Role Models and how their leadership traits impact your personal character and behaviors - Term Paper Example

My German Grandmother as my Role Model Leadership is the supremacy to stimulate people by words, actions and deeds using vision, faith and honesty (Northouse, 2009; Giuliani & Kurson, 2005). Leadership involves fairly inspiring others to follow guidelines which should consist of both bureaucratic (procedural) and substantive (character-based) aspects. One aspect of leadership is transformational leadership (Brown & Travino, 2006) in which the leaders produce such an effect on their subordinates that they inflict a “transforming effect” on them thus producing “sweeping changes” (Priyabhasini & Krishnan, 2005, p.1) in their personalities and attitudes.

In this paper, I intend to discuss how my grandmother became my role model and how her ethical and transformational leadership qualities inspired me to positively change my behavior, attitude and thinking skills. I had always been inspired by how my grandmother’s strategic behavior motivated others to step into her shoes. She was German by birth. She had a strong military background and as every one of us knows, militia always has strong discipline, morals and standards. My grandmother had such strict ethical standards that no one could ever think of doing wrong to another person in front of her.

She had a high morale and always told us not to get afraid of hardships and calamities. Her greatest possession was the German heritage whose best qualities she tried to inculcate in her offspring. She was strong both physically and mentally and thus was a great source of strength for the entire family. She had great leadership qualities. She had a brawny vision which enabled her to solve problems with ethical values. It was the honesty of her inner self that made her do wise and just decisions.

She was able to give voice to her vision in front of opposition. She was brave enough to make people appreciate her ethical directions and values. She could frame her actions in such a way that they went just in accordance to her inner beliefs and standards. She always emphasized upon the importance of time and was able to schedule her tasks and work plans according to the set deadlines. She had great problem-solving skills. She knew how to abide by the rules and regulations. As for me, I am a dynamic leader with a structured leadership approach.

Yet, I try to inculcate in my leadership approach the values I learnt from my grandmother. She was the one who motivated me to frame my leadership and thinking skills. I have been able to change my daily behaviors according to the lessons she taught me. She trained me how to treat my juniors fairly. She made me learn the importance of ethical leadership. Her morals and high standards have not just inspired me but have continued to stimulate and encourage everyone who knew her. She very successfully passed on the best qualities of German heritage that she received from her forefathers.

Her military background added to her strong features. In short, I thank God for blessing me with such a great grandmother whose leadership qualities will continue to inspire me till my grave. References Brown, M.E., & Travino, L.K. (2006). Ethical leadership: A review and future directions. The Leadership Quarterly, 17(6), pp. 595-616. Giuliani, R.W., & Kurson, K. (2005). Leadership. USA: Miramax Books. Northouse, P.G. (2009). Leadership: Theory and Practice. USA: Sage. Priyabhasini, A., & Krishnan, V.R. (2005).

Transformational leadership and follower’s career advancement: role of pygmalion effect. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations, 40(4), pp. 482-499.