Leadership, Meaning and Power - Essay Example

Leader, Meaning and Power LEADERSHIP, MEANING AND POWER Many persons and books define Leadership in different ways. For instance, one defines leadership as: “The ability to lead.” Other says “Leadership is influencing others to follow a given direction.” Another puts it more basically as: “The process by which a person influences others to accomplish an objective.” While some says: “Leadership is influence - nothing more, nothing less. Hence Leadership is “the process of determining goals for the team and finding a way for the team to meet those goals” (Bennis, 1993). Leadership is simply finding techniques to motivate team members or workers to attain their objectives. Each worker or individual in a team may have to be provoked in a different manner therefore learning how to motivate team members is not an easy task for a leader. The main task of a leader is to discovering how to get each team member or worker to perform at the maximum height. Most definitions of leadership dont differentiate between leadership and management, or moreover leadership is overvalued and management redundant. Therefore people mostly confuse "management" with leadership, for the reason that managers and leaders have much in common such as they both occupy positions of authority, they both utilize their authority to administrate or control a business or operation efficiently and they both depend on other people around them for information, ideas, and the direction of their everyday activities. However, they both have some immense differences between them. Leadership is a job in which leaders formulate planned pronouncements, are excellent in managing people and possess arousing brainpower and aptitude. A manager is not a leader. A manager may have outstanding talent in managing jobs, making strategies and measures, chasing regulations and bringing services. But if people don’t follow their direction enthusiastically then they are not a leader. Therefore, leaders should present their followers a cause, way or goal that is motivating, striking or pleasing enough for others to desire to follow. Leadership is much more than management. It is the capability to direct a group of supporters successfully, build them and the organization successful, and still continue applicable philosophies and standards. Great leaders develop their own leadership styles by means of learning, experiments, mistakes and the experience of victory. Leaders must have followers to be victorious, and they have got to recognize how to delight the followers to make sure their victory (Wolfensberger, 2003). They are not only concerned about themselves but also with about others, the same as they are with themselves and they are always concerned with change and development of the organization and the populace around them. They should have standards that are reliable with high moral and ethical values, and they should know how to stimulate others successfully. Great leaders can interchange these leadership styles when it creates the most sense. Some of the World’s greatest leaders in history undoubtedly were of this category, like Ronald Reagan and many others. They had the capability to inspire their followers and bring out change. Change is a very important factor of a great leader it is necessary for them to know how to generate successful change and motivate others to change too. But Great leaders are not all optimistic, like Hitler. This clearly shows that leadership can be negative and may have negative characteristic. This also demonstrates the negative aspect of power of leadership. A leader is required to be able to communicate his ideas and vision in terms with the purpose of causing followers to get into it. He should communicate clearly and enthusiastically, because passion is transmittable. A good leader should have the discipline to work toward his vision overenthusiastically. He is responsible to direct his actions and those of the team on the road to the target. The mark of a leader is Action. A leader does not experience "analysis paralysis" other than he is constantly doing impressive things in quest of the vision and hence stimulating others to do the alike. Leadership holds a number of implications. Leaders are not all the time managers or supervisors which are officially appointed by others, within an organization. In reality, this is a single way of distinguishing between managers and leaders. Managers are selected from above (that is by more senior supervision), leaders are chosen from below (that is by their supporters). Leaders don’t even have responsibility for a team (Harvard Business School Publishing, 1993). Occasionally people are acknowledged as containing leadership personality or character by others, who afterward merely decide to pursue what that person states or acts. Excellent illustrations are the people who lead religious (for instance Jesus Christ), innovatory (for example Napoleon) or human rights (for instance Martin Luther King) movements. Power is the ability to influence others who are in a position of reliance. Power is an extensive idea that relates to both individuals as well as groups. While thinking about power, what immediately comes in the minds of most of the people is the direction that sophisticated leaders exercise from their positions atop the organizational hierarchy. Although power expands far away from the official right that come up from a label. At all levels leaders have right to use power but normally that power sets out unapproved or underutilized. Earlier researches have recognized seven basis of power that leaders may leverage (Luecke, 1994): 1. The power of position: The power that arrives from a person’s position in an organization or an association. 