The Ethical Responsibility Of A Leader

“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” John C. Maxwell

They trust their followers as equals in an attempt to provide confidence in one’s self and not the symbolic leader; yet, it comes at a cost. People like scandalous Bill Clinton, run the risk of people hating and reprimanding them for their flaws, like John Edwards. People jump on someone who’s too meek, too opinionated, too egocentric, too scandalous, too… Human. Which is why leaders must make decisions about how people perceive them; Remain human, turn into a monster, or become an image of perfection/ another seemingly impossible virtue?

Followers create the influence necessary for a leader to have authority. Without it the organization will stagnate.

It is natural in any given situation for there to be leaders, whether there is a single person or a group of people. Without the leaders keeping peace and order, chaos would be imminent. However, when the root cause of that chaos is those are the leaders themselves, what do the followers have left? In Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, young clones are raised in an institution named Hailsham and are cared for by the guardians. The students are affected by many factors such as: the need for acceptance, the friendship the students develop the guardians, and the clever use of propaganda. This causes the students to obey their authority figures even when it may lead to their detriment.

“The Power that comes from being a leader can also be used for evil as well as good. When we assume the benefits of leadership, we also assume ethical

attempt to get things done on time. When it comes to establishing rules and protocol I am very

Foolish leaders are ones who are not following in the steps of God. As a Christian we are not to be subjective to the way of those who are not followers in Christ.

followers to freely choose whether to follow the leader or not. Unless followers have some choice to follow or not follow, leaders cannot lead.

Leaders prefer that their followers are obeying out of love. People do not rise up against their leaders when they obey out of love. People feel like good, and virtuous people when they obey an

(Northouse) also says that they are born leaders and people who learn to be leaders. Born leaders exhibit leadership

1. This chapter suggests that leadership has a moral dimension and that leaders have a responsibility to use their authority for the common good. Do you agree? Discuss

The leader and follower relationship is looked at as winners and losers, when it is actually a symbiotic association. (Chaleff) Leaders cannot exist without followers and followers cannot exist without a leader. Leaders can forget that they need the backing of a solid team of followers in order to succeed. Because they make the “important” decisions and enjoy an astronomical rate of pay, it is easy to overlook the loyal, hard working individuals that make everything happen under them. Followers too can forget that they are a valuable element of a successful organization, and that their feedback and ideas are welcome.

Leadership is an organizational role that has an effect on every organizational matter. From the employees’ morale, customers’ satisfaction, and the organizational effectiveness, organizational leaders and their behaviors directly or indirectly affect everything. In addition to the leadership’s impact on the organization and its elements, leaders are often perceived as role models for the organizational members. Consequently, it is important that leaders are not only competent but also ethical in their everyday conduct, (Toor & Ofori, 2009). But, how can leader’s ethical behavior be distinguished? \ What are these ethical behaviors that affect the followers? And, how do we know when a leader is an ethical leader?

Countless times leaders operate on instinct that has grown from what they have seen in the past. What leaders see others do sets the stage for what they may do in the future. A leader of sound character will exhibit that character at all times.” (p. 7-13)

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?