Leadership Is the Capacity to Translate Vision into Reality - Essay Example

 From a generalised perspective, leadership is often demonstrated as the mixture of the processes and procedures that a skilled person uses to accomplish a specific aim. Effective leaders are the one who create the plans, imagines the vision and mission, secures the resources and ensures correct allocation of the resources to fix errors, obstructing the overall potential of gaining success. Apparently, the same notion is revealed through the leadership quote that motivated its adaption in this essay. In precise, the reason behind the selection of this quote is to reflect upon the importance of leadership in the contemporary world. The quote signifies that the leaders possess the creatability of designing a vision and converting the “vision into reality”. Vision is significant for any company as it helps in setting as well as achieving the determined goals. Hence, under the guidance of effective leaders, the organisation can move forward in the prescribed direction, set by the leaders. INTRODUCTION As quoted by the American Scholar Warren G. Bennis, “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality” (Maxwell 93). Like Bennis, many researchers had contributed in explaining the concept of leadership, certainly, applying differing perspectives, which makes it difficult to be defined in a comprehensive and all-inclusive manner using specific wordings. However based on the accumulation of the statement and researches conducted by theorists, leaders fundamentally imply to the capacity of persons to make a vision turn into reality in the accomplishment of a determined goal, which ideally requires a collaborative effort of many. This requires the leader to be a motivator, organiser and an implementer as well as a monitor of the entire process to ensure the overall success in accomplishing the set target. It has been due to this reason that the contemporary organisation has been heavily found inclining towards the demand of leaders; more precisely, towards effective and efficient leaders. It is worth mentioning that an effective leader must have the capacity to not only lead but to guide as well. IMPLICATIONS DRAWN FROM THE QUOTE At its core, the concept of leadership signifies the power to release and engage individuals for or from any responsibility. Correspondingly, the quote indicates that leadership always performs within a framework of purpose, mission, and vision and shared values, being directed by a common cause. In addition, the characteristic of effective leaders can be identified as seeking others interest and challenging their limits to conquer the envisioned goal. It is always not necessary for the leaders to create the vision, but the presence of vision must be there in the organisation and it must be shared among others who bind themselves in a common cause (Moore & Diamond, “Academic Leadership” 2). Conceptually, leaders are referred to individuals who are assigned with the responsibility of seeking that operations are coordinated and managed efficiently. Leaders are also responsible for motivating employees/subordinates to perform their activities in accordance with the mission and vision of the organisation, towards the achievement of the common goal (Avolio, Sosik, Dong and Yair, “Leadership Models, Methods, and Applications”). In this context, it can be inferred that leaders need higher levels of skills to maintain the hierarchy of huge bureaucratic organizations as commonly witnessed in the modern day context. Hence, it can be argued that effective leaders are distinguishable on the basis of their hard work, intelligence, ambitions and political skills to deal with the emerging challenges and manage the resources well (Hogan & Kaiser, “What We Know about Leadership”). MEANING OF THE QUOTE Apparently, the quote given by Warren G. Bennis, “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality”, signifies the importance of leaders in the formulation and completion of strategic tasks in the realisation of a determined vision. The need of the leadership emerges from the foundation of the huge organisation and corporations. The smooth working of the team thus depends on the guidance of effective leaders. From the quote it can be affirmed that leaders act as the soul for any organisation. As the human soul directs the individuals to do the right things, the effective and efficient leaders lead their organisation to perform the correct things to bring their “vision into reality”. According to Glickman, the winning of the team depends on the capability and effectiveness of the leaders to lead the members by stimulating their values (210). Based on the quote, it can be summarized that leaders have the ability to forecast the future and based on this ability, leaders formulate goals and strategies and thereafter, create influence on others to forward the set direction (Thomas, Paul and Cadle 64). Hence, in agreement with Warren G. Bennis it can be noted in the context of this quote that effective leaders depend on their powers and responsibilities rather than depending on others’ strengths and responsibilities to realise their vision. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE QUOTE The quote certainly has a considerable significance, in the modern day organisational context. The significance of the quote implies the importance of leadership in the contemporary organisation. Notably, many researches and quotes have been propounded in the context of contemporary leadership. However, its clarity and focus to reflect upon the contemporary leaders’ abilities, makes it distinct from other leadership quotes given by scholars. From a broader point of view, this particular quote may also be interpreted as a remark to the distinction between leaders and management. Conceptually, leadership should not be confused with the concept of the management. As argued by Warren G. Bennis, leaders attempt to perform the right things at the very beginning, aligning their vision with the skills and personal values of their team and thus, strongly motivating the workforce intrinsically. This particular quality of leaders differentiates them from managers who are much focused on controlling and executing strategic operations in the most convenient way for the organisation. Today the organisation is highly bureaucratic, which often replicates the overlapping of the concepts of leadership and management, arguing that managers should also posses the qualities of effective leaders. This further implies that the performance of the entire organisation is almost entirely depended on the leaders’ ability to turn their visions in accomplishing their goals (Hogan & Kaiser, “What We Know about Leadership”). CONCLUSION Leaders are commonly referred to the persons who are in charge of the organisation. Leaders are the important participants of the organisation. Certainly, an organisation without leaders can be imagined as a boat without a sailor. As the sailor lead the boat to its destination, the leaders in the same way lead their organisation towards the success with their ability to make their envisioned goals a reality. It is therefore the leaders who are entrusted with the responsibility of the successful accomplishment and completion of the vision. Works Cited Avolio, J. Bruce, Sosik, J. John, Jung, I. Dong and Berson, Yair. “Leadership Models, Methods, and Applications”. 2003. Web. 12 Dec. 2013. Glickman, Rosalene. Optimal thinking: how to be your best self. Canada: Wiley, 2002. Print. Hogan, Robert & Robert B. Kaiser. “What We Know About Leadership”. Review of General Psychology, 9.2 (2005): 169-180. Print. Maxwell John. The 17 Essential Qualities of a Team Player: Becoming the Kind of Person Every Team Wants. United States of America: Thomas Nelson Inc, 2002. Print. Moore Michael R. & Michael A. Diamond. “Academic Leadership”. 2000. Web. 12 Dec. 2013. Thomas, Philippa, Debra Paul and James Cadle. The human touch: personal skills for professional success. UK: British Computer Society 2012. Print. Read More