As an international student currently pursuing my MBA with no previous work experience, I am in the process of learning the importance of leadership in business management besides sharpening my leadership acumen. However, self-confidence has always been my basic strength. The fact that I have come all the way to this country to do my higher studies in Business Administration along with various other international students reaffirms my self-confidence. I am also more flexible that helps me a lot in getting along with individuals belonging to diverse cultural and social backgrounds. More importantly, I believe my overseas education and experience will help me in future to promote a diversity culture in the workplace. In light of globalization driving business organizations across the world today and my long term goal of being an international business leader, I believe my current experience will be invaluable in leading teams with employees having varied values and ideologies in my future organization.
Business organizations require effective leaders for taking organizations forward amid competition and various environmental forces that continually influence them. Leaders have the responsibility of empowering their team members. Leadership styles play a key role in driving businesses as business leaders through their unique style and philosophy about leadership motivate their team members and achieve organizational goals by transcending their own interests for the growth of the organization (Prieto, 2013). I have a proactive attitude of moving forward in life without allowing the opinions of others influence my decisions. In other words, I am always driven by my own intuition and self-awareness in taking decisions in life. For instance, when I decided to come here to pursue my higher studies, even though my parents and friends encouraged my decision to go ahead, some of my friends tried to discourage me. Those discouraged me warned me about the language and other cultural factors that would challenge me in the new campus. Interestingly, I took it as a challenge to master my English and other skills that would help me break all the barriers. I believe proactive leadership style would help me to take complete responsibility without blaming others for my errors. I am also particular about discussing with all stakeholders in my organization before taking key business decisions. Having taken a decision, I realize that as a leader I have more responsibility of facing the challenges upfront when something goes wrong without blaming other team members.
My leadership style will also be characterized with extraversion and openness. These traits are more important to establish long-standing relationship with fellow team members as well as customers. Currently, I utilize every opportunity to get along with my classmates for understanding and appreciating their values and beliefs. As a business manager in future it is more likely that I may assign targets to my team members for which they may have an internal resistance (Tjosvold & Wisse, 2009). However, I strongly believe that as a leader I can morally influence them through being a true role model. Being a role model requires several personal values that drive all my actions. For instance, I cherish certain values in life that would help me in future to lead my team members. Integrity is one personal value I have always given much importance in life since my school days. Being a person of integrity helps me to practice what I preach. Secondly, I always believe in being accountable to others and in business I am accountable to my internal as well as external customers. Through applying these values in life, I will inspire my team members; as a result, they will always honor my directions.
In conclusion, my leadership style is characterized with a proactive attitude to move forward in my personal and career life. Flexibility and openness will help me promote diversity in the workplace. Personal values like integrity and accountability will help me to exert a moral influence upon my team members towards achieving organizational goals with their whole hearted cooperation.
Reference
Prieto, B. (2013). Establishing and building leadership skills. Leadership and management in engineering, July 2013 issue.
Tjosvold, D & Wisse, B. (Eds.) (2009). Power and interdependence in organizations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
