The Absolutes of Leadership - Example

Running header: Leadership Student’s Name: Instructor’s Name: Course Code: Date of Submission: Leadership Introduction Leadership is the ability of motivating a team of followers so as to achieve a common objective. A leader is an individual who motivates others towards doing an action. He is a person who possesses both skills and personality which makes others in a group want to do or follow his action. A leader is a person with personal traits which are likely, to inspire respect from followers. There is a difference between a manager and a leader. A manager is someone who manages and, plans for groups of people. Manager focuses on the organization bottom line and, he relies on control so as to accomplish his objectives. A leader demonstrates and, he has a perspective that is long term. An effective leader focus on building a relationship that is strong with others as well as maintaining his position through inspiring confidence and trust in the other group members. Leadership exists in both informal and formal groups. Leadership can as well be defined as a process through which a person influences others to achieve a goal while guiding the company on how to make it cohesive. Leadership is the process by which a person leads others in the right direction so as to achieve certain objectives. A leader has to apply some leadership attributes in order to be able to implement the process of leadership in an organization (Edi, 2009; Warren, 1997; Edward, 2003). Those attributes include skills, knowledge and values. A leader is made but not born according to an American Scholar Bennis. Leaders are made not born Warren G. Bennis is an American Scholar, author and organizational consultant. He is considered as a pioneer of in the field of leadership studies. He is the founding chairman of the leadership institute in Southern California University. Warren has significantly impacted management and leadership fields for a long time. In 2000, The Financial Times referred to Bennis as “the professor who instituted leadership’s academic field that is respectable.” He was ranked as one of the top ten thought leaders by Business Week in August 2007 in the business field. In 2008, Bennis was ranked as one of top 30 leadership professionals in the survey carried out by international Leadership Gurus survey (Warren, 2009). According to Bennis, it is difficult and precisely simple to become a leader. He continues to say that under-led and over-management makes organizations fall. According to Bennis, outstanding leaders make followers feel that they are at the right place and not at the margin. He says that leaders are those people who always do the right things while the managers are individuals who perform things right. Bennis describes leadership as the ability to transform vision or idea into reality. Leadership myth that leaders are born and that there is a genetic factor to leadership is considered to be most dangerous according to Bennis (BrainyMedia.com, 2010). I totally agree with Barren on that, leaders are made and not born. Yelling at the followers in order for them to accomplish certain tasks is not considered as leadership. Leadership skills usually develop within oneself with time. The saying that leaders are born is totally unacceptable. Becoming a boss of a company does not mean that he is a leader or that he has leadership qualities. Capability of being able to motivate and encourage followers to achieve organizational goals or objectives can define leadership extremely well. Leadership is associated with an action that makes followers lead worthy and respectable life. The qualities of effective leadership are not inborn but rather they are developed slowly through self study. Education is also another main factor that helps in the development of strong leadership qualities. Leadership is a process that is continuous for a long time through learning by becoming exposed to different life situations. Leadership process helps in nurturing and cultivating later generation of leaders (Bennis, 2007). Leadership involves passion and determination awakening among followers in order to get intended goals or results. The more a person leads people, the more he is able to develop leadership skills. Therefore, no person can be born with leadership qualities. Leadership qualities develop with time and through experience and exposure of diversified aspects of life. Leadership is a matter of having virtues like courage, trustworthiness, intelligence, discipline and humaneness. It involves various aspects of life and exercise of humanness, without those five virtues results to weak outcomes. Relying on intelligence without the use of the aspects listed above results to rebelliousness. Trust fixation may as well lead to recklessness. Cruelty may also result as a result of excessive sternness and discipline. A leader can be said to be a person who has all five virtues and uses them appropriately to their function (President and Fellows of Harvard College, 1983; Bennis, 1970). Many notable leaders are people with outstanding character and strong personalities which help them be able to relate extremely well with others. Leadership in most cases involves and engages more. A leader should be capable of managing resources at her disposal. A good and an effective leader should be able to inspire, communicate and supervise his followers and organization. Some people look more naturally endowed with a lot of abilities in leadership than others; this is possible through improving certain leadership