Leadership Is A Difficult Topic

Ronald A. Heifetz is well versed in leadership issues. Once a psychiatrist, he is now the director of the Leadership Education Project at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. He founded the Center for Public Leadership where he is the “King Hussein bin Talal Senior Lecturer” (“Harvard Kennedy School”, n.d.). Much of the leadership experience poured into Leadership Without Easy Answers is primarily derived from Heifetz’ work in Washington, D.C. observing the political leadership structures of the entire nation. This gives him a unique perspective of leadership insight into higher-ranking structures of the leader-follower relationship and the extent of the effects of leader’s actions and decisions. Heifetz uses this

My personal experiences of leadership started when I was younger, roughly 7 years old, I was elected the captain of my travel soccer team. At the time I didn’t think much of it, nor did I have any extra duties that I was explicitly told that I needed to perform. Later throughout the season, I started to notice my teammates mimicking my styles and techniques and I highly enjoyed this feeling of being looked up to. I didn 't realize until years after that the recognition and pride I felt was leadership. This privilege of being captain was the first time I had realized that people weren 't necessarily following my actions because I was extraordinarily skilled, but because I provided this role model status with my confidence and encouragement. Some of the most valuable leaderships traits that I acquired and fortified are:

For the past twenty years, I have been part of an influential organization; the USMC. My years of service have allowed me to learn from leaders and peers, alike, who took time to teach skill

There are several leaders that I have admired in my career over the years. One in particular that stood out was a Chief Master Sergeant in the Air Force who I served under. He was a very intelligent and vibrant leader who placed importance in military customs and core values. He was one whom I emulated in the military because of his task –motivated leadership style. He focused on the goals of the organization with the emphasis on service before self. The implications of his style of leadership lead me to believe that there was little to no relationships formed with lower ranking airmen. He was always able to get the job done because of the driven culture he represented. I learned a wealth of knowledge and information from this particular leader; I was able to create a balance by embracing his style of leadership and relating it with my style, transformational leadership. I believe it was successful, because of my efforts to focus in on the mission and create a balance in inspiring, influencing, and motivating Airmen across the globe.

As I said in the abstract above, I will discuss about a leader that I came across in my Army career that has made a significant impact on my life and my leadership style. This gentleman name is Command Sergeant Major (CSM) Charles Fitzpatrick. I met him when I was stationed in Camp Casey, South Korea in 1999-2000. He was the division CSM. As usual it was hard to see a division CSM in a daily life basis of an infantry line company Soldier. Top of that the division headquarter was located at Camp Red Cloud which was one hour away from Camp Casey. We only see him on the pictures of our chain of command. One day

EWhen I was younger I was in the Boy Scouts of America striving for the rank of Eagle Scout I met an Army National Guard Colonel that would set an example of leadership, a bad one. I was a Boy Scout many years but had to limit my attending meetings over the course of my junior year of high school and over the course of my absence a new Scout Master had come to our troop, the aforementioned Colonel. Prior to this man I had the pleasure of knowing several excellent leaders and it was quite the shock to see our once massive troop slowly dwindle.

Over Homecoming Weekend I was given the honor and privilege to speak and listen to some of America’s greatest heroes. Distinguished servicemen and women from many of our wars, whom risk their own lives, took the time to discuss their experiences and what they learned translated into a very enlightening and imparted on me a perspective of leadership which many do not ponder. Although all the prominent members of the panels and discussion instilled in me a portrait of what it means to embody a good leader, General Peter Pace USMC retired, illustrated and exemplified everything a good officer and leader should. General Pace retired with over 40 years of service in the Marine Corps. Likewise, among his many other accolades he was the first Marine

During my college experience, I decided to enlist in the United States Coast Guard Reserves. I left for basic training the summer after my sophomore year and took on a completely different kind of challenge. In this environment, I was surrounded by many leadership styles, some of which I had never seen before. There were leaders that were outspoken, driven, hardworking, and motivated to

Our guest speaker, Colonel Thomas Clark, USMC (Ret.), gave a speech about leadership. Mr.Clark attended The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina for his undergraduate degree and master’s degree. Mr.Clark obtained his undergraduate degree in Computer Science and Mathematics, and his master’s degree in Project Management with a certification in Technical Project Management. He served 30 years in the Marine as a fighter pilot where he obtained a colossal amount of flight time hours. Mr.Clark served in Iraq and many other wars throughout his career. He also loves being a student, solving puzzles, and a christian. On the first day of class, he ran into Dr.Skipper downstairs before class had started; Dr.Skipper told him, “You are my challenge.”

On June 1st, 2010 at the age of eighteen, a young man stepped out of his parent 's vehicle and onto the "yard" at the United States Naval Academy for the first time. Unsure of the trials and tribulations that lay ahead, he was filled with a mixture of emotions encompassing everything from pride to anxiety to excitement. Leadership was a common concept in his life. He had been an officer in numerous high school clubs, understood the value of hard work, and had spent the last three years in a training program preparing him for this journey. He had many examples of leaders in his life. His father had served a career in the Navy, a path he was proud to carry on, his mother a strong academic, of which he had similar interests, and many

My leadership philosophy is based on the last 16 years of experience. Amongst those years, I have had some good leaders and bad leaders. I believe I’m a better leader today because my leadership journey has not always been easy. This made me a better listener, increased my sensitivity to those around me and solidified my values and character. These types of significant events shape leaders and it’s up to you if you want to be shape yourself into the good leader.

Many people this day and age will argue what it takes to be a good leader. Some like to look towards politics at the Presidents because they have good backgrounds, plus they lead people, but it is always wise and good to look at the leadership of people in the military. Lots and lots of people have come through the United States militaries, some of those men and women left a bigger mark than others. Military leaders and the leadership shown in the military is always respected too. Although Michael P. Murphy was an outstanding leader before he joined the military, one instance of his leadership while in the Navy will forever leave the Murphy name marked in history.

In the United States Army leaders are everywhere, and leadership styles come in all shapes and sizes. What’s rare are those leaders that truly inspire. Not just you, but anyone who finds themselves in that leaders’ orbit. I can honestly say that in 16 years of Military service, I have encountered two. Of those two, one stands out far above the other. 1SG Bloom had encompassed the Army Values and displayed the attributes of a leader since long before there was a model to follow.

Beginning in boot camp and continuing throughout my career, I’ve seen the Coast Guard promote the leadership model to be: “You” influencing “Others” to achieve a “Goal”. With all the different ways leadership can be defined, this simplistic model which has been permanently engrained in my thinking definition still rings true for me. As such, when defining my own personal definition of leadership, I align it to this same model. More specifically, while I support the fact that leadership involves influencing others to achieve a common end I propose that is not the whole story. Leaders must not be stagnant in their vision and must lend themselves to the possibility they may have to adjust their leadership styles depending on the goal. The best leaders are the ones that understand their own personality traits as well as those traits of the people they are trying to lead.

The primary limitation of this theory is that it has no approaches or styles for leadership to a similar situation as same as trait theory. In Contingency theory, it is essential to match leaders and situations to improve effective leadership such as changing the leader to match the situation, and change the situation to match the leader (Leadership-Central, 2014).