The Principles Centered Leadership By Stephen R. Covey

The concept of effective leadership is a topic that has been widely debated by individuals and professional leaders in many societies. In Kevin Cashman’s book, Leadership from the Inside Out: Becoming a Leader for life, the author reveals that leadership is defined through a person’s understanding of their internal nature, rather than the values, beliefs, and morals a society claims that a leader should possess. Even though Cashman does acknowledge the importance of the societal view of leadership, he argues that true leadership is defined by an individual’s understanding of their internal essence. In each chapter Cashman strongly debates that leaders lead by virtue of who they are. He defines this outlook on leadership as the Inside-Out Leadership Method. This is a method that allows an authoritative figure to develop a strong understanding of their physical, mental, and spiritual essence to lead others towards a mutual goal.

Leadership is not a simple, static concept. It does not form overnight. Instead, it develops alongside experiences which form a person’s character. It is as dynamic as the events that shape our lives. My life experiences equip me with the knowledge to form my own leadership philosophy. As a Noncommissioned Officer, I ensure my subordinates understand my philosophy. I ensure they understand what I expect of them. The basis of my leadership philosophy is promoting self-development, serving others, being proactive, and being an example of effective leadership.

Lack of leadership has proven to be one of the leading causes of companies not meeting their targets, and that's where Welch's four principles of establishing Mission and Values, applying Candor, implementing Differentiation, hearing the Voice of the team and rewarding accordingly have become very useful in building a strong leadership foundation. In my recent work assignment, I didn't feel I had many good examples to follow. Therefore, to delve into options of how to affect my teams' culture and support, my company's goal has led me to understand the difference between managing and leading. In this paper, I will review my leadership attributes, including any weaknesses, and study the opportunities for improvements to building a platform for effective leadership.

This concise paper addresses a lifetime of learning on part of the author and the gracious graduated squadron commander interviewee who leant his time and wisdom. In the next few paragraphs the three key elements that will be addressed include: the author’s leadership philosophy, elicited in the hot seat from the Group Commander, a summary of the author’s commander interview, and an analysis of the interview through the lens of the author’s own philosophy.

Harold S. Geneen once said, "Leadership is practiced not so much in words as in attitude and in actions. " This quote explains that in order to be a leader, a person had to do what they say they will instead of saying what they will do but don't do it. In the novel, The Other Wes Moore, written by Wes Moore, there are two normal kids with the same names but different qualities. Neither of the two boys grew up with a father but for different reasons. The author's dad dies when he was young, and the other Wes's father abandons his family.

Participating in the course Foundations of Organizational Leadership presented many opportunities to enhance and enrich my perspective on leadership as well as develop my own unique leadership philosophy. By observing the theories, models and cases presented in Northouse, Kouzes and Posner textbooks, I was able to learn through the experience of others what a true leader should represent. While considering the strengths and weaknesses of each theory, I am able to implement a leadership style with an effective approach tailored to many different types of learners. In addition, witnessing both the triumphs and failures of various businesses and leadership styles, helped me confirm my personal stance and aspirations towards becoming a leader. By implementing what I have learned from the course and textbooks, I will address in this paper what specific leadership theories, styles and models have contributed to forming my own leadership philosophy. In addition, I will also define the values, qualities, strengths and weaknesses and ethical considerations that pertain to my stance on leadership. By integrating a faith based approach as the foundation of my leadership style, I hope to implement my new philosophy into my current and future career path.

Over the past semester there have been so many great things I have learned in this class. Since the start of my education at Southwestern Assemblies of God, I have looked forward to taking this course more than any other. I am glad I had the opportunity to take it with a knowledgeable and wise professor. Throughout my life, the concepts of management and leadership have always been intriguing. Prior to my time here at SAGU I attended a leadership school called Masters Commission USA in Lewisville, Texas. There I learned the basic principles of how to become an effective leader. Although I have had a small amount of training in the past, it has been amazing to learn under your teaching. Being an effective manager is a daunting task to say the least because of the weight it carries. I definitely feel more equipped after taking your course. The concepts I am going to discuss in this paper have been reiterated over the course of the semester and have changed the way I view management. These principles that have changed my perspective are: the idea that Jesus is the center of our success, the core of management is servant leadership, and finding the balance in being a goose, an eagle, and a turkey. These principles are the key to becoming a successful

What is my leadership philosophy? That is a very good question which made me think for a while. First, what does the word philosophy really mean? The dictionary says the word philosophy comes from the Greek roots philo- meaning "love" and -sophos, or "wisdom." But what does it mean to me? Is it a way of life? Or simply what my values and beliefs are and the fact that I have control over it and it can be changed. After pondering over this question I can say my leadership philosophy is to make sure Soldiers are not being used as a

Philosophy is "the rational investigation of the truths and principles of being, knowledge or conduct."(Stuart Berg Flexner and Lenore Crary Hauck, 1993). Leadership is the process of influencing others to accomplish the mission by providing purpose, direction, and motivation. Command is the authority a person in the military service lawfully exercises over subordinates by virtue of his rank and assignment or position.(FM 6-22) My leadership philosophy has been developing thru my Army career. I have use the NCO creed as a pillar for my Leadership philosophy. The outcome of my performance is a direct reflects of my subordinates. My ideas will not always the best, that is why my Soldiers have a open door to provide any feedback.

My personal leadership philosophy describes who I am as a Soldier, a Non- Commissioned Officer, and a man who serves his country proudly. As a leader, I believe that all members of my team are important. As a Senior Non-Commissioned Officer, I believe, as the NCO creed says, “Non-Commissioned officers are the backbone of the Army.” It is very important to know your role as a NCO and fulfill all of your duties and responsibilities inherent in that role. We can all contribute to the mission and we have to understand that no one job is more important than the other. Teamwork is always provided in my leadership philosophy and if we all work together as a team we will all have the ability to make a positive difference in each other lives. When this is accomplished, then I

Leadership is something that we are all born with because we are all born. Therefore, who is a leader and who is not depends on who really wants to be a leader and who does not. Leadership is a skill and so it can be learned. As anything that is learned it demands practice and practice to be the best. It would not be something that will happen in a matter of a day. There are multiple elements that make a leader. Collaboration is a key element for successful teamwork. Therefore, a leader must always be in the look for ways to foster collaboration. Creating trust within the team, support face-to-face collaboration, transfer responsibilities when making decisions, and ultimately teach other how to be leaders. All of this is not done if it is not done from the bottom of your own heart.

Although trait and skill theories have ideas that can be intertwined and can be compared

In terms of leading a team, I regard myself as an enthusiastic and considerate leader. My colleagues on my team can always feel my passion about achieving goals as well as my consideration about others. I intend to make conversations productive by understand other’s perspectives first. I also have a high standard of integrity and apply the same criteria on both myself and my coworkers. When I was working for Deloitte, I was always the first choice for all supervisors in my group if they need to find a project leader for a very diverse team. I have been nominated as the “Team Star” for two consecutive years.

Through learning about principal leadership theories in this course, I am working towards developing my own leadership philosophy.

I have learned many lessons from Jack Welch on leadership. Jack Welch has been with the General Electric Company (GE) since 1960. Having taken over GE with a market capitalization of about $12 billion, Jack Welch turned it into one of the largest and most admired companies in the world by the time he stepped down as its CEO 20 years later, in 2000. Jack Welch used his uncanny instincts and unique leadership strategies to run GE, the most complex organization in the world and increased its market value by more than $400 billion over two decades. He remains a highly regarded figure in business circles due to his innovative leadership style. Jack Welch demonstrated Kouzes and Posner’s five practices of modeling the way, inspiring a shared