"What to Ask the Person in the Mirror"

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I do not have aspirations to become a CEO of a company or even an administrator of a hospital; however, I do hope to be a leader in some fashion at some point in my career as a nurse. With this said, many of the ideas and points made in this article will help me to achieve this goal, whether I actually have the title of a leader or if I just am a leader to my peers without a direct title. Robert S. Kaplan spoke a lot about testing yourself and receiving, as well as giving, “timely, direct, and constructive feedback” as an authoritative figure in your organization in the article “What to Ask the Person in the Mirror.” According to Kaplan, there are seven types of questions that leaders should periodically ask themselves. These questions involve your vision and priorities for the company, time management, feedback, succession planning, evaluation and alignment, leading under pressure, and staying true to yourself.
As a leader, whether of a “Fortune 500” company or simply a manager of a local “mom and pop” store, it is important to have a clear idea of what the vision and main priorities of the company you are working for are. We have discussed the creation of a vision statement a lot in class. This statement should be focused and well known by both you and your employees. A vision statement is meant to clearly communicate both the purpose and the values of the organization. For employees, it should give direction about how they are expected to behave and also inspire them to give their best. When the vision statement is shared with customers, it helps to shape their understanding of why they should work with your organization. Defining a short, concise list of your company’s main priorities is also a very important task. As Kaplan...

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... that causes you to take the lead in order to keep things from getting worse. I feel that I work well under pressure, but I know I can work to improve this skill.
Overall, “What to Ask the Person in the Mirror” is a great article that allowed me to think about how I am going to work as a leader in my future career, even though I will not necessarily be the CEO of a large company. Leaders come in all shapes and sizes, and Robert S. Kaplan has advice and ideas that can be applied to any leadership setting. Giving and receiving timely and constructive feedback, managing your time in an efficient manner, keeping your cool under pressure, and having a clear vision and set of priorities for your company are all things that need to be done in a hospital setting. I hope to use this advice in the near and far future as I work toward achieving my goals as a nursing student.

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