skills. A leader should be able to combine thinking ability, personal traits and at the same time act competently. Leadership capability develops gradually and cannot develop rapidly in a person. Leadership involves basic integrity and strong personality although several leadership skills can be gained through learning, careful contemplation and practice. Leaders are usually called to resolve disagreements, make decisions that are correct and right while taking responsibilities. Leadership requires skills and knowledge that can improved with time and through practice. This is possible if a leader who is inexperienced continue to give respect to those that are under their authority. A leader must demonstrate integrity and sincerity in order to be sure of success (Fahey, 1989; Ronald, Riggio and Jean, 2008). In leadership, things do not move normally as expected all the time. There are sometimes falls and barriers or challenges on the way. This makes true leader to be known well. True leaders are able to overcome those obstacles and challenges and move forward. Good leadership practice is vital for any leaders in the organization and the people who they lead. They are several elements that are usually associated with effective leaders. Effective leaders must appreciate who they are. A leader should not at any moment act like another person. He must be original and an extraordinary person who does not try at any moment to imitate someone else. However, it is necessary for a leader to learn from other leaders who have headed before but never think he is like them or he is them. This is why it is hard to say that a leader is born, leadership traits develop as one continue to learn and appreciating what other successful leaders have done. Some of the leaders who have been successful in the world included Winston Churchill, Martin Luther, and Malcolm X among others. Effective leaders posses a positive attitude in all what they do. The manner in which one thinks and responds to life circumstances is referred to as attitude. A leader should posses a positive attitude in order to be able to do wonders in life. Attitude is attributed to failure or success of a person. Leaders are able to be triumphant since they have plenty of attitudes compared to others. Effective leaders have plenty of positive attitude and they are not at any moment shaken or worried by mishaps or situations mainly because they do not rely on negatives. They always see the positive side of life. It is said that, when one is able to control his attitude, then controlling his life is extremely easy (Victor, 2003). An effective leader should at all moments believe in him. He regards himself highly respected while at the same time valuing himself. It is his belief that everything is possible and he feels he has the capability of conquering anything. An effective and a good leader should belief in him in order to have that capability and power of convincing others. Effective leaders should be capable of changing their ways of life. This will help them towards developing and growing. This can make them become mature and keep growing. They should not be scared by conditions or change of situations. They have the capability of starting or initiating change. They have all the capability of acting and not reacting. Effective leaders are capable of planning ahead and knowing the exact place where they are going. They have both defined destiny and goals long before they motivate others. They have a well prepared plan of where they are going before they lead others. Effective leaders always build a relationship with quality and good people. A leader is influenced by other people while influencing others at the same time. This makes a leader therefore, network and socialize with those types of people who will not only motivate him but nurture him as well. A good leader mainly sees quality in people before interacting with them. He is always ready to learn from their counsel. An effective leader is always optimistic; he has a positive outlook towards all aspects of life. He learns from all situations whether they are good or bad. He is able to get something from either good or bad situation. This is what makes and develops leadership in someone rather than believing that a leader is born. Leadership qualities and aspects develop with time and gradually in life as one continue to learn. An effective leader does not take issues personally especially when dealing with a defiant a staff. He finds an appropriate situation or place to chat in a friendly manner and not in front of other staff. Capability of a leader to empower others determines the qualities of an effective leader and not the amount of power he posses. A keen leader is the one who is capable of empowering people hence being able to win their heart rather than making his followers fear him. A leader should build his people towards becoming better colleagues and leaders as well. Effective leaders always respect and love those people who they lead. It is really hard for an individual to be an effective leader if he has no respect and love. This is because it is exceedingly hard to influence or control followers when there is no respect or love. One receives back what he gives; giving out respect means getting back respect (Heenan, 1999). Effective leadership qualities do not come naturally from time of birth but they develop with time. Great leaders take their time and effort to become effective and good leaders. They dedicate their effort towards learning those aspects that assist them in becoming who they are. They