My fictitious character is Debbie, a manager at a small but budding Law Firm in Texas, in the Movie Jaws of the law. Debbie is in her early thirties, single but hopes to get married soon. She is the manager of Purle Consult, a two year old firm that has seen great extension ever since its inception two years earlier. She heads a team of thirty lawyers that are highly qualified in their various fields of specialty. She is very industrious and just like any other manager, holds onto the notion that respect is earned and never demanded. She accepts as true that the adoption of a “Hitler approach” will make her infamous in her company and that the team members would not want to have her around for a long time. Thus, she is very friendly to her juniors and never loses the smile on her face however bad things could get in the firm.
As a leader, she is very stern on beating deadlines. Thus, she creates the culture of an uphill struggle and devotion and encourages her staff to give the best they can as a motivation. She is honest with her clients as well as her staff. Debbie was brought up in a Christian family that observed God’s rule of law to the letter. She is also realistic when it comes to setting expectations on her business targets. She is reasonable enough as not to set targets that are overboard and unattainable. These traits are borrowed from her family; her father was a strong Christian and always taught her daughter to be honest and realistic.
However, some traits were developed from her experiences as a manager. Prior to her appointment as the manager of Purle Consult, she held a similar position where she was harsh and this made her very unpopular. What resulted next was catastrophic; she was fired and was jobless for almost a year. From this, she learned to be soft towards her juniors, and this explains her friendly nature towards her staff. This helps create a conducive workplace environment that reflects in better performance. Thus, personality can be developed at the workplace and it affects how a manager relates with his juniors and the kind of response to certain stressing situations like stress. Personality development reduces the levels of stress since one can handle a tough situation in an amicable manner.
There are three management traits that Debbie exudes as an effective manager. First off, she is honest. This is a trait that is often taken for granted but is the most powerful tool when one is a manager. Being transparent as manager aids in the development of trust in the managers’ followers, which makes it easy for them to be sold to the managers’ vision? The second trait that Debbie gas that marks her as an effective manager is that she is competent. She bases her actions on moral principles and reason, and that is why she never lies to her staff or clients. She is always truthful and transparent. The third trait that Debbie has as an effective manager is courageous. Despite having rough times as the manager of Purle Consult, she has never lost her cool at any point in time. She is always composed and displays a lot of calmness whenever she is faced with seemingly insurmountable obstacles. All these traits are necessary in order for manager to be successful. They help to create trust, confidence and instill a sense of maturity to the company.
Personally, I can develop all these traits in my own life. First, I believe I am a very honest person and thus a good attribute to being a manager. The other option through which I can develop the traits is through experience. As Debbie learnt the hard way that being too harsh is detrimental, I too will learn some basic management traits that are not taught in the classroom setting. I could also go for managerial seminars where w I will be taught on how to handle issues in the office setting. These training experiences are very necessary since management is transforming at a very fast pace. However, there are some demerits to having these traits. When a manager gets too friendly with his or her juniors, it reaches a point where they all seem to be on the same level and the authority and power seem to diminish. As a result, the followers won’t take the manager serious even when issues are grave and urgent. This familiarity breeds contempt and it is not good at all. Another demerit is that when one is too transparent on issues, it sometimes is taken as a bad notion, and this might affect the attitude of the juniors to the manager. The other demerit of being too soft is that one is not taken serious by the juniors.
I have seen the traits being utilized in my own life because for one, I am a very honest person. I always maintain my cool no matter how vexing a situation can be. If I would walk a mile in Debbie’s shoes, I would boast of being Very honest, hardworking and indeed very courageous. I am a great team leader as well as team player and can work well under stress. I relate so much to Debbie as a manager of Purle Consult, and would I get the opportunity to be managed by her, I would not let the chance whisk by; I would grab it like a magnet. Debbie is a good manager and we share lots in common, so I would not mind being under her management.
References
Madsen, J. J. (2005). How to be a better boss: 10 measures of effective managers and leaders. Buildings, 34, 23-31.
Schafer, J. A. (2010). Effective Leaders and Leadership In Policing: Traits, Assessment, Development, and Expansion. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, 33(4), 644-663.
Simanowitz, V., & Pearce, P. (2003). Personality development. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Ward, K. (2012). Personality style at work: the secret to working with (almost) anyone. New York: McGraw-Hill.
