In the traditional view of leadership, service is the job of the follower. However, servant leadership puts the leader at service. In servant leadership, the leader focuses on servicing their followers; they empathize, nurture, and provide attention so that the followers can develop their full personal capacities (Northouse, 2013). Spears (2002) identified 10 servant leader characteristics: Listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, conceptualization, foresight, stewardship, and commitment to the growth of people.
Listening involves the interactive process of communication between leaders and followers (Northouse, 2013). In the traditional world of leadership, we think of leaders as instructing, ordering, or ruling. In servant
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Stewardship is when the leader takes responsibility for their role as leader. It requires taking on the responsibilities of a leader and holding the organization in trust for the greater good of society (Northouse, 2013). Lastly, commitment to the growth of people is a dedication to each person in the organization and commitment to helping each individual grow both personally and professionally.
Simon Sinek, a management theorist discusses what makes a great leader in this TED talk. Sinek explains why good leaders make their followers feel safe and secure which can inspire cooperation, influence, and create a strong bond. This talk really helps to illustrate how efficient leadership can be achieved by putting the followers first.
Servant leadership is successful when leaders truly believe and act upon a desire to make their followers successful, through being honest and treating them as partners (PSU, 2014). Sinek gives us a great real world application of this by telling the story of Charlie Kim, the CEO of Next Jump. Next Jump is a tech company, of which there are thousands in the US, but what makes Next Jump stand out is it’s policy of lifetime employment. That’s right, no one gets fired. ever. In fact, if your performance is weak, extra time and resources are dedicated to coaching and helping you improve. As a leader, what better way to demonstrate your belief in and desire to make your followers successful, than a no fire
A servant leader must listen to a person fully without interrupting or judging them. While doing my service at the animal shelter there were two other people doing service. They were prisoners wearing the orange jumpsuit. Although most people would assume they are bad and not to talk to them, me and my group had a conversation with them about the dogs. They showed a lot of compassion about what they were doing. Although it was work they were forced to do they gave it their all. I listened and communicated with them the entire time without judging whatever they might have done. This was showing servant leadership in one of the hardest
Simply, servant leaders hold a view as a servant first and leader second (Owens & Hekman, 2012). Moreover, servant leaders emphasize personal responsibility for the organization and all internal and external stakeholders (Peterson, Galvin, & Lange, 2012). As stated, expressing a genuine concern and care for people are a basis of servant leadership. In addition, servant leadership also focuses on the growth of
A servant leader for me is an individual who simply puts others ahead of themselves, with the main purpose of achieving results for their organization, by keeping in mind the needs of everyone else around them. A servant leader is one with personality traits like; empathy, compassion good listening skills, stewardship, and an honest commitment to the growth of others. Servant leaders are individuals who have a natural inclination to serve, and such a conscious choice makes them desire to lead. This is in sharp contrast to the traditional leaders who aim to gain power or to acquire material belongings.
Traits commonly listed as characteristics of servant leadership include a makeup of providing accountability, supporting and resourcing, engaging in honest self-evaluation, fostering collaboration, communicating with clarity, and valuing and appreciating (Irving/Longbotham pg 8).
Servant leadership is the act of leading a follower or followers in such a way that the foremost concern of the leader is the wellbeing and growth of their follower(s), and then the accomplishment of the task at hand. Their follower(s) should eventually become self-sufficient and be able to pass their knowledge and skills on to others .
