Authentic Leadership Development - Literature review Example

Executive Summary Authentic leader awareness journal looks at the best way of understanding oneself and making sure that everything takes place as expected. The importance of dealing with these issues is to entrench the values that will maximise on what one knows about his or herself and become aware of its significance to the society as a whole. An individual’s actions will only be relevant if they allow the society to benefit the lives of others. The essential thing is to create new methods of dealing with issues, while creating different programs that will benefit everyone. This report looks at the personal experiences I have been through and using this life story to determine how this contributes to me knowing myself better. It will be an opportune time where I examine my values, character and motivation and see how I define my life based on decisions taken at different points in my life. Doing this has helped me get in touch with emotions and values I rarely knew existed in me, and make better choices in situations I never knew existed. Table of Contents Executive Summary 1 Table of Contents 2 Introduction 3 Self-awareness 3 Personal experiences 3 Character Mapping 5 Introspection 7 Reflections on values 8 Ethical boundaries 10 Key learning 11 Motivated capabilities 12 Weaknesses and sweet spot 16 Conclusion 17 Recommendations 17 References 19 Appendix 1: life story 21 Authentic Leadership Introduction When moving across various parts of the society, some of the things that make one form the values, beliefs and follow certain norms are all based on what thinks about life. Things come up and shape the way things happen across the society, making it easy to deal with various issues that make one easy to attain a deeper sense of self-awareness as well as what interests an individual. Most of the things that people go through shape one’s self-awareness, allowing them to make better choices in life. This report looks at my life’s story and the impact it has had in my life. It has shaped me into a more intelligent person that can make better choices based on what I have undergone as well as utilize my position to help others in the society. By understanding one’s strengths and weaknesses, it becomes very easy to recognize the sweet spot and maximize on it. Self-awareness Personal experiences When one is looking for answers from within, it becomes easier to understand that which completes and constitutes a person. This ability is not a gift or talent that one has as one grows up and passes the different stages of development. In most cases, an individual will grow up with various experiences given the environment that one grows up, the family’s status, the schooling, and the culture one has to follow (Zelenski, Santoro & Whelan 2012:300). These things are difficult to change in the first years of life, only for one to take up a path that may be completely different or in many ways similar to what they experience. This results from what the individual learns from the stories they learn about themselves and the goals that one sets apart as the main attributes of defining the growth of one’s abilities in life. I have learned over the years that what I know about myself today has roots in the way my parents raised me as well as the school I attended right from the early schooling years. My parents were very equivocal in the person I turned out to be. I used to be very attentive to things they said because they would educate me a lot about life. I could not overlook their position in my life (Gardini, Cloninger, & Venneri 2009:267). They were very aware of what I would face and were preparing me in many ways to follow my instincts as well as create a level of understanding that would pave way for a better life in the future. They taught me about the impact that school has in relation to my future. They made sure that I did my homework every day because they understood the value of education and trained me to do the same from a tender age. Every time I went to school, I noted that people were from different backgrounds. They had chances to attend school as I did and some were as knowledgeable as I was while others were above. There were still those who were below average and they were treated specially to help them catch up with the rest. In school, I learned that making friends is part of social growth and development. Some attached themselves to their friends and ended up not growing mentally as well as socially (Toivanen 2013: 357). Others craved for attention from the whole school and ended up doing things they did not like because they wanted to please everyone. I learned early about the need to be true to myself. I could lie to everyone but I could never lie to myself. I had to confront my fears, and from a tender age, my parents played a key role in training me to be the best child they ever had. This was done to my siblings as well because my parents wanted to leave children who were already capable of taking care of their issues (Luo, Kranzler, Zuo, Wang & Gelernter 2007:600). At school, I loved interacting with different people because it was very easy to learn about others and get to know people and associate them to their personalities. I did not know that this was setting me up for a future where I would be pursue a human resource management course to deal with people and generate personalities from my conversations with them. From my time in school, I was able to discern different personalities and even create ways of dealing with each of them. My parents taught me the importance of reading and I discovered a lot from my time in the library (Hewitt 2008:102). I realised that the society as built on different aspects that require a clear understanding of the society based on the deductions made during socialisation. If one did not have the important skills, it was difficult to measure up to the expectations of the society. It was necessary, therefore, to accommodate different views and be true to oneself (Strobel, Tumasjan & Spörrle 2011:45). Character Mapping When going through different things in life, the best way of understanding their meaning is by appreciating that they have a reason for happening. Most of the characters people assume