Martin Luther King Jr Personality Traits

Martin Luther King jr. was one of the most influential persons of the 20th Century. He is the father of the modern civil rights movement, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., is recognized around the world as a symbol of freedom as well as peace. King practiced everything that he preached, he did not preach or speak values that he himself did not follow. He established himself as a pastor that was not afraid of hard work, guiding the middle-class congregation to public service. For example, Peake, Thomas R. author of "Martin Luther King, Jr.” states, “He encouraged his parishioners to help the needy and to be active in organizations such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)”. I think that kings motivation

Martin Luther King Jr. is renowned as the leader of the great Civil Rights Movement. Throughout his letter from Birmingham Jail, King employs pathos, ethos, and logos to persuade his audience to join forces in order to overcome the physical and mental barriers of segregation.

Joseph Campbell mentions another characteristic of a hero, which is a hero undergoes trials and tests to see if he or she has the courage, the knowledge and capacity to survive. (The Power of Myth, 1998) Dr. Martin Luther King knew that his life was at a high risk of being killed. He knew that many people viewed his opinions as wrong and bias. In return, the officers in this time, would take water hose, point them toward African Americans and it pushed them into the wall so hard. People died from this type of action that occurred. Dr. King still strived to make this country as equal as possible. Dr. King had a strong desire to help young black women, men and children be able to associate themselves with young white, women, men and children. Dr. King led marches, made speeches, attend churches which eventually led to his death. He was assassinated on a balcony on the second floor of a motel. The bullet when through his fast and his shoulder. He knew what the outcome might be and still set out to fight for equal rights and freedom.

This paper will analyze and study the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King and how leadership skills helped him in accomplishing his goals. The characteristics that made Dr. King a great leader will also be addressed. By studying great leaders, insight can be gained into what qualities they possess.

Martin Luther King, Jr. and Lyndon B. Johnson demonstrated unimaginable leadership skills in an effort to accomplish their respective agendas. Through the use of moral leadership, King would rise to become the head of the Civil Rights Movement by means of civil disobedience and nonviolent resistance. MLK began as a Baptist Minister, but after seeing the difference he could make in the world, decided to stand up for what he felt was right. Johnson, on the other hand, used political leadership in order to make a name for himself as President of the United States. LBJ was willing to do whatever it took to accomplish his goals, even if it meant going against the Southern Democrats who had elected him to political office. One of these risks

Martin Luther King, Jr., was a true servant leader, because he actually did possess the characteristics of empathy, commitment, and the building community. Dr. King was an educated, resourceful, talented leader and he earnestly strived to understand and empathize with others by having compassion, responsiveness, identification, and a brotherly love for all other people in the world. Dr. King was deeply committed to the personal, professional, and spiritual growth of every single individual in the human race and he cared for everyone as if they really were his own friend and relative. Dr. King was committed to positive, social, nonviolent

Martin Luther King Jr. is remembered as one of the greatest leaders of modern humanity. Perhaps the most astonishing aspect of his leadership was his ability to adapt to whatever leadership style was necessary for any specific scenario. He could be a transformational leader if people needed to be mobilized, a servant leader when followers needed to be led by example, or a charismatic leader when he gave any one of his plethora of monumental speeches. Not only could MLK perform in each of these leadership roles, but he excelled at them. Dr. King was one of the greatest, most versatile leaders ever. We will discuss why in the following paragraphs.

MLK is described as a man who was generally quiet and listened attentively as others talked. Ling (2002) states, “King had a remarkable ability to get people who would otherwise be constantly feuding to work together”. The key to a successful leader is bringing people together. King was able to bring people together and work together for an achievable goal. He could quiet crowds and calm them down to be more peaceful. He spoke on nonviolence as the better resolution. According to Ling (2002), “For King, leadership meant standing up for what he believed in and being a drum major for justice”. A leader is also one who can relate to people. King was able to relate to the people who spoke to therefore African Americans were more likely to listen and follow what King had to say. King was a leader because he challenged the status quo. He had the courage to stand up for what he believed, the rights of all people to fair and equal treatment.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an astonishing activist that inspired a numerous amount of people with his speech. Dr. King was great because he displayed some traits. Some of the traits that he possessed were leadership, determination, and bravery. He was a man that preached about justice and wanted peace. Everyone can make a change and keep the dream alive by doing what Dr. King wanted. Which was to allow freedom to ring and to all come together as one.