Servant leadership is a type of leadership whereby the leader serves the needs of the people, empathizes with them, and involves them in solving their needs. Servant leadership is all about involving the people you are leading in your decision making, being ethical and caring for the people to enhance their personal growth at the same time improve their life. A servant leader does not simply delegate roles; he starts the work and energizes the others to join him and get the work done. According to Spears (2004), the servant leader as defined by Greenleaf is one who gets the natural feeling of wanting to serve first and then a conscious choice brings him/her to lead. This leader makes sure that other people’s highest-priority needs are take
A servant leader is a person creates caring relationships with each individual within the team, is authentic, open and accountable, listens without imposing judgment, and builds community by showing appreciation. They believe in sharing the power and helping others reach their fullest potential. This type of leader takes into consideration
The last weakness that I want to address in this paper is that my heart at times can stop or slow down some of the tough decisions that have to be made. I am the master of second chances. I am very patient and really do love working with my people. There has been a couple times in my career where I just didn’t want to make the final decision to fire a couple of my staff. We did coaching, written warnings, etc. to try and help them improve. Most of the time this works, but with one particular staff member I should have taking harder action sooner. This had to do with a staff member that was just negative and causing contention in the building. It was addressed for more than two years before the individual was finally let go. If I had better followed through with the disciplinary action he would have been terminated much earlier.
Servant leadership is a set of practices that enriches the lives of people, builds better organizations, and ultimately builds a more just and caring world. People are not usually pre-destined to be a servant or leader, rather it is an individual’s choice to serve or lead. The perception of what a leader looks like is often mis-understood. Leaders are often viewed as a President, King or Queen, top executive in business or the highest religious leader, such as the Pope. In contrast, leaders can be found at the highest and lowest ranks throughout government, royal staff, in business, and religious organizations. Leadership is everyone’s business. To be an effective leader no matter the position we must follow the same practices. The five practices of a servant leader are Model the Way, Inspire a Shared Vision, Challenge the Process, Enable Others to Act, and Encourage the Heart (Leadership Challenge, Kouves and Posner). Jesus Christ taught us using these same five practices. We must live by the motto of “Love All, Serve All” and put others before ourselves to become the greatest leaders.
Healing. “One of the great strengths of servant-leadership is the potential for healing one 's self and others. Many people have broken spirits and have suffered from a variety of emotional hurts. Although this is part of being human, servant-leaders recognize that they also have an opportunity to "help make whole" those with whom they come in contact” (Spears,
Servant-leaders must reinforce these important skills by making a deep commitment to actively listening to others. Servant-leaders seek to identify and clarify the will of a group. They seek to listen receptively to what is being and said (and not said) among others. By listening with intent, followers feel understood and valued, even under pressure, the servant leader demonstrates a sense of empathy and compassion by taking the time to understand what one's body, spirit, and mind are communicating.
People who are in servant leadership style have ten characteristics. The first characteristic is listening. They listen to the voice of others initiatively and sincerely. The second characteristic is empathy. They try hard to understand others, and accept and recognize the uniqueness of others. The third characteristic is healing. They have abilities to heal oneself and others. The fourth characteristic is awareness. They have a deep sense of self, and a clear understanding of their own beliefs and values. They also have a comprehensive and systematic view of the issue. The fifth characteristic is persuasion. They make decisions which rely on persuasion primarily rather than on job power, and they can build consensus effectively among groups. The sixth characteristic is conceptualization. They have the long-term point of view. The seventh characteristic is foresight. They are good at summing up experience in the past, and make the decisions which impact on the future. The eighth characteristic is stewardship. They manage a variety of business for the client, and serve their needs. The ninth characteristic is
Being a servant leader can by definition empower your followers. Attending to the needs of your employees and creating a nurturing environment can create trust. Yukl (2010) states, “The servant leader must stand for what is good and right, even when it is not in the financial interest of the organization. Social injustice and inequality should be
Being a servant leader is a concept I explored in a previous class while researching Zappos.com, where they require all their managers to be servant leaders. The idea that a manager’s top priority is to assist their follower in succeeding by supporting and removing obstacles they may encounter is a noble undertaking. The two major responsibilities of leaders are people and production.
Several reviews have been conducted to provide insight into servant leadership as a theory. Parris and Peachey (2013) state that Russell and Stone reviewed the theoretical framework of servant leadership and listed nine distinct character traits of servant leaders, namely; integrity, honesty, vision, service, trust, modeling, pioneering, appreciation of others and empowerment. Parris and Peachey (2013) appreciate the conceptual framework in the work of Russell and Stone yet they note that it lacks a methodology.