Self-evaluation and Assessment in regard to Leadership Traits - Essay Example

LEADERSHIP PORTFOLIO By student’s name Course code+ name Professor’s name University name City, state Date of submission Mission statement “Leadership is service to others.” This mission statement is a daily reminder that leadership is an opportunity to serve other people and not an avenue to serve my personal interests. In order to be effective as a leader I believe that it is imperative that other people should gain more from the work I do. It is therefore important that I do everything to the very best in order to attain effective leadership. Executive summary This report contains self-evaluation and assessment of the author in regard to leadership traits, style and behavior of the author. It covers the daily observations of the author in regard to the activities engaged in and explains such experiences in light of the theories of leadership. Leadership traits My life is marked by interactions with other people to share and receive ideas. I hardly enjoy solitude but instead prefer to be accompanied by people I can challenge or people that can challenge me. I do not rely on others to do much of what I am involved in but I always count on the support of others. Though in many cases I like running things my own way and giving instructions as to how something is to be done, I also acknowledge the effort made by other people and their contribution. I like involving others in the work I do and give other people the chance to work on their potential. This gives me an opportunity to learn from others and also to help others learn. When I decide on doing something then I have to make sure it is perfectly done. This will in most cases involve me getting out of my way to ensure that all is done with excellence. Even where other people are involved, I have to supervise to ensure that the work is thoroughly done. I believe in doing the things that am passionate about and this helps me to give my best to my work. (Fiedler 1970, pp. 1-14) Self-confidence has always been a pillar in the achievement of my goals. I always have a way to encourage myself and be hopeful even in the worst of situations. This is not to say that am always confident in what I do. Sometimes the pressure in the work is too much and I get discouraged. In most cases i always get the energy to see every work through to the end. The concept of team work is a pillar in the achievement of my goals. I know as a leader one cannot do everything. Delegation is important to ensure that everything is done at the right speed and with the required expertise. I believe that there is a unique character or traits in the life of a leader that enables such person to be different from the rest. In regard to the great man theory, I believe that I have unique traits that make me different from the rest of the people and from other leaders. My ability to freely socialize with other people as well as to mobilize people whenever necessary comes in handy. Self-confidence is also a trait that enables me to be able to sway and convince others. My personality, by itself, contributes to my success as a leader and my uniqueness as compared to other people. (Richard 2014) My tolerance for uncertainty is moderate especially with the in my service as a leader. Most of the time there will be a lot of uncertainty in what I do that may stem from different factors. This means that I have to be flexible to changes and ensure that when one idea fails, I can be ready to make use of another to ensure success and achievement of the set goals. As a result of the level or degree of uncertainty involved especially as a leader, I have learnt to be prepared in order to avoid chaos. I have had to improve the organization with in the institution I lead. This means that in the preparation stages of any work that we do, I have to take in to consideration the chance that things may turn out differently. I therefore have to plan with the other people to ensure that in case of such eventualities, adjustments will be made in a way that does not lead to disorganization. (Dubrin 2015, pp. 66-70) Relationships are important for me especially in my capacity as leader. I believe that a leader is a servant of the people, serving other people. It would be difficult to serve people without knowing them or having a relationship with them. The socialization with the people leads to the rise of relationships. This can also be with other leaders who can challenge me in one or two aspects. Such relationships may also be with those that support my work. Caring for others is a priority for me. This also involves being supportive of others, be it other leaders or other people. Relationships therefore are a pillar in that respect. I believe that there is still room to grow. Being of young age there are still greater opportunities ahead that require greater knowledge and experience. I have the desire to grow to become a better leader and to achieve greater things. I do not allow complacency at this stage of life but rather strive for growth and development in all aspects. I have to find the motivation to desire to grow from within me. This means setting out my goals and planning on the achievement of such goals. The behavior theory or approach is especially important in regard to the relationship of a leader with those being led. The behavior approach mostly relates to the other subordinates. Delegation is an important factor for me as a leader. It involves my ability to trust other people enough to let them take part in the work that I do. It is an opportunity for others to contribute and in that way other leaders can be natured. It is a way for me to ensure that I have the respect and the influence of the subordinates. This boosts the working relations with other people. (Fiedler 1970, pp. 1-14) I have always considered integrity as an important trait in a leader. This is because the kind of picture a leader portrays to their followers will have an impact on such followers. The moral values of a leader will also influence those of the followers. Integrity has been a guide in ensuring that everything is done right and in obedience of the set rules. However, as a leader there are times that one slips. In such a case I ensure that such issues are rectified to avoid their recurrence and also to prevent such influence on the followers. (Richard 2014) As a leader, the ability to listen and consider the ideas and the opinions of others helps build mutual trust with the subordinates. The idea of delegation to me means that the other people can