2. The power of charisma: it is the motivation that is produced by a leader’s style or personality. 3. The power of relationships: it is the driving force that leaders achieve through their connections equally present within and outside of workplace. 4. The power of information: it is the influence that is produced through the deployment of facts organized to make an argument. 5. The power of expertise is the inspiration that derives itself from growing and conversing dedicated information or the perspicacity of information. The power of proficiency, the power of knowledge, and the power of associations are the top three most often leveraged foundation of power. The power of condemnation is the least-leveraged source of power. When leaders give emphasis to the power of associations and the power of knowledge, and also extend their other accessible basis of power by then they can be more effectual. Approaches for leveraging power efficiently comprise (Beck & Cowan, 1996): Make relationships a priority. Don’t overemphasize your personal schema. Maximize your communication network. Be generous with information. Make the most of your position. Expand your brand of charisma. Be the expert. Adapt your power to reward others. Reward with words. Penalize with reason. Teach others. Even though power which is asymmetric control overestimated resources, is often a base of leadership that is influencing and inspiring a group of individuals in the direction of a common goal. Power is neither an obligatory nor a satisfactory stipulation for the materialization of leadership. The psychosomatic characteristics of power like action, hopefulness, theoretical philosophy can be observed as an essential part of efficient leadership. Other psychosomatic effects of power that are frequently connected with malfeasance and are the direct opposite of leadership includes reduced perception-taking, daring, overconfidence, and the inclination to objectify others by perceiving them through means of self-centeredness (Bialer, 1980). Consequently an efficient leader is one who is capable to connect the positive psychosomatic consequences of power at the same time extenuating the negative ones. Thus, the most excellent leaders are action-oriented, positive perception takers who observe the big picture. The catalyst of power joint with perception getting can be a predominantly productive potency that permits for the materialization of efficient leadership. Though power and leadership are not the same, and they deviate on a number of significant proportions. Power and leadership vary a lot on the definitive function or objective of exercising one’s influence. The influence of power influence is often heading for pleasing personal wishes and is resultant from the capability to supply or hold back resources or direct punishments. On the contrary, the influence of leadership not comes out from entice of inducement but by stimulating through public speaking and being the paradigm of preferred performance. Leaders exercise influence to assist the group arriving at a shared purpose. Accordingly, power is often insensitive, exercised in the service of the person, while leadership is heading for inspiring the general good for all its associates. Leadership connotes position and admiration; while power does not necessarily come with such privileges. A leader receives respect and admiration by virtue of his capability to connect members’ fundamental inspiration to attain a common goal. On the contrary the use of power does not promise positive impersonation from subsidiary or viewers. The most important and essential qualities or characteristics of a true leader are: High intellect balanced with strong common sense. Inborn abilities with policy and planning. Judiciousness and a gift for negotiation. Comprehensible and reliable vision coordinated with flexibility to modify course if or as required. Capability to take designed dangers and hazards and with consistent victory as merely being a risk taker. Ability for constructing a well-formed core team together with encouraging open conversation and free and independent ideas and thoughts. Capacity for constructing agreement without demanding unreserved commitment. Expert at and dedication to redirecting barriers to team achievement Advanced self-confidence evenhanded with consideration and understanding. Compassionate sense of wittiness True leaders generate extraordinarily high and reliable outcomes for their organizations through their provoked teams. Types of leadership: Transformational Leadership: The principal focus of the transformational leadership is to create changes occur in our Self, in others, in groups as well as in organizations. It requires the connection of management. High levels of communication are very significant in the transformational leadership from management to meet objectives and targets. Through communication and high visibility, leaders stimulate workers and develop productivity and competence (Beerel, 2009). The transformational leadership necessitates a number of diverse expertise and proficiencies. This type of leadership is directly connected with two other types of leadership that is charismatic and visionary leadership. Leaders focus on productivity and competence within an organization and hand over smaller responsibilities and jobs to the team members to achieve objectives and targets. Transactional Leadership: Transactional Leadership gives emphasis to getting things done within an organization and its goals are approximately in opposition to the goals of the