Definition of Leadership

Leadership is not only the ability to manage others and accomplish tasks, but also the ability to inspire others to gain the desire to do their best. I often help, and share knowledge with subordinates and peers alike in their pursuit of higher responsibilities. Because I lead by example, I have been able to help multiple Airmen become more mature, skillful, and motivated to take initiative to achieve higher responsibilities in their careers.

The Army’s definition of leadership is influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation, while operating to accomplish the mission and improve the organization (Army, 2012). As a young Sergeant in the United States Army, I thought I was being a good leader by being an effective manager. I was determined to lead Soldiers and accomplish my organizations’ mission. As I gained more experience and attained the rank of Staff Sergeant, I realized that I was managing instead of leading. Leadership is not synonymous with management. Leadership goes beyond the allocation of personnel and resources to accomplish the organization’s goals. Leadership involves change, from being an individual performer to being an influencer. An effective leader has the ability to unite personnel behind the organization’s mission by examining individual motivations to promote success. Providing purpose and direction instills ownership in the success of the organization. A leader is also effective in building team culture. Yet, a leader cannot accomplish the above with establishing her/her own leadership philosophy grounded their individual values,

My definition of leadership is, “the ability to inspire, motivate and influence a person or group of people to reach a shared goal”. Throughout my career, I have been inspired, motivated and influenced by military members (enlisted and officers) across all services, those in the private sector and religious leaders. This essay will focus on my definition of leadership, three leadership behaviors from my Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) that can be improved upon, personal values and my leadership philosophy. Three Leadership Behaviors We do not know what we do not know.

In a statement of 200-300 words, please explain what ‘leadership’ means to you and how you have demonstrated leadership in ONE of the following instances: your school, workplace, or local community.

For the Final Project I am going to write a traditional scholarly essay that examines how stories relate to creative leadership within many diverse fields, the way stories can be used when dealing with challenging leadership situations, how the creation of stories are a big part of a leaders mission to guide others, the importance of leadership, and the ways that leadership incorporates stories to open up new opportunities. According to Ladan Nikravan, he states that “If we do not employ creativity as a core cultural imperative in business, we will be stuck in yesterday’s success and actively resist change.” This will be the underlying concept of this essay that will help to prove why leadership needs to be approached carefully in order to be open to new ideas and have a more creative mindset. I can go about developing this information into an essay by using examples and many different concepts from the stories within each

Being a leader means different things to different people. In my eyes, being a leader means exhibiting courage and setting an example to my teammates. I want the younger players to be able to look up to me, and come to me when they need counsel. I lead by example, and never stray from my morals. I know of people who try to "lead" by telling others what to do, but I know this isn't the correct method. I lead by becoming friends with my teammates and encouraging them when things don't go their way. As the team captain on our varsity basketball team, I am held to higher standards. I have to keep the team in check and focused on our goals. My leadership roles are present off the court as well. I am vice president of the school's student council

In chapter one, the concept and definition of leadership was introduced and according to the text, more than one hundred definitions of leadership have been identified by scholars and academic studies. What is clear is that leadership requires certain skills and traits of an individual that give them the ability to influence others in a way that motivates them to work toward and accomplish a common objective and goal effectively. While most traits seem to be somewhat inborn and natural to most leaders, it is true that others can be taught and develop the skills over time.

Reflecting on my career, I believe it would be hard for me to imagine my current positions, rank and responsibility in both the fire service and Coast Guard when I began in 1998. Over the years I have had several great mentors who have shaped my perceptions and guided my actions. My parents garner much of the credit of my successes as they raised me with a baseline of values which serves me still today. Those values, my mentors and my experiences have worked to temper my definition of leadership. My personal definition of leadership is the practice of taking people to places (real or figurative) they would likely not go on their own. While this my simplistic view, it is one which I have rallied around in my career. It distinguishes itself from that of a position of management where the parameters are typically set and the rules for success are generally known. When encountering the unknown, or the uncharted territory, those who pioneer practice leadership.

Murphy’s definition of leadership stems around the idea that leadership is situational, in which the leader, follower, and situation are all influenced by the other, and that through this interaction and relationships, a leader emerges and leads towards the achievement of a goal (Murphy, 1941).

The Webster Dictionary defines leadership as an office or position, the capacity to lead, the act or an instance of leading (Merriam-Webster, 2011). Leader is defined as; a person who directs a military force or unit, a person who has commanding authority or influence (Merriam-Webster, 2011). The Army defines leadership as the process of influencing people by

My definition of leadership is taken directly from the U.S Army; “influencing others to accomplish a mission, while taking care of people and improving the

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Leadership is a difficult word to define and according to the Miriam-Webster Dictionary leadership is the “office or position of a leader” (Miriam-Webster, 2010). This definition is definitely not one that I would ascribe to when discussing leadership. My definition of leadership is “the ability someone has to motivate and empower others to achieve a goal.” Some may add to this definition, others may discard it altogether and have a completely different definition. In the end, leadership takes on many different forms depending on who is doing the defining and we end up asking ourselves, what is leadership and why do we care?

What is leadership? It is defined as being an action leading a group or organization. It involves being able to take control of certain situations, and leading in the correct direction. Being a leader takes great knowledge and skill. It involves one being able to make smart decisions in order for his/her congregation to come out as successful. A leader must also know, that it is wise to have people in his/her corner to advise them of good or bad decisions. President Barack Obama has his Vice-President, Joe Biden, along with his elite White House staff, including the Secretary of State, to help with major decisions that could affect the nation. Pastors have deacons who help them lead their congregation, or church, in the right path of reaching others, who are seeking for help and prayer in time of need. A leader must know that it is wise to have the correct people in his/her corner to keep them on track, in order to not falter. If failing becomes even possible for a leader, it can cause a catastrophic outcome for his/her followers. In Shakespeare’s play Richard II, we learn of a great king who chooses not to listen to the wise people in his corner, and see the outcome of his choices.

Leadership is the act of motivating and influencing others to reach a common objective. As a young 3rd Class Boatswains Mate, I was entrusted to lead the Deck Department. I was fairly new to the unit and there were others who had more time not only at the unit but in the Coast Guard. A BM2 named Buddy Gilbert pulled me aside. He explained to me that although I might not be the most knowledgeable, I was the most driven. BM2 Gilbert gave me the tools and the information I needed to be successful in that position. He had been a fair leader and someone everyone looked up to. His faith in me lead me to find something in myself I did not know existed.