take time even if it is years but finally they are able to learn and acquire skills required in the long run. They do not hesitate or even mind how long they take but finally they are able to be successful. Effective leadership is associated with several character traits. One needs to have those traits in order to be able to become a great leader rather than relying on myths that one has to be born with leadership skills. The trait that one needs to have in order to improve his effective leadership skills includes trust and respect. In any leadership position, one needs to have good characteristics that deserve respect and trust among the followers. A person does not have to be liked personally in order to generate respect and trust among his followers. Another crucial leadership trait is communication; leading others requires effective communication with the team or the group one is leading. There is the need to encourage them and be firm to them at all times. Effective communication makes a leader able to get best out of the team. It is the role of the leader to be firm and stop anyone who may try to upset the team from making it reach its objectives (Warren, 1973; Barren, 2001). Another vital leadership trait is enthusiastic. A leader should be enthusiastic towards ensuring job is done in time and extremely well. Leaders are there to inspire and motivate followers towards achieving. This makes followers follow and respond to these character traits. A leader should be keen and passionate to his followers (Robert and Jeffrey, 2004). A leader should be confident in order to move forward as a leader. Failure to have confidence makes a leader move nowhere. Confidence in a leader enables one to inspire trust, dedication and hard work in the team. When confidence is combined with humility, it leads to extremely effective leading of the team. A cool head is another trait that a leader needs to have. A leader is required to control the situation when something goes wrong. There is the need to be calm and cool so as to make things get done. A good leader should not under any circumstance lose his coolness mainly because this is critical towards maintaining confidence in teams. There is the need for a good leader to focus on key elements (Bennis, Jagdish and Ronnie, 1996). This is another crucial trait that makes a good leader think critically. Effective leader need to organize and give priority to small parts while viewing the overall aim in a logical sequence. Innovation and motivation are other traits that a leader needs to have in order to get better results regardless of the situation. An effective leader should focus on how to take a team up higher to the next level at all time. Another crucial trait that a leader needs to have is improving the skills of his followers. All those traits define who are leader is and what he needs to possess. Therefore, the theory that a leader is born and not developed with time and through experience is outdated. It has no basis. It is just there to mislead people. It is important to note that leaders are shaped and developed depending on the experience they undergo and how they meet a variety of situations. There should not be a person who should think that he was born a leader. However, leadership qualities can develop in a person with time depending on how he manages and interacts with people and other situations around. A person dedication to learn new ideas and developing personal traits as well as maintaining elements of good leadership will develop a person to become a leader. It is my view that, individuals who say that leaders are born are those people who have never come across leaders who have developed with time. They believe those leaders are born (Stanford University, 2005). Styles of leadership are crucial to a person or a leader in order to achieve success. Leaders must be in a position that they will be able to respond quickly to the changing world demands and challenges. Different leadership styles and the impact understanding are extremely crucial in helping one to become an effective leader. Good leaders use one or combination of styles that fits the situation they are involved. Some of these styles are autocratic, democratic, and delegative or free rein. Autocratic style is a form of leadership whereby only one person makes the decisions. All the expectations are clear. This form of leadership is rarely used or utilized but it is very appropriate to complete unskilled tasks or routines. The key responsibilities of the leader are what need to be accomplished and when and how they will be accomplished. This is incredibly vital when time is indispensable because it helps in coming up with quick decisions. This approach is seen to be less creative because they take strict and obedient form of control. Autocratic type of leadership is used when a person does not have enough knowledge of procedure (Spillane, 2004; Adair, 2003). Another significance type of leadership is democratic leadership. It is a participatory and in most situations it is referred as most effective. Team members are involved in decision making hence feel they are the ones who control themselves. This leads to greater satisfaction among members and a feeling of appreciation. However, the leaders have a final word and they act as the guide while accepting suggestions and ideas mainly through discussion. Although the leaders have the final say, every member of the team contributes to the process in every aspect. Democratic style of leadership is beneficial mainly because it helps somebody improve