in daily life emanate from what one’s actions and the situations one has to cope with at different times. The importance of this is to understand the goals and roles of the society based on what one is dealing as well as understanding the development that is taking place within the society (Lucas, & Baird 2010: 480). Ideally, I have met so many people in life and they have taught me a lot about the events that happen in life. I have managed to assume different characters and meet several people who change the way I view life and its stresses. In my development, I have taken various characters and they have managed to keep me going, as I had to cope with different situations uniquely (Lischetzke, & Eid 2006:1140). One of the characters I assumed in early life was that of an ally. I knew that life was about making time for each other and creating time to address issues taking place in the society. The only way of meeting this need was by enhancing the key features that would make me the best companion amongst those I was with in school as well as neighbourhood (Joshanloo, & Afshari 2009: 120). These interactions were important in matching my needs as well as creating new platforms for the growth and strength of my skills and beliefs. The best way of achieving this would be by knowing what to tell people and the best way of comforting them. I learned from an early age that people need companions to share things with and that was something I had to appreciate if I was to meet my needs as an individual. The other character was that of a mentor. From an early age, I was a force to reckon with amongst my peers. I was not famous amongst many people, but those who knew me understood that they could count on me for any assistance. I taught them the morals and values that people should have when dealing with different situations. I carried this to college and was able to get on the right side of many students. They knew that I could reason with them and offer solutions as if I was undergoing similar struggles (Holder & Klassen 2009: 420). I thank my parents always because they showed me the way when I thought it was non-existent. Seeing some of my friends being bullied and understand their pain based on what they felt made me stronger. I wanted to be in a position to look out for my friends and tell on the bullies because they were harming very young students who deserved a chance at pursuing their dreams (Ozer & Benet-Martinez 2006: 410). Introspection The aspect of carrying out introspection is one of the most difficult in the world. One has to look at the positive attributes that others see and align them with what one sees about him-or her-self. The process is one that carets a new platform for a person to understand the issues that are open and those closed from the public. People have secrets they would not want to see exposed because they fear the wrath of the public (Engler 2009: 52). They understand that the unknown should remain unknown and that should be a trend people should follow. Ideally, the goal of this process is to understand what one knows about his or her thoughts and deeds. I discovered that I had so much capability that can make it very easy for me to deal with pain, something I never knew because I never had a chance to test it anywhere (Carlson 2010: 490). People know a lot about me because my family and I are quite outgoing and have so many friends. This has made many people know about us and visit our home for dinner or just for a short while. What people do not know is that I would like to have time with my parents again. I have the obsession that families should have time to be alone without having to involve others. I always long for a chance to have a day out with my family without having to visit a friend. This dark side is hidden far from the public (Schultz & Schultz 2010:150). From this introspection, I concur with the fact that knowledge is not behaviour. I have learned that I have within me a great understanding of personalities that will anchor my beliefs in the future and shape my values. The process of identifying this will allow me to meet my needs as an individual and identify with those attributes that matter the most to me. My weaknesses are welcome because they provide me with strength to achieve everything I long for in my life (Reeve 2009: 122). Reflections on values Values are very important in life. They define what one should deal with in life and the best approach. Values are the guiding vehicles towards personal achievements because they are the best in determining the best position that one should take so as to enhance perspective in life (Kassin 2007:261). The possibility of entrenching this into the system comes with time and requires a great understanding of what to do when things go beyond one’s capability. The issue of values was stressed a lot by my parents. Values create a pathway towards a behavioural system that reflects on the good things that life has to offer. This means working on attributes that surround our beliefs while at the same time creating new avenues of generating and sharing happiness with those around us. The pursuit of happiness was one of my best values because having intrinsic motivation drives energy to the required areas. It pushes a person to behave differently and work on meeting personal goals within the required avenues (Steel 2012:213). The important thing is to understand that stress and happiness cannot be present at the same time, and I had to concentrate on happiness because it relieved stress very well. I however learned not to ignore things in the name of pursuing happiness. Some of my friends tended to overlook the key issues within their lives and missed on opportunities that would allow them to gain better chances at fixing problems in their lives. Their experiences became my best teachers because I later understood that life requires an open-minded person (Steel 2012:215). Motivation was important, but reality was the driving force needed to push the wheel of life on a forward motion. Based on the life story characters, I understood my values in two main methods. The first one is the mentor. I motivated so many people to reach deep within and get the best assistance they needed to resolve their issues. I knew that some of