of Alexander the great to lead by personal. Innovative thinker Alexander the great was innovative thinker that would help others to think in a different way and feel free to do it. Alexander accepted the challenge of the Gordian knot. It was believed that one who would open the Gordian knot would become master of the world. But Gordian knot was tied on the ancient chariot (Kurke 152). Alexander pulled out own sword and cut the knot and avoided to involve in all kinds of difficult tangle. Inspiring in vision Alexander the great inspired every army and made them realize about their importance. Making other men to understand their role and move together on common view on future. The visionary leadership style not works in one situation when working with people of further experience. To be best visionary leader is to believe and vision in it with pure transparency and passion (Martino 67). And this would help others to connect with authenticity. This is the best part of leadership style of Alexander. The leaders who don’t have the quality of empathy cannot inspire other people to work better and would create negative impact on people. Empathy is the ability of the leaders to understand the feeling of people and react according to the feelings of other people. Alexander was great visionary leader because of high emphatic behaviors. Conclusion The visionary leadership style of Alexander the great was emotional and feeling possessed by other people and interacting with people on common purpose. The great power possessed by Alexander was to inspire people to great things. On modern era, when organization requires clear and new direction then visionary leadership style is followed. Visionary leadership style of Alexander allows followers to value their role and understand their role in future. The followers understood that their vision and dream will come true. The visionary leadership style was significant for Alexander which distinguished as one of the greatest leader of all time. Works Cited Adair, John. Inspiring Stories: Learning from Great Leaders. New York: Thorogood, 2006. Print. Fox, Robin. Alexander the Great. London: Penguin, 2006. Print. Kurke, Lance. The Wisdom of Alexander the Great. New York: Amacom, 2004. Print. Martin, Thomas, and Christopher Blackwell. Alexander the Great: The Story of Ancient Life. London: Cambridge University Press, 2012. Print. Martino, Leandro. Leadership and Strategy: Lessons from Alexander the Great. London: Routledge, 2007. Print. Read More