One unique quality that anyone King has affected can tell you, is how committed he was to his cause. Most people, if it came down to life or death, would back out and try to save themselves, but King was willing to die, just so all blacks then and in the future could experience a life with out segregation, without prejudice, and without discrimination.

Douglass's courage, intellectual honesty and independence propelled him from slave to orator, editor and intellectual leader. Average leaders focus on results, and that's it. Good leaders focus also on the actions that will get the results. And great leaders focus, in addition, on the reactions that will drive these behaviors. One emotion that shapes our behavior is anger, and Martin Luther King Jr., knew of the power that came packed in this emotion. King had reason enough to be aggravated, time and again. He was physically threatened and attacked by prejudiced people, repeatedly jailed by state authorities, sometimes on trivial traffic violations, harassed by the FBI, and even criticized by fellow black leaders who favored more violent forms of resistance. Peter Ling studies King's leadership role during his fight for harmony and justice and states, “There were many leaders in the civil rights struggle, but Martin Luther King was more than just the most conspicuous and eloquent among them” (Ling).

King was born into a family with a history of being Baptist Ministers. King was taught moral and religious education from his father. He believed in and learned the Christian faith and therefore, believed in love and kindness over hate. In addition, his mother taught him and his siblings that they are just as good as anyone else. As the website dedicated to informing people about King’s life states it, “Drawing inspiration from both his Christian faith and the peaceful teachings of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. King led a nonviolent movement in the late 1950s and 60s to achieve legal equality for African-Americans in the United States” (Thekingcenter.org). His Christian faith and upbringing led to the way he conducted his civil rights campaign. Martin Luther King, Jr. believed in nonviolent protests to bring about change. King believed that this was the best way, rather than resorting to violence. In fact, King was the head of the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus to a white man and was arrested. (thekingcenter.org) Martin Luther King, Jr.’s efforts resulted in the the U.S Supreme Court ordering Montgomery to integrate its buses and himself emerging as a national leader of the American civil rights movement. King was able

Although many people may believe that Martin Luther King Jr.’s non-violent leadership style is not as effective as a violent leadership style, but King accomplished numerous things in relationship to the Civil Rights Movement. Martin Luther King Jr. wanted for there to be a day that it didn’t matter the color of one’s skin but what was on the inside. “I have a dream that one day that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character” (King

As described in the book, “communication is the process of conveying information and meaning” (Lussier & Achua, 2007). My leader Martin Luther King Jr. was the most conspicuous and eloquent leader of the African American civil rights movement. He inspired the African Americans to fight their way through white oppression using non-violent way to arms. He is well known for his ‘I have a dream’ speech that he made in august 1963, during the civil rights march on Washington. Martin Luther leadership was deeply anchored in speeches. He was a transformational leader based on the steps and decisions he took to see his visions through. He clearly communicated a concrete and powerful vision, he had a dream which he clearly articulated to his followers, giving them clear call to action and inspiring them to share his vision and to show support. This is what people like; they want to follow a leader who has clear direction of where he is going or where he is taking his followers. This made him popular. People need a leader who cares about their values, wants, hopes, and aspirations. His ‘I have a dream’ speech brought awareness and humanity to the American people about civil rights.

Many great leaders have one thing in common and that is charisma. Charismatic leaders are those that have the capability to inspire and encourage people to do more than they would normally do, despite obstacles and personal sacrifice. (Daft, R.L, pg. 364) Charisma is what provokes energy and commitment out of its followers. These leaders possess the power to motivate their followers to do almost anything. They create an atmosphere of change and express an ideal vision of a better future. The most common characteristics of the charismatic leader involve maturity, communication, humility, and inspiration. These unique qualities impact their followers and conduct themselves in such a way that allows for remarkable results. Then