the problems were personal and a solution from within would be the best to deal with the situation at hand (Chang, Liu & Chen 2014:330). Further, I knew that my behaviours had to measure up to what people thought about me, as well as mitigate the various problems that would arise in my life. I knew that life was only fair to those who looked at it from a better point of view rather than an assumption that all would be well. The second character emanating from this is the threshold guardian. As a mentor, I had to mentor others as well. Sometimes, being a mentor is had and obstacles come my way. Introspection was the inner self that allowed me to look beyond the barriers and come up with better reactions to situations. I was more proactive and that led to the understanding that the society needs people who can look beyond what is normal to something that is trustworthy (Schacter, Gilbert, & Wegner 2011: 128). The problem is that the awareness of such attributes requires a better understanding of the issues that could be destroying many societies. The lack of hindsight on the growth of the mentors within the society also places a strain on relationships, and only those with the knowledge on this will identify the source of the problem. My values mean a lot to me as an individual as I look to grow different skills to assist in handling issues in my life. The value that means the most to me is that of integrity. People who value honesty, integrity and transparency end up teaching people so much about accountability. This skill has helped many people who are working and who get tempted to look the other way when ills are taking place. As a human resource manager, I will use this value to protect the integrity of the company and ensure the welfare of the employees remain safeguarded against abuse (Marr 2009: 174). Most of the issues taking place in organisations happen because such values miss in the workplace. I learned this from my parents and I have been testing it in various issues, failing at times, and growing my resolving daily when I pass such tests. I want to reach to my inner potential and improve myself with every passing day. I have seen many people pass this ultimate test and make better people in the society. I also want that in the future. The making of a diamond requires intense pressure and high temperatures. Likewise, in maintaining integrity values, pressure can make everything seem useless (Fisher, Marshall, & Nanayakkara 2009: 57). I have met such challenges and they form the most difficult points in life where lying or looking the other way seems the most practical way of looking at life. To avoid missing this chance of holding still to my core values, I always look for ways of defining growth from a personal point of view. I want to be better every day, and I will not wane in achieving that which I hold dear to my conscience. My future has been hardened by this resolve because I have seen many corporate CEOs fail in leading their companies to greatness because they have fallen prey to the pressure drop (Pritchard & Ashwood 2008: 322). Learning from personal experiences is good. As such, I will use my experiences to meet my goals in the future and focus on growing my strength for the sake of my future. Ethical boundaries Like every workplace in the country, I also have my code of conduct that informs every decision I make in life. I understand that everything I do will have an opposite reaction if I do not work on meeting my core needs and place myself on a level that allows for greater understanding of the society as a whole. I will not disrespect anyone who comes out offending me because two wrongs do not make a right (Steel & König 2006: 900). The problem is that the society does not understand the value and meaning of forgiveness and patience. These two values are very important in etching out a character that meets the core attributes of the society. The goal is to meet the roles of the society through the proper understanding of one’s position in the society. People have to meet the growing need for social recognition by being better than those who rise against them (Weightman 2008: 19). A value I possess and hold dearly is confidence. People do not understand that the society works best on measuring one’s confidence in whatever one does. Even in organisation, those who portray confidence are given more responsibilities because they are assumed to know what they are doing. In my interactions, this value plays a critical role in presenting my ideologies and showing the need for a level playing ground for all. I use it to get out of problems because I am confident in my skills as well as potential to rise above the daily trifles. I value privacy and vow not to go beyond the boundaries expected in every interaction. I understand that people need to work on their lives, and this only happens when given room to do so. This tests on patience and generates the kind of respect that one can attain from the society based on what is ideal for the society as a whole. The people that value patience know that it is only worthwhile when shared across the divide. Key learning Pressure drops are common in the society today. People do understand that their values are tested every time they engage in any act because there are options and alternatives that will always work better than the other will (Steel 2007: 70). The implication is that there is a need to hold on to what one truly believes in and accentuate it to provide better comprehension of the issues taking place in one’s life. Problems arise when people compromise on their values and go against what they profess. I have a chance to deal with my shortfalls every time I engage in activities that could question my actions, and I have to take precautions against being entangled in situations that could lead to a compromise (Robbins & Judge 2007: 95). Motivated capabilities When moving across the many tribulations taking place in life, it is very easy to get broken and give up on things taking place within one’s life. The only problem is that the motivation features that keep an individual alive will be best discovered when one is at the lowest point in life (Ryan, Rigby & Przybylski 2006: 355). When people have the least energy to move on is the time