The main premise of the article “Discovering Your Authentic Leadership” by Bill George et al., is that leadership is not measured or defined by one standard method or style. Instead, leadership should be authentic and be comprised upon the individual’s original and unprecedented approach. Authentic leadership is characterized by a passion for purpose, uniform/consistent values and harmony between the heart (sensibility) and the mind (logic). Moreover, authentic leaders are self-actualized individuals who are aware of their strengths, their limitations, and their emotions. These types of leaders are trustworthy and genuine and are not afraid to be vulnerable in front of their followers. Authentic leadership embrace the humility and humbleness …show more content…
There quest to answering this question became what was the “largest in-depth study of leadership development ever undertaken.” After interviewing 125 leaders of all nationalities and racial, religious and socioeconomic backgrounds, they found that each of the leaders’ leadership styles emerged from their life stories. The reason why they became so successful was because throughout their lives they “tested themselves through real-world experiences” and “reframing their life stories to understand who they were at the core.” By doing so, they were able to identify the purpose of their leadership style and the importance and effectiveness of being an authentic leader. The results of this study proves that there are no specific characteristics or traits of a leader, nor is anyone born with the ability to lead. Leadership is learned and it takes many years and lots of change to perfect your craft. In order to build your authentic leadership style you have to be committed to developing and redeveloping yourself. Self-evaluation is necessary to understand how one can use their “leadership gifts to serve others.” The article also addresses the fact that authentic leaders should practice their values and principles even though it could be a substantial risk to themselves. Becoming an authentic leader can be challenging and requires a strong support team to keep he/she grounded
Authentic leaders are honest, ethical and practical. An authentic leader develops their own leadership style, but this leadership style should not be overly tough. An authentic leadership style is one that can adapt to different situations and circumstances (Magloff). Coach Saban has five core values that he preaches every chance he
The topic of leadership has been explored and written about by thousands of authors who are considerably more qualified than I am to write about the subject. However, I’ve always maintained that developing, evolving and articulating one’s own leadership philosophy is an essential part of a professional’s growth. Through academics and experience, I’ve concluded that leadership is a “soft” skill, more art than science, and that leadership principles can be universally applied. As a topic of discussion, leadership can be ambiguous and seldom does everyone agree on a single definition. Organizations and the people they consist of crave leadership, even if not overtly. Undeniably, strong leadership is essential to achieving
Leadership at times can be a complex topic to delve into and may appear to be a simple and graspable concept for a certain few. Leadership skills are not simply acquired through position, seniority, pay scale, or the amount of titles an individual holds but is a characteristic acquired or is an innate trait for the fortunate few who possess it. Leadership can be misconstrued with management; a manager “manages” the daily operations of a company’s work while a leader envisions, influences, and empowers the individuals around them.
The Leadership Challenge by Kouzes and Posner (2007) is the result of twenty years of research on the factors that influence and create great leadership. Through studies and stories from leaders with various backgrounds throughout the world, the practices and characteristics that create great leadership are delineated. Leadership is viewed not as a group of inherent characteristics, but as learned behavior that anyone can achieve. The goal of Kouzes and Posner’s book is to inspire and educate leaders through transformational leadership. As such, leadership is about mobilizing others to become and do extraordinary things.
Leadership is a quality which cannot be acquired by any person from the other but it can be acquired by self-determination of a person. Leadership can best be called the personality of the very highest ability-whether in ruling, thinking, imagining, innovation, warring, or religious influencing. Leadership is practiced not so much in words a it is in attitude and in actions. Their actions leave a long lasting memory in the line of history and lead up to may events that occur today. To be a leader one will need many qualities. Leaders have a purpose and strategies to accomplish that purpose. They are driven and motivated. In the end they should be able to attain good results. These innate talents help to make up a leader that will succeed and be efficient in carrying out tasks. But, the purpose of this paper is determine what truly makes a leader successful. A successful leader should be considered more on their impact rather than their accomplishments of their organizations alone for they are not sufficient in determining the key to their success .
The leadership is a result of a combination of traits, with special emphasis on the personal qualities of the leader, which he should possess certain personality traits that would be special facilitators in leadership performance. This theory shows that leaders are born as such, there is no likelihood of 'making' them later with personal development techniques.