transformational leadership. In this kind of leadership the individual works within the rules. Due to this reason Transactional Leadership is more frequently seen in large bureaucratic organizations where political deliberations are the element of every day life. Leaders with the transactional leadership obtain specific tasks to carry out and give rewards or punishments to team members founded on performance results. Workers are given rewards when they achieve objectives and targets. Leaders with team members lay down programmed objectives collectively which are supported by the workers to go along the direction and leadership of the leader in order to complete those objectives. The leader enjoys the control to evaluate results and teach or approve workers when team members are unsuccessful to meet demands and achieve goals (Lassey & Fernández, 1976). Charismatic Leadership: A charismatic leadership comes out resembling a transformational leadership, in that style the leader introduces massive amount of passion into his team members and is very vigorous in motivating his employees forward. On the other hand, a charismatic leader can be inclined to trust more in him other than in his team or group. So if a leader needs to depart, it can generate a menace that might disintegrate a mission or even a whole organization. For his followers, success or achievement is affianced with the existence of the charismatic leader. By this way charismatic leadership holds great dependability, and requires lasting dedication and devotion from the leader (Miller & Levitin, 1976). Cultural Leadership: Cultural leadership is a leadership unconventional which is embedded in society, civilization, people, traditions and intellectual characteristics. Cultural leadership is innovative and resourceful leadership. It makes the most of abilities, talents and arts and various other reckonable varieties of innovative communal scholarship and open society places to edify and increase attentiveness and understanding. Hence a leader is one who facilitates and assists the group deal with any or all of the matters which means that there can be a number of leaders at any one time in an organization, each and every one running different and various things. Hence it is therefore possible to have leadership being ‘dispersed’ right through a group or an organization in which some of them have more dispersed leadership while others have less that depends on customs, associations and connections. People can express leadership in different ways; examining where the group or organization is going, ensuring that people feel contented, satisfied and welcomed, seeking for financial support and opportunities, signifying the group in wider mediums, exploring issues of significance to the group and identifying the local political and sponsorship perspective and situations. A person can only be a leader if and only if other members of the group or an organization recognize him as leaders and own up his influence. This recognition is often derived from comprehension, skill and proficiency. "Leaders are born, not made" is an old philosophy and is invalid. Leadership skills and abilities can be studied and cultured. Learning different leadership philosophies and practicing them can be helpful to enhance and develop Leadership skills. Leaders discover skills with the advancement of their career and profession. Observing the positive attribute in each boss or administrator you have during a career, practicing those attributes that you admire even if your job is not an organizational role. Administrators or directors are not merely those who express leadership moreover employees can also demonstrate leadership in how they perform their jobs each day and cooperate and work together with their co-worker or colleagues. Thus a leader is defined by qualities a person has, the skills he has learnt and the actions he performs. Other people recognize these characteristics and characters and enthusiastically decide and prefer to follow. Leadership can be exciting, demanding, terrifying, gratifying, overwhelming and very pleasing! References Bennis, W. G. (1993). An invented life: Reflections on leadership and change. Reading, Mass: Addison-Wesley Pub. Co. Top of Form Beerel, A. C. (2009). Leadership and change management. Los Angeles: SAGE. Bottom of Form Top of Form Harvard Business School Publishing. (1996). Leadership and change. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard Business Review. Bottom of Form Top of Form Luecke, R. (1994). Scuttle your ships before advancing: And other lessons from history on leadership and change for todays managers. New York: Oxford University Press. Bottom of Form Top of Form Miller, W. E., & Levitin, T. E. (1976). Leadership and change: The new politics and the American electorate. Cambridge, Mass: Winthrop Publishers. Bottom of Form Top of Form Lassey, W. R., & Fernández, R. R. (1976). Leadership and social change. La Jolla, Calif: University Associates. Bottom of Form Top of Form Beck, D., & Cowan, C. C. (1996). Spiral dynamics: Mastering values, leadership, and change : exploring the new science of memetics. Cambridge, Mass., USA: Blackwell Business. Top of Form Wolfensberger, W. (2003). Leadership and change in human services: Selected readings from Wolf Wolfensberger. London: Routledge. Bottom of Form Top of Form Top of Form Bialer, S. (1980). Stalins successors: Leadership, stability, and change in the Soviet Union. Cambridge [Eng.: Cambridge University Press. Bottom of Form Top of Form Kotter, J. P. (1996). Leading change. Boston, Mass: Harvard Business School Press. Bottom of Form Top of Form Top of Form Top of Form Read More