their greatest desire kicks in and makes it easy to entrench the very values that determine the main issues within the growth of one’s ideology. Ideally, the best way of getting through any pain is by making good use of the inner desire to push through one’s troubles. Life’s challenges always take a great hit at a person when the only reliance is on nature to make things go right. I have been at such a place and felt like the whole world was against me. I felt like I could not make anything work. However, I remembered that one of my values was confidence. The courage from deep within showed me the importance of the confidence I held strongly to when dealing with challenges in life. I knew that the only way of making it to the end of my trials was by clinging to confidence, as it was the best thing that could keep me afloat and within the level of acceptance that would enhance my self-awareness (Wan & Chiou 2007: 182). I realised that the best weapon against feeling down and out was to keep in touch with the inner self because it was the source of one’s desire and motivation. The values that one aspires to uphold are tested at all times, and the motivation to keep them afloat makes it easier to draw on strength to meet life’s adversities. Another value that kept me hopeful was patience. I realised that the society did not have any means of dealing with people who did not exhibit patience when dealing with their issues. This made it easier to create an avenue that would provide new insight on various issues and the best way of dealing with them. When one is patient, the situation tends to unfold and solutions appear (Murphy 2009: 159). This motivated me a lot and I was able to entrench the best of what I have to meet my core life desires. The goal of motivation is to keep you on the edge at all times. It makes everything seem so easy and doable. It provides better chances of understanding what is ideal for the mind as well as the best way of dealing with issues disturbing one’s mind. The importance of meeting the ideals of the society is to understand that the growth of the society depends solely on the way one views life (Murphy 2009: 166). I understand that respect, patience and confidence all contribute to having the best mode of reaching out to the society. I am more willing to engage in issues in my life and nothing will stop me. The places that seem difficult will always be handled by asking for advice from my teachers or my parents. Personal extrinsic motivators Category Score 1-10 Ranking This is important to me because Money 3 12 Recognition 4 11 Association with prestigious organisations or institutions 6 4 It makes my work more acceptable Praise appreciation 8 3 Because it helps motivate me to achieve more Position of power 4 9 Obligations to others 9 5 It assists in making more people feel better about themselves as well as get the best out of everyone Awards 7 5 It allows me to serve more by getting more people to recognise my work Status and privilege 6 6 Opportunities 9 1 They open up chances of growth and personal development Competing and winning 3 10 Threats 2 13 Bribes 1 13 Personal intrinsic motivator Category Score 1-10 Ranking This is important to me because Personal growth and development 10 1 It opens me up to new challenges and allows me to attain better roles at what I do Satisfaction from doing a job 8 3 It provides pleasure and strengths my resolve on improving my skills Helping others 8 5 It provides a satisfaction that someone else has smiled and gotten help Deriving pleasure from performing a task 8 3 It provides more motivation to deal with more problems the following day Leading and organising others 9 2 It strengths my confidence levels Being with people I care about 10 1 It heightens my responsibility levels Contributing to society 9 2 It opens more room for change and development for so many deserving people Having the freedom to choose my tasks 8 5 It gives me a choice which uses my skills and strengths maximally Influencing others 8 5 It is good to be a role model Being true to my beliefs 10 1 It is the true definition of inner strength Being creative 10 1 It shows that I am open minded to dealing with issues within my surroundings Challenging and changing things 8 4 It is important to have the right things taking place in the society Link between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation Off balance situation Prevention or action At work in need of pay rise Work on improving my intrinsic motivation With friends in need of recognition Work on my patience and confidence In a room and in need of more power Practice patience and humility Peer pressure Work on maintaining my inherent values Material goods Contentment with what I have Personal interests: Interest Reason Music It is soothing and easy to relate with in different times in life Art Appreciating skills and precision Intellectual Conversation Always fascinated by people who can engage in such Nature It connects me to my inner self Hiking Fitness and fun Site seeing Appreciating heritage Musical instruments Playing them helps sharpen focus of my senses Technology Is apt in meeting my core needs as an individual Friends Interactions are good ways of networking Community well-being Makes the world a better place Strengths table Hard skills Soft skills Qualities Personality types Talents/abilities Resource management Talent management Resource allocations Motivating Leadership Mentorship Creative Problem-solver Adaptability Open Accountable Transparent Team player Able achiever Strong convictions Playing sports Playing musical instruments Gaming Weaknesses and sweet spot The best way of identifying my weaknesses is by first admitting their existence. The best way of doing this is by working on pushing my limits to higher levels, determining what is ideal, and what is not. One of my weaknesses is being overbearing. I do not like seeing things not going my way, and that makes it difficult to let people do their work without my interference (Jones 2008: 103). Ideally, I should also be trusting, which is another weakness. I trust people but still have reservations when I want things done. This moves to my other weakness, which boils down to wanting to do things for myself. This pushes people away and I need