his skills. However, this leadership style has some disadvantages in that the wide range of opinions may interfere with the final decision. One great important aspect about democratic style is that it helps in development of other leaders within an organization or a team. People are able to learn several leadership aspects from leaders and other colleagues (Tichy and Warren, 2007). Delegative or free rein is another leadership style. This mainly involves a condition where a leader is not in a position of doing everything. This makes a leader to delegate decisions and even tasks while taking control of the overall responsibility. This style helps in training of some leaders in the team. This is mainly through allowing the team makes some decisions. This style works well with those people who a re well trained or highly motivated. This makes the leader have a lot of influence towards making a team achieve the required goals or objectives easily (Bennis, 2003; Crossby, 1996). They are other types of leadership style that are practiced by effective leaders. Transformational leadership style is type of leadership that focuses on how to make changes take place in an organization, in other people as well as in groups and ourselves. Visionary leadership style focuses on how a leader defines and sees the future for the followers and how he does to help them move towards it. Those are some of the leadership styles that new leaders should adopt as they develop towards building their leadership foundation. These styles help a leader to improve leadership skills gradually and more perfectly (Warren & Rowan, 1998; Harold, 1998). Conclusion I absolutely differ with the fact that leaders are born. Leaders are neither born nor have genetic characteristics or factors related to leadership. They develop with time and from within and become leaders out of experience and knowledge gain. Leaders are made by the situations they meet on their way. The challenges and interaction with people make leaders. Therefore, it is vital to know that becoming a leader is not related with any genetic factor but they develop through practicing various leadership traits and practicing various management aspects. A person who practice various leadership elements and adopts various leadership traits will have high possibility of becoming an effective leader. This can lead to production of an extremely courteous and effective leader. This definitely proves that a leader is not born but rather he is made. This agrees with Bennis facts that a leader is made and not born. References Adair, J. (2003). The inspirational leader: how to motivate, encourage & achieve success. London: Kogan Page. Bennis, W. (1970). American bureaucracy. Chicago: Aldine Pub. Co. Bennis, W. (2001). The future of leadership: today’s top leadership thinkers speak to tomorrow’s leaders. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Bennis, W. (2003). On becoming a leader. Cambridge: Perseus Pub. Bennis, W. (2007). Leading for a lifetime: how defining moments shape the leaders of today and tomorrow. Boston: Harvard Business School press. Bennis, W., Jagdish, P. & Ronnie, L. (1996). Beyond leadership: balancing economics, ethics and ecology. Cambridge: Blackwell Press. BrainyMedia.com. (2010, Jan.). Warren G. Bennis Quotes. Retrieved April 15, 2010, from http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/w/warrengbennis.html Crossby, P. (1996). The absolutes of leadership. Johannesburg; San Diego: Preiffer & Company. Edi Kurnik. (2009, June). Define Leadership. Retrieved April 15, 2010, from http://hubpages.com/hub/Define-Leadership Edward, J. (2003). Making of leaders. The Journey of True Leadership, 22(5), 54-63. Harold, W. R. (1998). Leadership 2000: leaders making leaders, leaders are made, not born. Chicago: International Reed institute. Heenan, D. (1999). Co-leaders: the power of great partnerships. New York: John Wiley Press. Jay, A., Gretchen, M. & Edward, E. (1999). The leaders change handbook: and essential guide to setting direction and taking action. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. President and Fellows of Harvard College. (1983). Paths toward personal progress: leaders are made, not born. New York: Harvard College. Robert, G & Jeffrey, S. (2004). Leadership and governance from the inside out. Hoboken, N.J.: J. Wiley press. Ronald, E., Riggio, I. & Jean, L. (2008). The art of followership: how great followers create great leaders and organizations. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Spillane, J. P. (2004). Towards a theory of Leadership practice. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 36 (1), 3-34. Stanford University. (2005, November). Effective leaders made, not born, Colin Powell says. Retrieved April 15, 2010, from http://news- service.stanford.edu/news/2005/november30/powell- 113005.html Tichy, N. & Warren, B. (2007). Judgment: how winning leaders make great calls. New York: Portifolio. Victor, L.H. (2003). Fathers, Come Forth! The Journey of Family Leadership, 23(6), 12-32. Warren, B & Rowan, G. (1998). Rethinking the future: rethinking business, principles, competition, control & complexity, leadership, markets and the world. Michigan: Nicholas Brealey Publishing. Warren, B. (1973). Beyond bureaucracy: essays on the development and evaluation of human organization. New York: McGraw-Hill. Warren, B. (1997). The 21st century organization: reinventing through reengineering. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Press. Warren, B. (2009). On Becoming A leader. California: Basic Books. Read More