Introduction
My leadership style is working with group of people to achieve specific goal. I believe the goal must be clear defined to everyone can reach that goal. It must inspire workers to work well enough short term and long term to accomplish these goals. Furthermore, I have clear and direct communication for each step to complete the goal (Milstead, 2004). In order to encourage workers to work hard, I believe the great way is reward the workers. However, the workers will be subject to negative consequence if he or she fails to produce require or expected out put, disobeys manger instruction, violates the authority code of conduct (Mackenzie, & Podsakoff, 2001). Like, Gandhi to Mandela, and Dr. King I am able to learn the principles and the techniques of a great leader, then I too can become a great leader.
Great leaders in the past such as Gandhi to Mandela, and Dr. King all had many characteristics that made them strong leaders. The great leader who tries to persuade people to focus on the main goal and follow him( Linchon no leadership). For example, when I read the book Martin Luther King, Jr. on Leadership, I realized Dr. King encouraged people to focus on the main goal. I believe for me to be good leader as for my family must be goal oriented and illustrate this goal in order to accomplish this goal. As leader I will focus on the main goal, and I will explain the goal clearly to my subordinates to encourage them to accomplish this goal.
One of the major principles of great leader is being able to build trusting relationship( cited). For example, when Dr. king and Gandhi take action, they demonstrate to people that they were worthy of their trust. For example, during the civil right movements Dr. King led many public demonstrates which persuade even more people to join. In order for this public demonstration to take place, Dr. King needed to show people that he would indeed full fulfill what he had promised, such as African American have the right vote. As he gained progress people began to cease doubt his plans because they would keep hoping that they would eventually have the dream of equal human rights.
Since what make person a good leader depend on being trust worthy, it is important that I apply to my philosophy for example, when I must always led people in the workplace, I must always show them that I am worthy of their trust, which is providing by my honesty. Not only in the workplace, but also in a family setting; for me to be a trust worthy father and husband I am must always be honest with my family in order to gain their trust.. In my philosophy to be honest is very essential it makes easier for people to communicate among one other, as well as follow clearly.
Another important principle is to be great leader is communication. Communication can effect how subordinates follow the leader. For example, if the leader gives clear instruction to his or her subordinates, this will have positive effect he or she performs in the workplace (Riggio, 2003). I believe that a good leader who can use nonverbal and verbal communication. I believe the verbal communication is made strong by giving clear direction for task providing feedback, and having good presentation skills. I think the nonverbal communication is important for the leader to use nonverbal communication. The nonverbal communication, such as hand movement, face expression, when the leader applies to nonverbal communication this makes the message easier to decode. This also helps to draw attention to the audience. In my philosophy I will use both verbal and nonverbal communication because both techniques assist anther. For instance, using hand gestures while describe the details of subject can make easier for audience understand the message, as well as keeping the audience full attention.
During the civil right movement Dr. Martian Luther King motivated people via using hand gestures, different tons of voice, appropriate facial expressions. Using these techniques will make audience better able decode the information presented. In my philosophy as a leader I believe verbal and nonverbal communication skills are equal important, because both help the audience to accurate interpret the information that is presented. For example, when I tell my subordinated to complete list of tasks I can use nonverbal and verbal communication skills to give clear instructions, as well as to determine whether or not my subordinates full understand the instructions, by reading facial expressions.
I believe the great leader who focuses on the long-term goal rather than short-term goal. This shows how a great leader is able to focus on innovative and persuade thinking. Dr. King use nonviolence action when he is organized bus boycott in order to overcome racial segregation through intelligence and persuasion, rather than brutality. In my Philosophy I believe when I use nonviolence that will increase people to follow the leader to feel more safe.
Another essential principle to be great leader is able to understand people. When the leader understand people how they think, it is easy for the leader to motivate them to do great job. For example, seeing that the civil right boycott had been successful, using past successful strategies will motivate people to want to continue to the next plan. In my philosophy I would motivate my worker by giving a great reward, such as extra salary or certificate to show them hard work what they do. In my philosophy to be as a leader for my family I will motivate my wife and my children to get a good result in the school by giving wonderful reword, such as a good trip because I believe the reward is good way to motivate people rather than punishment.
The title given to oneself as a leader makes him or her manager of a team, but leadership is not decided by your title. It is decided by the people whom you handle. A lot of people think that just by the title they are given, it makes them a better person than others. But what they don’t realize is that the people are the ones that are giving him the power to be in the position. For me, the people are my strength. They are the main reason that I am in the position to decide, lead, and have a commitment on a goal. By being their leader, it means that they are giving me permission to step up and be a model for the team. My philosophy as a leader makes me think that there can never be one person better that the other. We are all equal. Nelson Mandela, a political prisoner in South Africa, once said “I am your servant. I do not come to you as a leader, as one above others” (Taggart, 2009). This quote can have a lot of meaning, but for me it means that every person in a team is equal in all aspects. We should see people in our team as a friend that we can rely on, but this should work in both ways, every member of the team should also be able to rely on you.
