Leadership Strategies in Examples

Introduction

Leadership is like the art of the possible. Without leadership, nothing moves. It empowers people to work towards goals that enrich both personal and organizational goals. The paper would seek to explain the leadership qualities in detail.

Management only deals with tasks and the completion of the task. It embraces mechanistic ways of doing things. Leadership empowers people through” the vertical linkages leaders formed with each of their followers” (Northouse, 2010, p.137). People learn, and grow into becoming great leaders. There are different types of leaders. Some of the leadership strategies such as the trait approach may not be holistically applicable but remain very important in leadership.

Good Leadership Offers Good Examples

Leadership seeks to motivate and inspire followers by involving them in decision making. Although there are some leadership styles that are regrettable, they are very few examples of such leaders. Leaders face obstacles with confidence because they have the followers’ support. They know that when they work in unity, they can face any difficult situations in life. A leader does not just show the way, he or she must also become a good example. A leader enforces the kind of environment that he or she desires. Parfit (2011) says that wise leaders promote “reasons and rationality” (p. 127).

A leader must help the employee to accept the organizational goals and or help in the formulation of the right path to success. The leader would also act as a teacher. There are things that the employee knows. Therefore, by asking and answering questions, Parfit (2011) says that both the leader and the follower would always have the most reason to care equally about “everyone’s well-being” (p. 150). It is not easy to change the staff. But when one employs the combination of trait leadership, skills, and the approach based on the six bases of power would be the best way for them to adapt to change.

I learned that some of the best examples of leadership through motivation were Daniel Shivitz and Jenny Hernandez. Daniel was able to deal with each group according to their needs. The expert oriented department involved people who could use their knowledge independently. They just needed little help. The duplicating section required much of his attention because the job was tedious. However, the job requires the leaders to “raise their game” (Hawkins, 2011, p. 9).

Jenny Hernandez was important to her team until they loved being around her. A leader has to balance his or her responsibility as a leader versus personal feelings. I learned from Jenny that when one does that, one wins the hearts of many followers. There are very small things that she did in a great way that touched the hearts of her employees. Sometimes one has to concentrate on the very minor details that display volumes of love. One must practice the art of “acting with integrity in the Enterprise’s interest” (Treviño & Nelson, 2011, p. 49). Supportive duties work well with followers who need the human touch. The achievement-oriented style would work better for challenging tasks. The authoritative and directive leadership styles can not apply where the team is cohesive and show that they understand their roles.

Every leader would require submissive and respectful followers. However, one cannot achieve much when one does not understand the followers. Some obstacles might arise due to the conflicting roles and requirements between the leader and the followers. As a leader, I need to learn that my followers require my help for them to understand the vision. I also need their support and contribution to make sure that the vision is attainable.

Transformational Leadership

Transformational leadership enables both the leader and the followers to transform. They come together as two different entities. But when they are together, they agree with each other on the modalities of how to work together and succeed. They work together. In summary “transformational leadership is the process whereby a person engages with others and creates a connection that raises the level of motivation and morality in both the leader and the follower” (Northouse, 2010, p. 162). Mohandas Gandhi became one of the most successful leaders because he was able to sell his ideas to the followers. They believed in him and in his ability to lead them. They all found a common ground and engaged each other towards winning their independence.

The high expectations of the leader raise the ambitions of the followers, who then follow willingly. A good leader is one who is ready to listen to the followers. Transactional leadership only deals with the actions of the leaders and followers. It only deals with rewards and punishment. It is not the best way to motivate both sides of the divide. Pseudo transformational leadership only focuses on the needs and satisfaction of the leader.

The basic question is whether they “need to be a team” (Hawkins, 2011, p. 22). The leader can do anything to gain the support of the followers for personal gains. Transformational leadership is the best model because it shapes the way and inspires the shared vision. It enables others to act and inspires the heart.

Leadership Lessons

I used to believe that leadership was inborn. I thought that if one is not born a leader, then one cannot lead. I also thought that it was the people who make the leader. I have learned that I was wrong. Leadership is how one works towards achieving the desired goals. I am now working on building teams. I believe in transformational leadership.

I arrived with ideas thinking that a leader is a manager. A leader has to sit in the office and supervise the performance of the workers. I also thought that a leader’s success is personal success. It should not be a shared responsibility. But when there is a failure, I thought it was solemnly the responsibility of the followers. Such an idea has been transformed. I now believe that a leader must share failure and success with the followers. When there is a failure, a leader should motivate the followers for the next step to success. I have strengthened my resolve to lead, but now with a more informed background. I now would like to motivate and help shape the destiny of the followers.

Northouse (2010) says that “the transactional leader does not individualize the needs of followers or focus on their personal development” (p. 170). The arguments about good leadership are very inspiring. The journal reflections help to instill the discipline of leadership in my system. The lessons from other capable leaders act as a good example to encourage wise leadership. Nelson Mandela is a world hero. He was able to read the signs of his times and made his people believe in him. When he became their leader, he inspired them and urged them to join in nation-building. He also knew when the time came for him to quit and let others take charge.

I had been working in my father’s company as the team leader. I had not been an excellent leader. After learning about leadership in the last semester, I started thinking about the job I was doing. I had two classes in the first semester. The first class was LDR6100, and the other class was LDR6135. The two courses helped me to analyze my leadership style. When I went back to the company, I decided to look at the vision I had set for the department I headed.

I discovered that I had stayed with it in the office without making the followers understand what it meant. I called for a meeting with them in the form of a training workshop. I encouraged them to open up by sharing. Their experiences in the workplace in the workplace help to cement strong relationships. Then I discovered that those who I had thought were lazy were the best contributors to the discussion.

Everyone shared so freely that I ended up very happy to be part of a very joyful team. They helped me to set the objectives and targets for each department. It is what I had spent months trying to formulate. I discovered that we made it within one meeting. They also owned up to the process and within a short time, I could see that everyone enjoyed their work. Some even refused to leave on time not because it was a law but because the workplace became like a second home to them. They made “decisions in an unbiased and respectful manner” (Treviño & Nelson, 2011, p. 49). They could even share personal problems and get solutions from each other.

Leadership is a profound way of making people work together. Wise leadership closes the gap between the leader and the follower. It enables people to work as a team despite their ranks. A leader must inspire the followers and make them comfortable.

References

Hawkins, P. (2011). Leadership team coaching. London: Kogan Page.

Northouse, P. (2010). Leadership: Theory and Practice (7th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Parfit, D. (2011). On what matters. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Treviño, L., & Nelson, K. (2011). Managing business ethics. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.