It Worked For Me : Life And Leadership Review And Analysis

Colin Powell’s “It Worked For Me in Life and Leadership” (2012) is a riveting book that discusses in great detail the simple but often-fundamental leadership principles that have been consigned to oblivion by most people and leaders. The evocative book provides a basis on which one can evaluate their strengths and weaknesses in leadership in all dimensions, particularly at the work place and suggests other areas of improvement that the reader can asses to ensure proper development. Through careful, frequent and honest evaluations from both self and others, it is possible for a person to become the best version of himself or herself; in turn, this contributes to a well-rounded leader.

The path to a personal leadership philosophy is made up of three parts. Each individual aspect is a facet of a complete whole. Much like a timeline that includes a past, present and future, my personal philosophy consists of a foundation, action, and growth. If you do not understand where your foundation of leadership came from, you will have problems acting in a leadership capacity. Also if don’t pay attention to how you are acting as a leader you cannot know in what ways you need to grow. Why should I spend the time and effort in developing myself as a leader? The Gunner’s Mate rating has a strength of just over 600 members. Maritime Force Protection Unit Kings Bay has 31 Gunner’s Mates assigned to it. I have a full five percent of the Gunner’s Mates in the Coast Guard that I lead. During my four year assignment at MFPU Kings Bay, approximately 55 Gunner’s mates (9.2 percent) will have been under my leadership. I see that as an enormous responsibility. As a young Gunner’s Mate I saw my senior leadership as people capable of effecting great change on the rating. Now today I am in the position to have that same impact.

Most people recognize Colin Powell as one of the most admired and popular leaders of our time. Often times in leadership you will not always be popular or admired, so what makes this leader different? It was those core values ingrained in him at early age by his parents that would shape him as a future leader (Koltz & Powell, 2012). As with any great leader he’s had his fair share of trials and tribulations, but like an infantry officer he continued to press forward. Colin Powell has been a visionary and ethical leader since the early days of Persian Gulf to Washington’s corridors (Roth, 1993). Throughout my research he has become a personal inspiration for me due to his ability to inspire and motivate those around him. Let’s take a brief look into his background to provide a better understanding of his leadership style.

Leadership is summarized as ‘the process in which an individual impacts a variety of individuals to attain a common goal’. The goal is attained by mutual collaboration and cohesive behavior. A leader infuses a sense of positivity and manages others to reach a specified goal. Leadership has had a very profound influence throughout my life by affecting my family, friends, teammates, and the overall decisions that I have made. By using my personal experiences with leadership, I have learned how to use these skills not only on the field, but throughout my everyday actions.

His last military assignment lasting from October 1, 1989 to September 30, 1993, was as the 12th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the highest military position in the Department of Defense. At age 52, he became the youngest officer, and first Afro-Caribbean American, to serve in this position (Wikipedia, 2009). In 1989, he joined the ranks of Dwight D. Eisenhower and Alexander Haig as one of three generals since World War II to reach four-star rank without ever being a divisional commander. During this time, he oversaw 28 crises, including the invasion of Panama in 1989 to remove General Manuel Noriega from power and Operation Desert Storm in the 1991 Persian Gulf War (Wikipedia, 2009). It was during these wars in which Powell earned his nickname, “the reluctant warrior”

Colin Powell has led in the military for nearly half a century, and is closing in on 20 years of leading as a civilian, since retiring from military service in 1993 . During his military career Powell has had a marked demeanor of composure which has shined through in every situation that has been presented to him. One specific example of this steadfastness is seen in his actions that garnered him the Soldier’s Medal, when even while wounded,

If Powell was not open to the ideas and opinions of his troops, many more deaths could have occurred. Powell was supportive of his troops during training times. He would make the decisions, but they had the control. Powell was always supporting his troops and giving them motivation in any situation. The last quadrant is delegation, which Powell did not use much during his military career as he needed to be the one in control at all times as the leader.

Colin Powell’s choices in his life directly affected his level of success. His reputation as a four star general showed the world he was serious about his career. Throughout his career, he received many awards for his actions and his bravery. The reason that Colin Powell became an American leader is because he did many great things for our country. One of Powell’s most outstanding awards was the Soldier’s Medal for saving his comrades from a burning helicopter. The Bronze Star for acts of heroism in combat and the Purple Heart for being wounded in service were given to him in honor of his outstanding service.

This lieutenant fought in the same war and on the same battle field as his fellow comrades, but could not sit at the same table and have dinner. This was the life that Colin Powell, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and former Secretary of State experienced but later became one of the most respected men in U.S. history. In Powell’s book, It Worked For Me, he talked about his thirteen rules, which are quotes and aphorisms that he lives by. There were two that stood out to me. “It ain’t as bad as you think. It will look better in the morning” (Koltz, 2012). In an interview with Mark Crumpton from Bloomberg Television, Powell said it really

After college Powell joined the army. He also got married and had three kids. Then, Powell served two tours of duty and was hurt during both. When the helicopter that was carrying him and his crew crashed, even though he was injured, he came back

This shows how respected he was among the Washington staff. This also shows the competence, candor, and integrity Powell posses throughout his term in Washington D.C. Colin Powell continues to advance through the ranks and through the staff jobs he was appointed to. He then served as senior military aide to Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger, helping to coordinate the invasion of Granada and the bombing of Libya (Biography.com, 2010). To help coordinate these attacks would have to take great courage, because there’s always a chance of casualties. He commits to these plans and excels with both operations.

“What I really wanted to do was the best I could very single day. By doing the best I could day after day, year after year, I finally got to the top.” That was Colin Powell’s standard to live by. His life was full of achievements, bravery, and service, always demonstrating his dedication to his country. Some people say that Mr. Powell’s good fortune was luck, do you think that is true? I disagree. Colin Powell’s choices directly affected the outcome of his life.

General Powell displays transformation leadership through individualized consideration. “IC involves dealing with others as individuals and considering their needs, abilities, and aspirations as you work together to further their development.” General Powell’s Army background influences the idea of taking raw iron and fashioning it into a sword; as noted in his quote “leaders are made, not born” implies leadership is a shaping process. Transformational leaders who display individual consideration tend to coach and mentor, excel in two-way communications, listens effectively, and personalize interactions with subordinates. Part of General Powell’s principle of empowerment is an investment in the leadership potential of team members. This investment is necessary in sustaining productive organizations.

The purpose of this paper is to reflect and make an analysis of the general strengths and weaknesses of a leader, provide recommendations, thoughts of overall performance to improve on this person’s leadership style in which practices and theories were utilized most effectively. Upon such, draw conclusions and provide an integration of this leadership practice into my own leadership practice. The accomplishment of this will be achieved by identifying several key practices from published documents surrounding and encompassing the leader, and comparing them to known relative concepts for a holistic view of the approach.

Describe a specific example(s) of your personal growth and development through your leadership experiences in college. See the help text for additional direction.