have the opportunity to exercise their ideas and opinions. It means that my ideas do not always have to carry the day but may be subject to those of other people. I also ensure that I respect the feelings of those we work with. A good leader maintains a good rapport with other people to ensure that there is trust between them. The diversity of the workers or the subordinates is an important consideration for me. Leadership involves delegation to other people. In order to delegate one must have reliable and capable people. This means people that are qualified in different fields but can work together to achieve a certain goal. In regard to the Vroom-Jago contingency model, the participants and the work they do must be capable of influencing the quality of the work done. This involves having the leader choosing persons that are qualified and have expertise in areas related to the work being done. The actions and the behaviors of the subordinates and other people under the leader will determine how effective a leader is. (Richard 2014) Contingency approaches to leadership ensure that the characteristics of the situation at hand and the people being led determine the kind of style of leadership that can be used. A leader who is task oriented and one who is relationship oriented will have different results in terms of accomplishing the goals that have been set. I am a relationship oriented leader hence my style of leadership is different from the other work oriented leaders. (Peters & Pohlmann 1985, p 274) The structure of every organization depends on the leader and such will determine whether or not the goals that have been set will be achieved. I sometimes do not put enough emphasis on the importance of a good organizational structure. However, this is important for the success of every organization. This involves the ability of the leader to direct the work of the other people and the subordinates to ensure that it is in line with the goals that have been set. As a leader I have to make sure that the work done is efficient and in accordance with the schedule that has been set for that particular project. I have to make sure that what I do and the activities of the organization are directed towards facilitating the achievement of the goals. Emotional intelligence determines the degree of success of a leader. This is the ability of a leader to understand and manage their emotions and those of others. In many ways i have not been effective in emotional intelligence. To acquire emotional intelligence a leader needs to be self-aware. The leader has to know their weaknesses and their strengths. A leader also has to have social awareness which is the ability to understand others. The leader then has to be able to manage their emotions and have to be optimistic. A leader has to motivate his followers, influence and help to develop them. This will contribute to the achievement of the goals that have been set. Emotional intelligence is therefore an important tool towards the motivation of the followers and workers. It is a sign of effective leadership. (Howell 2014, p 54) Action plan To ensure effective leadership, I have to grow more and develop as well as acquire more leadership skills and traits. This will ensure that I am able to achieve my goals as a leader. Objective The objective is to strengthen my leadership traits and behaviors in order to ensure more efficiency as a leader. Activities involved I have to make sure that I acquire emotional intelligence. This will involve conducting a self-awareness test in order to understand myself better as a leader. Through self-awareness I will be able to understand my strength and weaknesses and also my limits as a leader. It will also help me in being able to involve others more in striving to achieve the goals that have been set. Through self-awareness I will be able to reduce the degree of uncertainty especially since I will be aware of what I can and cannot do. By the time I leave school I should be in a position to be able to deal with my emotions and even those of other workers and subordinates. Leadership behavior has to reflect care and concern for the followers. Since I am a relationship oriented leader, there is need for me to invest more in ensuring that am able to develop relationships with my followers. This will create mutual trust with the workers and the followers. (Richard 2014) Knowledge is also important for a leader especially in relation to the field of leadership a person is in. I need to develop more knowledge as a leader in order to be able to be an effective leader. The acquisition of more knowledge will help to push my desire to excel as a leader and also ensure that the goals I set are achievable. Knowledge will also be important in being able to understand the other subordinate staff and the followers. Knowledge, education and other leadership traits have to be accompanied by the desire to lead as well as self-confidence as a leader. As I continue to grow as a leader my goal is to achieve more passion and energy as a leader. This will also involve being able to involve others in a greater degree in the achievement of my goals as a leader. References Daft, R 2014, The leadership experience, Cengage Learning. Dubrin, A 2015, Leadership: Research findings, practice, and skills, Cengage Learning. Fiedler, F, E 1970, ‘Leadership experience and leader performance—Another hypothesis shot to hell,’ Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 5(1), 1-14. Yukl, G 1971, ‘Toward a behavioral theory of leadership,’ Organizational behavior and human performance, 6(4), 414-440. Bass, B, M & Stogdill, R, M 1990, Handbook of leadership (Vol. 11), New York: Free Press. Peters, L H, Hartke, D D, & Pohlmann, J T 1985, ‘Fiedler's Contingency Theory of Leadership: An application of the meta-analysis procedures of Schmidt and Hunter,’ Psychological Bulletin, 97(2), 274. Hersey, P & Blanchard, K H 1976, ‘Leader effectiveness and adaptability description (LEAD),’ The 1976 annual handbook for group facilitators, 5, 133-142. Hambleton, R K & Gumpert, R 1982, ‘The validity of Hersey and Blanchard's theory of leader effectiveness,’ Group & Organization Management, 7(2), 225-242. House, R J 1971, ‘A path goal theory of leader effectiveness,’ Administrative science quarterly, 321-339. Myers, I B, McCaulley, M H & Most, R 1985, Manual, a guide to the development and use of the Myers-Briggs type indicator, Consulting Psychologists Press. Howell, T J 2014, ‘Daniel Goleman–Emotional Intelligence,’ Instructor. 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