Summary: The Truth About Leadership

Leadership is, and always has been, a vital aspect of social and economic constructs. It is essential to the survival of societies, industries, organizations, and virtually any group of individuals that come together for a common purpose. However, leadership is difficult to define in a single, definitive sense. As such, theories of leadership, what constitutes a great leader, and how leaders are made have evolved constantly throughout history, and still continue to change today in hopes of improving upon our understanding of leadership, its importance, and how it can be most effective in modern organizational cultures.

According to dictionary.com leadership is defined as, the position or function of a leader, a person who guides or directs a group: Its synonyms include guidance, influence, control, direction and supervision. These are all qualifications that are needed to be an effective leader. All characteristics are not necessarily needed at the same time and do no need to be used for each subordinate. This paper will identify my personal leadership philosophy along with theories to support my leadership style.

In Kouzers and Posner’s view, leadership is to mobilize others to get extraordinary things done; and it is not about personality but it’s about behavior.

Leadership is a term that cannot be defined or simplified with a standard definition (Bethel, 2011). The term’s complexity is a phenomenon, as it carries a different meaning for each person. During the

For many years, I have been told by teachers, family, and friends that I am a good leader. Until fairly recently, I had never truly thought about what it means to be a good leader and just took it as a compliment. Leadership is an intangible concept which cannot be properly outlined in a dictionary, but one which must be formed and explained only through one’s own philosophies and experiences.

By definition, leadership is the position or function of a leader, a person who guides or directs a group. But can we really sum up “leadership” in a single sentence? Recently, an article was run in Business News Daily (2015) that listed 30 ways to define leadership. In those 30, there were many quotes by CEOs, COOs, Founders, and company Presidents. Common attributes like “behavior”, “ability”, “vision”, and “followership” were mentioned. So it goes without saying that if these prominent individuals can figure it out, why can’t those below them? Thankfully, most do, and some will even rise to the top like those previously mentioned. The key point to all of this though is that it takes more than just one characteristic to make a leader. Throughout this piece, I’d like to explore the aspects that make up a Leader, how I fit the role of a leader, and what I’ve learned throughout this course in leadership.

Leadership: Carol continues to promote teamwork within the section to encourage her peers to participate in social events to boost morale. She continues gaining respect of others through her own actions and attitude.

Leadership can be defined in many different ways. Some people are saying that leadership is “the behavior of the individual…”(Hemphill & Coons, 1957, p. 7), some others may describe it as “the influential increment over and above mechanical compliance with the routine directives of the organization” (Katz & Kahn, 1978, p. 528). I have to admit that I completely agree that every one of them but I personally believe that that the leadership is “the ability of an individual to influence, motivate, and enable others to contribute toward the effectiveness and success of the organization...” (House et al., 1999, p. 184). As I mention in my first paper that good leaders care not only about their personal best, they always want to get the best out

Leadership is an influential word: and its meaning may differ from person to person. Some describe leadership as the people in the highest and most powerful positions within an organization. But as I look back on the positions I have held and the people I would consider leaders, the people I would choose to follow, they were not necessarily the higher ranked people in the organization. They were the people with vision and moral compass who moved the company forward. These people live by their own values and stayed true to these principles every day in their roles within the organization. Those who try to lead by intimidation are not actually leaders but managers, who will have some success in achieving goals but will

There are many definitions for the term leadership. This term have different meanings to each individual. Leadership is defined as a complex phenomenon involving the leader, the followers, and the situation (Hughes, Ginnett & Curphy, 2012). Leadership is a quality that one can gain through employment experience and/or through education and can also be gained through mentorship. There are many different leadership styles that a leader may fall under. Each type of leadership style has its own uniqueness that makes the leader fall under that particular

In developing this idea of what leadership is, I examined what was most important to me in being a leader. Since leadership is such a broad term, this could not be a process whereby I could generalize leadership for everyone. Rather, the task is to determine who I am as a leader. I asked myself, what is it that shapes the vision? What are the factors that comprise a leader, and what makes these things add up to create something larger than ourselves as leaders? Thoughtful reflections on these things lead me to generate the following definition of leadership: Leadership is about more than simply having followers; it is not a title, and it is not achieved by just following a few principles. Leadership is complex, though at its

Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2017). The Leadership Challenge (Sixth ed.). Hoboken, NJ, USA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc

There are certain essential elements that constitute the definition of leadership. It may refer to the totality of an organization’s top direction-giving functionaries, or the actions applied in providing direction that enables the organization or team to move forward towards a goal. In reality, there are very diverse definitions of leadership depending on

Over the years, a great deal of time, and research has been dedicate to the study of leadership. Even with extensive data on the topic, many still disagree on what leadership really means. Hence, leadership is a word that has many different meanings and different researched theories associated with it. On a basic level, leadership involves having and establishing a clear vision, sharing that vision with followers, respecting followers, and leading an organization with excellence while ensuring that everyone is part of the team. Leadership is also a method by which a leader uses his or her influence towards getting a group of followers to take ownership or buy into a vision.

If a person was to ponder about where leadership is found they would eventually conclude it is everywhere. Leadership could be argued that when God made the earth and all of its creatures that he gave us the capability to lead. We see this from Adam and Eve, Noah, Sampson, Abraham, David, Sara, Mary, Jesus and all of his disciples. Anyone can be an effective leader if they are educated on how to be one. Leaders are found everywhere in both historically and in today’s time. One can see leaders in action by simply watching the news and analyzing politics. Other examples that one can see and study in today’s times are religious organization leaders, coaches, Principals and teachers, their parents, family members, children and even military personnel. Throughout this paper we will analyze multiple definitions of leadership, my philosophy, my leadership style, how I think and react to situations.