The Meaning of My Quote about Leadership - Essay Example

My quote about leadership tends to identify the most important secret of successful leadership. There is a lot of literature that identifies different traits of successful leadership, but my quote simply identifies the most important trait i.e. the power of a leader to inspire. My quote bases the leadership on a spiritual quality. This is one thing that makes my quote quite unique and different from the definitions of leadership commonly used in the literature that emphasize the behavioral aspects, personality traits, and physical outlook of the leaders.

I think that the connection between a leader and the followers is based on spiritual foundations. The leader sends messages to the followers verbally. This is the most identifiable and easily recognizable form of communication and interaction between the leader and the followers. However, there is something more to it that just the followers can feel and is not overtly visible to the outsiders i.e. the emotional connection. Whatever a leader says or does leave an impression on the followers. The followers are best in the position to comply with the instructions of the leader when they know what the basis of the demand from the leader to behave or act in a certain way or do certain things is.

In order for an individual to be effective as a leader, it is imperative that he/she first earns the trust and confidence of the followers. The leader accomplishes this by assuring the followers that if they comply with the instructions of the leader and do as he/she asks them to, he would lead them to the results they want. Followers-only abides by the leader’s instructions when they see their personal benefit in doing this. The personal benefits of followers vary depending upon what are the conditions or context in which they are following the leader.

In an organizational setup, subordinates follow the instructions of the management because their wages are decided and performance is evaluated according to their compliance. In the context of a country, people pay taxes to the government because they are confident that this money would be used to provide them with more benefits. Certain leaders have good vocal skills and inspire followers through their motivational speeches. Likewise, there are certain leaders who have charismatic personalities and impress the followers by their behavior, thus gaining their loyalty and obedience.