In an effort to understand the questionnaire, one must first understand the definition of an Authentic Leader. Genuine, trustworthy and reliable are a few words that are interchangeable with the term authentic. Authentic leaders exhibit qualities of confidence, transparency, and high moral standard and are usually very confident (Gardner, Avolio, Luthans, May and Walumbwa, 2005). A person that is considered to be authentic is one who taking account for their behavior and a person who is true to themselves and what they think. A quality of an authentic leader is that he/she exudes the level of authenticity through their actions that encourage others to want to behave the same way. The leader who acts in this manner believes that all individuals have something to contribute to a goal and
The qualities that make a good leader are as varied as the people that fill leadership roles. Some leaders aren’t overly dynamic but somehow get the best out of people while others appear to be too carefree to take seriously. What is it then that makes leaders who they are? A personal philosophy of leadership is that distinguishing trait that every leader possesses. What those leadership characteristics and behaviors are will be explored in the following text, along with what I believe is the best route for me to follow as I work on developing my own personal philosophy of leadership.
To be an authentic leader one must discover their True North and the purpose of leadership. Leadership decides the success or failure of organizations. The chief cause of organizational failure for the last decade has been failed leadership. A leader’s
As Yukl (2010) indicates, such factors (e.g. personality, values and capacities) attributed to a leader. Normally it is widespread acknowledged that someone is born to be a lead...
The emphasis on leaders being not just executives and managers, and that not all executives and managers are leaders, is extremely vital. Anyone can strive to be a leader in whatever organization in which they are involved. Bennis and Nanus claim that leadership is about character, setting the example for how team members treat one other (and in a corporate setting, their clients as well), being truthful and sustaining organizational trust, and encouraging themselves and others to learn. On one hand, it can be easy to see how many people in leadership positions do no match up to these standards of leadership. On the other, it seems a bit like common sense to be truthful to others and to effectively communicate with people who work together everyday. Leaders is an effective tool for summarizing and inspiring leadership not in that it teaches tough strategies and manipulations, but that when looking at an overview of its content, Bennis and Nanus are essentially teaching human relations and human decency. All in all, this book highlights strategies for us all to be better in our lives and our everyday
When considering the term management, there has always been a common miss conception that this automatically makes an individual a leader. Leadership is only a single element of the management role. Many times managers are more comfortable utilizing a particular leadership style. While this may work well the majority of the time, certain employees or situations may require a different approach. Good leadership requires that the individual recognize the need for change to motivate their employees to accomplish the task at hand or to reach common goals. Understanding the importance of leadership is essential. However, the key element to focus on is what steps can be taken to improve one’s leadership capabilities. For many individuals this may be a difficult question to answer and may only be possible through self-assessment and reflection.
Leadership is trait that is extremely important in any society. Leadership is known as the way people attempting to make a difference in a situation. However, I believe that it is better said to be a way of influencing others actions. Leadership is usually connected to a great leader that affected his or her followers in a dynamic way. Throughout the semester for my leadership class, I have expanded the knowledge in numerous ways. I now have fully understanding of the purpose and process of leadership to a society. Being a leader one must maintain an image of being the role model. I believe that this is leader should be who is someone who has the ability to influence, encourage, listen, and nurture. They are able to inspire, stimulate, persuade, shape, and have an effect on others.
Authenticity as a leader is rooted in a person’s altruistic disposition. To act from a place of service to others is essential to the role of a leader in motivating his/her followers. A leader must be humble enough to place the goal of the collective above all else and to recognize their role in motivating others towards that goal. To truly act with authenticity as a leader then becomes characterized by this shared leadership and sense of community. An authentic leader doesn’t act independently but rather as a team.
Manning and Curtis (2015) describe various and distinct leadership styles including directive, participative, free-reign, servant, ethical, authentic, and transformative. Regardless of the specific style of leadership an individual is developing, four components are consistently involved in the development process. Self-awareness, including strengths, weaknesses, values, and beliefs; sharing information and transparency of emotions; objectivity of information and viewpoints; and inserting a moral perspective and values in decision-making (Baron, 2016). Simply stated, “Leadership development is self-development” (Kouzes and Posner, 2016, p. 55).