to come to terms with the issues as soon as possible. The goal is to provide those I interact with more time to appreciate their skills while at the same time showing that I value their presence. My sweet spot is to become a senior HR manager. I have the people skills and the motivation to move things around as a way of making good use of the resources available. I am able to provide so much for people willing to get to the top of their potential while at the same time providing more impetus for people to understand their goals within the social platforms. Ideally, people do not understand that their goals are important until someone shows them the way to appreciate their skills. This will only happen if the society learns to appreciate people for the sake of getting to the expected level of growth. Conclusion Every person looks for the different aspects of life that define and determine the way things will happen in life. The benefits of working out such features in life is to understand what weaknesses, strengths, values and aspects make one stronger and better in life. The only problem is that many do not conduct an honest assessment of activities within the lives. They do not recognise the fact that people fail because they do not understand their strengths will shape their thinking. I am glad I have managed to understand much about myself and maximised on getting to know where I stand and how I fair in life. Recommendations I commit myself over the next two years to work on several parts of my life. One of the main areas is to look at the core aspects of meeting the societal needs that provide better chances of getting to the top of the social ladder. I will attend seminars on personal development and use these skills to proved better understanding to the growth of the society. I will provide more chances to meet the needs of the people by learning how to assist them as a profession. I also commit to grow my people skills through carrying out more introspection (Jones 2008: 109). This exercise has opened me up to new possibilities in life that have enlightened me on the best way of getting to a better position in my life. Ideally, the best possibility is meeting the main goals of the society through personal development and growth. I am willing to use my time to develop myself because this will provide me with chances of developing others. I will pay close attention to my strengths and weaknesses because they determine how I define my sweet spot. This will be possible if I place emphasis on getting the right connection between my skills and my personality. References Carlson, N. (2010) Psychology the Science of Behaviour, Ontario, Pearson Canada. Chang, I., Liu, C. & Chen, K. (2014) "The push, pull and mooring effects in virtual migration for social networking sites", Information Systems Journal vol. 24, no. 4, pp. 323–346. Engler, B. (2009) Personality Theories, Belmont, CA, Wadsworth. Fisher, K., Marshall, M. & Nanayakkara, A. (2009) "Motivational orientation, error monitoring, and academic performance in middle childhood: A behavioural and electrophysiological investigation", Mind, Brain, and Education, vol. 3, pp. 56-63. Gardini, S., Cloninger, C.R. & Venneri, A. 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(2011) "Be yourself, believe in yourself, and be happy: Self-efficacy as a mediator between personality factors and subjective well-being", Scandinavian Journal of Psychology vol. 52, no. 1, pp. 43–48. Toivanen, J. (2013) "Perceptual Self-Awareness in Seneca, Augustine, and Olivi", Emotion vol 51, Number 3, pp. 355–382. Wan, C. & Chiou, W. (2007) "The motivations of adolescents who are addicted to online games: a cognitive perspective", Adolescence vol. 42, no. 165, pp. 179–197. Weightman, J. (2008) The Employee Motivation Audit, Cambridge, Cambridge Strategy Publications. Zelenski, J., Santoro, M. & Whelan, D. (2012) "Would introverts be better off if they acted more like extraverts? Exploring emotional and cognitive consequences of counterdispositional behavior", Emotion vol. 12, no. 2, pp. 290–303. Appendix 1: life story I have been lucky to experience different things and different situations in life. I was able to meet different people in my journey both at school and at home. In most cases, the people I met with would provide me with the kind of motivation I needed to deal with everyday issues. I grew up under the care of very strict parents. They were not authoritarians, but understood the importance of discipline. They would make sure that I was aware of everything I had done, and ensure that I could meet different tasks at different times. I was to learn so much from them and use it in my life. I could handle everything based on what I learned from my parents. They were willing to talk to me regarding things I would go through in my life, even if I were five years away from doing the same. When I started school, they were present o alert me on issues that I would undergo at various times in my life. I knew that I needed their advice to make better choices and understand the different personalities that would make it easier for me to deal with issues based on my choices. I wanted to get the best from my life, and the only way of doing this was to understand that my life was pegged on the issues that would define my life. I was not going to get by if I was not going to stand up and be counted. I had to remain strong at all times. My friends were always happy to be around me, just as I was happy to be around my parents. The kind of wisdom I gave to my peers could not be rivaled, despite being younger than most of my audience. I was intrinsically motivated to deal with issues as they arose in my life. I was aware that the only thing I would benefit from greatly would be to humble myself and learn more about people before judging them. This was the first commandment given by my parents that would see me get better at handling issues amongst my peers. Even in life, judging people could reduce the ability for one to make better choices, and I was prepared to make choices that would see me assist where I could, but still maintain my values and use my skills to reach out to the rest of the society. I hold various beliefs, norms and values, which define my interests and strengths. Read More