I think that leadership is the ability to inspire and enable a group of people to achieve a common goal. However, even as a good leader allows group members to contribute in their own ways, he or she still remains responsible and accountable for the group as a whole and for providing the group with the necessary guidance that will enable them to cope with the changes that may occur as they try to achieve their goal (Farid Dadashev,2007, http://mba.yale.edu/index.shtml).
That said, leadership is something that should be taken seriously. Although it can be adventurous and fun to be a leader, it should always be kept in mind that leadership comes with responsibility and that it is the leader’s obligation to make sure that goals and objectives are met. As such, an effective leader can be distinguished from an ineffective one by evaluating whether he or she is able to get the job done or not. In particular, I think that the leadership role is not merely for show, that is, the group members will look up to the leader and expect him or her to guide them towards the achievement of their goal. A competent leader will inspire cooperation and motivation among the members. On the other hand, a leader who slacks around won’t be respected and followed (Concepts of Leadership, 2010).
As well, an ineffective leader lacks flexibility and is very controlling. Instead of giving his or her group members free rein over how they can accomplish their tasks best, a controlling leader feels the need to dictate everything. On the contrary, a good leader allows his or her group members to use their best judgment in accomplishing their tasks, which in turn allows them to further enhance their capabilities and skills. As an example, a good leader will ask his or her group members to make a bicycle but will leave it to them to decide how to make the bicycle better and stronger.
In addition, an effective leader is one who is selfless and can empathize with his or her subordinates. With EQ (Emotional Intelligence) now becoming more important than IQ, a good leader must be able to identify, read, and decipher the unexpressed or partially expressed language (physical and verbal) in an interaction. Without this ability, which Iron Fist leaders generally do not have, everyone on the team will suffer because most of the communication in an interaction will be completely lost. It doesn't matter how smart the manager is, if the communication is lost then the leader fails to lead (Robinson, 2008).
In my opinion, "Leadership" starts the wheel turning, and management keeps it running. Leaders inspire workers. They plan, think, and make strategies to clarify the road that leads to the achievement of the company’s goals. On the other hand, managers implement plans, follow rules and policies, carry out operations, and most importantly, ensure that everyone in the company is on the same boat and that no one is making the company lag behind in its daily business. Without leadership, the company’s growth will stay at a plateau level and without management, the business will struggle in tackling its tasks and operations, which will further limit its growth or even lead to the failure of accomplishing its business goals. As such, a combination of both leadership and management skills is required for running and growing the business.
In addition, I think that a good leader must have good interpersonal skills. Great leaders also thrive on ambiguity, which means that they are able to turn conflicts into positive results in that they are able to come up with innovations by using these conflicting ideas. Successful people are also open to differences in opinions. In addition, good leaders are secure people. They seek to work with the best and with people who can challenge their ideas without worrying about whether they will be outshone by others. They also believe in themselves, that is, even though they seek the opinions and advice of others, they still have a strong belief in their own judgment and capabilities. As well, great leaders are passionate, that is, they care deeply for their causes and their goals. Most importantly, they care about the people and recognize the value of employees, vendors, customers, and stockholders to the business. Moreover, great leaders are ruthlessly honest with themselves and are their own worst critics (August Turak, 2012).
Finally, leadership is not exact, which makes it comparable to an adventure in that there’s no certainty on whether goals will be reached or not. As well, effective leaders know that they are effective but will not let this make them feel superior, which may affect the way they lead. Instead, they will continue to make their work transparent for everyone, especially for their subordinates. On the other hand, ineffective leaders do not know that they are ineffective. Ineffective leaders fail to recognize their weaknesses, which only makes them more ineffective.
LEADERSHIP REFLECTION
My Understanding/Definition of Leadership: Leadership is a capability that enables one to inspire others to complete a goal and that enables one to direct the business such that the business becomes more natural and coherent.
References:
Concepts of leadership. ( 2010). From http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/leader/leadcon.html
Forbes. (2012). From http://www.forbes.com
Leadership And Management. (1995). From http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/leadership-basics.html
My personality.info. (2007). From http://www.mypersonality.info/personality-types/judging-perceiving
Robinson, D. (2008). The differences between effective and ineffective leader skills. From http://www.helium.com/items/1090524-the-differences-between-effective-
Helium Articles today. (2002-2012). From http://www.helium.com
http://mba.yale.edu/index.shtml Yale School of management. (2000- 2012. From
