Abstract
The subject of leadership is increasingly gaining popularity all over the globe. This is quite explicable: more and more companies recognize that the efficiency and outcome of their activities depend on the power of their leadership capacity. The traditional functional perspective, which views strategy, organization and operations as self-contained functionalities, is changing to reflect the significance of leadership as a determining driver of their performance.
This paper will define leadership and leadership competencies and consider the purpose of leadership training. It will also look at the process of creating a personal leadership development plan and its main objectives. Particular attention is given to assessment tools and the interpretation of results in the context of personal leadership style. Thus, this paper is exemplary in identifying and planning for the personal leadership development needed to be successful in a management position.
Leadership Discussion
In psychology and sociology, leadership is defined roughly the same way as some social influence in a group with the expectation of achieving common goals. Accordingly, a leader is a person who has this influence. In the most straightforward format, leadership is represented in the animal world. In every pack, a leader ensures its safety and leads it (Aguas et al., 2917). In the human world, it is a little more complicated. To make sense of this issue, it is necessary to identify the essential traits of leadership. First is the ability to make responsible and difficult decisions and the willingness to take due responsibility for them. Secondly, the leader must lead people on an entirely voluntary basis and have charisma and natural power of influence (Bolden et al., 2016). In addition, a leader must admit mistakes and be willing to take responsibility for defeats, looking for personal blunders.
Personal leadership refers to the leader’s technical, psychological, and moral development and its influence on their qualities, skills, and behavior. This leadership consists of technical skills, the right attitude towards other people, and psychological self-control (Seijts & MacMillan, 2017). The first element is knowing one’s technical weaknesses and updating one’s knowledge and skills. The second element, attitude toward others, is about developing the right attitude toward colleagues to maintain the leader’s attitude throughout the group’s journey toward its common goal. The right attitude is to believe that other team members are just as important as the leader and view leadership as an act of service.
There is a moral aspect to this, and a practical aspect since a leader’s behavior toward others greatly influences how much they respect and trust that person and want to work with them. The third element of personal leadership is self-mastery. It emphasizes self-awareness and flexible command of one’s mind, which allows the leader to let go of limiting beliefs and protective habits.
Leadership Development Discussion
It is essential for a person to develop leadership skills. In work, having leadership skills can move a person up the career ladder, even if he never wanted to be a leader. In addition, leadership qualities can help not only in work but also in other areas of life. The following are a few of the main reasons why one should work on developing them. First, having leadership qualities gives a person more opportunities.
Businesses and companies in all industries have always looked for employees capable of leadership because they are recognized as the most effective and productive workers. Regardless of skills and specialization, leadership qualities make a person more attractive to a potential employer. Secondly, by possessing such qualities, a person gains more confidence and consequently improves their communication skills. After all, leaders should always be able to communicate their thoughts and ideas. Thirdly, having leadership qualities on their own can help others grow and unlock their potential. Thus, leadership helps not only the person who possesses it but also those around them.
The question of whether it is possible to develop leadership in oneself is still unresolved. Some psychologists and sociologists advocate “innate leadership,” they argue that one can be born a leader but not become one (Jibirin, 2019). The other half believes that leadership is a particular set of skills that can be developed. However, it is difficult to ignore the fact that most companies worldwide spend vast amounts of money on various leadership courses and training for their employees. A whole expert environment has developed in this area, manifested by many theoretical materials and practical classes (Takoeva, 2021). Based on this, a person can learn techniques, techniques, and some communication methods and develop the skills of a natural leader. That is, to master all that is offered by courses, training, and other activities.
However, unfortunately, they do not teach empathy, determination and courage, diligence, and a passion for achieving goals. These qualities are not skills; they are personal characteristics that depend on the individual. Specialists distinguish some critical factors contributing to the formation of leadership. Humanities education, which teaches a person to think broadly and creatively, is first (Rubens et al., 2018). Early leadership experience is also an essential factor. It is argued that this helps the leader become a leader to better adapt to the organization and its conditions. Early leadership proves that managerial methods do not solve everything; one needs to be able to be a leader. The experience of defeats and failures also contributes to the development of leadership, which provides essential life lessons and teaches to “get it together” in the shortest possible time (Hickman & Knouse, 2020). Finally, professional training should not be forgotten.
At a minimum, a professional education in management, at a maximum, continuous training at courses, pieces of training, and seminars on the art of management. If one follows all of these recommendations, it is possible to become a good leader even without an innate aptitude for it. In addition, it is necessary to develop personal qualities such as responsibility, purposefulness, and self-confidence. It is also worth developing some technical skills. In general, these skills include the ability to understand controversial situations and make the right decisions, to distribute tasks between employees, and the ability to organize their activities.
