Servant Leadership

The foundation of my personal leadership philosophy can be found in the principles of servant leadership as spelled out by Greenleaf (1970, 1977). Leadership is granted to individuals who are by nature servants. An individual emerges as a leader by first becoming a servant. Servant leaders attend to the needs of those they serve and help them become more informed, free, self-sufficient, and like servants themselves. Leaders and those they serve improve, enhance, and develop each other through their connection. A leader must also be conscious of inequalities and social injustices in the organizations they serve and work actively to resolve those issues. Servant leaders rely less on the use of official power and control, but focus on empowering those they

From the group Biblical Integration Paper, it was understood that servant-leadership is not only a gift of purpose that God places in the hearts of His people, but it is also a calling in one’s life to truly touch the lives of others in need. Living a successful life, as a servant-leader is not one that focuses on self-fulfillment, rather it is in seeking a fulfillment that comes from Christ when one pours him/herself out for the sake of others. It is through servant-leadership that one is able to bring hope into hopeless situations (Group Integration Paper,

What do you think the goals are for the program as a whole? How do you see yourself fitting with these goals? As the Lone Star Band continues to grow in size, I visualize the number of servant leaders growing as well. I believe that it is the duty of current student leaders to build up the future leaders of the band, and I would like to take part in this responsibility. I think that the goals for the band as a whole are to continue seeking excellence in all that we do. We are not trophy-chasers, but I believe it is the band’s goal to be the best version ourselves in and out of the field. I will always remember Mr. Golden telling us that his goal for us was to experience greatness, and I see myself fitting with this goal through motivating my peers by modeling persistence and hard

Analyze and explain the situation using any of the theories of leadership discussed in Chapter 14.

The shared themes discussed in these articles aligned with my thesis – caring for the least able, service before leading. Liden, Wayne, Chenwei, and Meuser (2014) suggest a servant leader must guide followers to emulate the leader’s behaviors by prioritizing the needs of others above the leaders'needs. Liden et al. (2014) further attest that servant leaders cultivate servant leadership attributes among those they lead, creating a serving culture which influences performance and enhances followers’ traits and skills through mediating influence of personal identification. For leaders to operate under ethical leadership framework, the leader must possess character, competence, and commitment. The leader must also lead by example, thrive on the

When facing crucial conversations such as conflicts or negotiations, people tend to look to autocratic or commanding leaders; organizations seldom see servant leaders as the person for the job. Although servant leadership is finding its way into contemporary discussions of effective leadership styles, people still view it as the characterization of a “weak or meek” leader (Collins, 2001, Kindle location 531). The Gospels, however, reveal that Jesus, the epitome of servant leadership, competently addressed critical conversations throughout his ministry (Matthew 4:1-11, Mark 11:15-17, John 6:25-60, Matthew 16:21-23). While some may credit Jesus’s success to his divinity, this argument does not hold for those who followed his example of servant leadership. In contrast, Wilkes suggests the effectiveness of Jesus’s ministry was because of his servant leadership, rather than despite it.

The job of a servant leader is to build and support others, so that they may become servant leaders too. They “want to serve, to serve first” and exhibit ten key characteristics: listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, conceptualization, foresight, stewardship, commitment to the growth of people and building community” (Spears, 1995). Throughout history, there have been many examples of servant leaders including Martin Luther King, Jr., Gandhi, Mandela, Mother Theresa, and Abraham Lincoln but the greatest of them is Jesus Christ. Christ is the perfect model of a servant leader and we have many examples of servant leadership in the Bible. A biblical example of servant leadership can be found in Luke 22:25-29, “But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves,” in this we see how Christ taught a style of leadership, which is very different from the style of leadership that is commonly taught today. His leadership style was different, in that he did not tell people what to do, nor did he use power or authority over others. Instead, Christ led by serving his followers. He showed empathy, took care of his followers, ensured they were happy and had opportunities to

We exist in a very prideful and ego controlled generation. At this point in time it is considered even normal for individuals to promote and uplift themselves. Pride is regarded by many as a honorable. However, society considers humility to be a weakness. It seems that everyone is self righteous and vying for his or her own rights while looking to be deemed as someone important. The obsession with self love, self esteem, and self glorification, is single handedly destroying the foundations that our society was once built upon. Pride is a plague that no culture can survive, for all the successes of the world depend upon relationships. When individuals are dedicated solely to themselves, it can cause relationships to disintegrate. And evidently that is the truth of the world that we live in as we watch friendships, marriages, and relationships grow week with the changing tides.

Servant leadership is a vital element in the most successful companies in the United States. The concept of servant leadership has been around for a long time and for good reason. It’s a solid concept whose potential is finally being realized. The following pages will examine the benefits of servant leadership and what it is. Its role in the workplace will be examined and why it plays a crucial function in the success of any organization.

The field in which I intend to develop a career is college access programs. I believe universal access to quality higher education will help individuals build a sense of purpose in the world by contributing to the collective well-being, ultimately creating a just world. The interest began in 2014, the year I began questioning the concept of college after being encouraged to enroll, attend, and graduate from college for 12 years. The question began the instance I started noticing that the role models I grew up with lacked formal education yet they lived happy lives; I wanted to be like them.

Leadership plays a significant role in many different areas of peoples everyday lives. Businesses, communities, and organizations all use and need leaders to make things run efficiently. A lack of effective leadership can create many difficulties in all aspects of life. “Servant leadership is a philosophy and set of practices that enriches the lives of individuals, builds better organizations and ultimately creates a more just and caring world” (Liden, Wayne, Liao & Meuser, 2014, p. 1435). The capacity to be a servant leader to meet the needs of the people that you are leading was encompassed throughout the book The Servant by James Hunter (2012). Hunter (2012) describes leadership as “the skill of influencing people

As the contemporary business model throughout a modern work atmosphere transitions towards an emphasis on the values associated with servant leadership, many organizations are finding necessity in the adaptation of these values. There are, however, businesses that adhere to more traditional models of leadership. Many of the key ideals that a business emphasizes can be found by examining the organizations mission, or vision, statement. This essay will examine two companies’ mission statements and provide an analysis of those statements as they compare and contrast to each other, their evidence of a basis in servant leadership, and the practical application of the values described in their mission statements.

Last time I indicated I would look at servant leadership. I came across a very powerful little set of points that are certainly worth reflecting on as you evaluate your own leadership style, from Trinity Western University.

Before Jesus’ leadership style is discussed, it is imperative to first identify the personal qualities that played a role in the development of Jesus’ servant leadership. Attracting individuals from across the world, Jesus exhibited many qualities that served as a model for others to follow. His charitable and humble nature made him a strong candidate for servant leadership. By not acting as if he was more important than others, Jesus knew he had “…come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent [him], not to do [his] own will” (New Living Translation Bible, John 6.38).

As written in the lines above, employee engagement has a significant impact on an employee and their engagement. Although there has been many articles and research written about leadership and servant leadership, in this study, it will provide and overview, key traits and influences that servant leaders use in collaboration to address significant problems with strategy and other individuals. Therefore, how do managers and leaders facilitate the engagement of their employees? Leaders do this through their leadership style. In 1970, Robert K. Greenleaf identified servant-leadership, which was different from the traditional views of leadership. According to Greenleaf, “The servant-leader is a servant first. Servant