The Journey of Developing my Plan
Creating a personal leadership development plan is an essential part of any successful leadership development strategy. By following this plan, I will focus my efforts on what is needed for continued personal growth. Such a plan includes an assessment of my leadership style, values, and requirements and identifying development goals, related objectives, and the specific actions needed to implement them. My goal is to become a business manager in the financial sector by 2022. A leadership style analysis is required before moving on to specific steps to achieve the goal when developing a leadership development plan.
To build my project, I took a test that consisted of twelve questions designed to determine my leadership style. In addition, four other people went through this assessment with me, which was necessary to calibrate the results. After taking the survey, I conducted an interpretation of the results and compared the other data I received. With information on my management style and the most appropriate type of leadership, I could begin to develop specific steps to achieve my goal.
First of all, these were goals to strengthen those personality traits that were identified as weak. I also thought through the steps to further develop my strong qualities. The development of personal attributes can be done from a personal perspective and a societal perspective. I chose personal training as my perspective and internships and apprenticeships as my social perspective. To finalize the plan, I put all the data into two tables – the necessary improvements and how this will be done. In this way, I completed the program and was able to proceed with it.
Discussion of the Assessment Instruments Used
In my leadership development plan, there are two main assessments, primary and secondary. The preliminary evaluation is to take a test to determine my leadership style. A twelve-statement survey was used for this test. The process of taking it was to choose the answer choice that was most appropriate for me. The evaluation consisted of scoring and then placing them in a particular range. There were three ranges in total, with the lowest value of 12 points and the highest of 36. The lowest score indicated a tendency toward an authoritarian leadership style, the middle toward a democratic style, and the highest toward a free style. The average range was between 21 and 27 points. Based on the results of this assessment, the participant received an interpretation of his leadership style and recommendations for the development of stable and weak personality traits.
This assessment tool is very convenient because it allows most of the necessary data to be determined at once. Based on the results of this assessment, the construction of the further leadership development plan was established. The secondary evaluation is to evaluate the post-results of the plan’s implementation. Another survey is created for it, which will highlight all of the primary goals of the project. This survey is based on a modified version of the Likert scale (Riggio, 2018). By taking it, the participant must determine if a specific statement is true. The data from this assessment will provide all of the necessary information about the degree to which a goal is complete. In this way, using the two assessment tools, it will be possible to gather the data necessary to create a plan and information about its effectiveness.
Discussion of the Assessment Results
Since the secondary evaluation can only be done after the implementation and execution of the plan, I will discuss the results of the primary. According to the assessment, after tallying the results, I scored 23 points out of a possible 36. It follows that the most applicable leadership style for me is democratic. According to the transcript, this means that I actively involve my employees in decision-making while leaving the last word to myself. The advantage of this leadership style is that each employee feels valued and vital and therefore trusts their superior. However, there are disadvantages to this style as well. For example, it is not very good in stressful or non-standard situations where decisions must be made quickly and clearly. Since democratic leadership involves the whole team in decision-making, it may take too much time.
To build proper communication while involving all people in exchanging ideas, I need to develop some crucial qualities. These include, first and foremost, flexibility and openness to different opinions. This is necessary to distribute my attention equally and give as many people as possible a chance to say. In addition, I will need to maintain acceptance and tolerance in the group so that employees’ opinions are met with constructive criticism rather than condemnation. Finally, I need to develop the skill of conflict resolution, as conflicts can arise when polar beliefs intersect. I also received a recommendation from the evaluation that I should approach different managerial tasks individually because one leadership style is not suitable for all situations.
The Leadership Plan
With all the data and the results of the assessment, a leadership development plan can be presented. In the beginning, there will be a goal to become a manager in the financial sector by 2022. Practical ways to achieve this goal include completing a degree in business management and applying for jobs and internships in this field. A leadership plan in this context will help me develop the qualities I need to be successful. Next, the program identifies the personal qualities that need to be strengthened. These include flexibility, openness to new solutions, communication skills, and the ability to resolve conflicts. Next, I will describe how exactly these qualities will be developed. To strengthen flexibility and openness to new ideas, I plan to attend open training sessions and conferences. This will help me learn to listen to other people and to correlate their ideas with my own. It will also give me the experience of having open discussions where everyone is on an equal footing.
To learn how to solve conflicts, I am going to attend group sessions with a conflict counselor. In these sessions, people break down the most common causes of interpersonal conflicts and get professional advice on how to resolve them. I will also have several meetings with a personal psychologist to help me become more self-confident and show me new ways to deal with inner contradictions. To develop my communication skills, I plan to learn how to build effective communication with people through a variety of experiences. Both formal contact with teachers and professors at my university and informal communication with peers will suit it. Thus, my leadership development plan will help me gain all the qualities I need to lead effectively in the most appropriate democratic style.
References
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