Being given a title of a leader doesn’t put greatness to oneself, but it is the recognition of the greatness that is already inside him (Smith, 2014). It is not only the knowledge that one is already capable of working and doing the job well, but also the knowledge that one has the strength needed in the goal that is needed to be achieved. I cannot say that I am a good person and has a lot of qualities that can compare to great persons that I mentioned before, but it is to my belief that everyone is capable of being a leader. There is no one in this world that cannot lead, and has no strength and characteristics of a leader. There is one aspect and characteristic that makes one’s self unique for him/her to be given the title as a leader.
Leadership comes with a lot of responsibilities; to the goal and to the people his leading. He is expected to provide the challenge to his people, a challenge that will make them use their hidden talents and capabilities, a challenge that will make them appreciate themselves much better, and a challenge that will make them realize that they are a part of the team. The leader should provide the environment needed for their greatness to emerge, for every people in the team is a very valuable asset. Investing in the capabilities of the team is a lot of work but it can result to a lot of achievements once finished. In my mind, having a valuable asset is a good thing, that’s why I really appreciate the thought of having someone or the team to help and be there to support the achievement of our goal.
Every leader can just sit and let their team members to do all the things needed to achieve their goal. He can just dictate or command the things he wanted and needed. He can think all by himself and not ask the other members of the team for advice since they already give him the power to lead. He can also do all the work if he thinks his members are very incompetent to their work. All of this can be done by the leader which is all wrong. As a leader he should be able to inspire the members of the team to achieve extraordinary things. He has a job of developing his members into future leaders (Arneson, 2009). He is the one responsible for shaping the leadership strategy. Leadership strategy is one of the major cores of leadership philosophy. And in terms of this topic, it is a vital part of the achievement of the goal.
Another attribute I hope to show my teams members is the virtue of integrity. Being a leader, you should be able to show how you value principles. Everything you say is an important thing to the team, you should always mean it. Every leader should think critically first before saying anything to the team, because everyone will most of the time believes it for you have the power and you are in the position. The leader is the one who will decide on the progress on the work to be done, so every decision that you will make is important. In the end, everything that I said and every actions that I made should only say one meaning. It should be synonymous.
Every leader should also possess humility. Although every people have a lot of talents and gifts, leaders should learn to view themselves as a person with less of those things. I believe that being a leader means that we should also learn from our members. We should treat every success and failures as a lesson, so we may improve our talents and abilities in the future. Hope is always at our side. We can always believe that if we strive and work hard, we can always achieve our goal, quitting should never come to our minds. Better versions of one’s self can always emerge from the hardships we made.
A lot of factors affect our leadership. There are rumors and gossip that always roam around the workplace (Peryam, n.d.). It is a very difficult task to eliminate it. As a leader, we should be the ones responsible for eliminating it. Rumors and gossip can be hurtful, especially when the victims are our own team members. Engaging to rumor and gossip is the wrong thing to do, but as the leader of a group, I believe that we should know what the rumors are about and solve it properly. It should not be a personal act but rather be viewed professionally since we leaders are in power.
Leadership should not only be focused on the leader itself, we should also view what we expect from our team members. I believe that as a team, every member should aspire to give their best, be true to whom you are, contribute to the ideas, give opinions and make them show the limitations of their strengths. I hope that they should think about the outcomes individually and collectively. I hope that they point out problems if they ever see one, and try to come up with a potential solution to it. I have a lot of other expectations on my team members, but the two mentioned earlier are on the top of the list.
There are a lot of problems in a team, and the leader should be able to identify all of them. One of the major problems in a group work is the failure to prepare. A lot of group activities fail because the members and even the leaders are not aware of the proper context and understanding of their own goal. The lack of proper tolls in finishing up the goal is a big problem. From my own experience, there are always members of the group that shows up to the workplace without the proper context and understanding of the project. It affects the outcome of the work and slows the pace of the team. Members of that attitude prevent them from actively contributing to the situation at hand. Another problem is the difference in opinions. Many people always keep opinions to themselves and let the team leader to decide it all. I believe that the lack of other ideas from other team members can minimize the quality of the work. And lastly, as a leader, I believe that the team is only as strong as its weakest contributor. A team is viewed as a whole, so if there is an individual that didn’t contribute to the limits of his capabilities, every success is not so fulfilling.
Commitment to the work or goal at hand is the most important thing for a leader. My philosophy revolves around commitment. Every leader should be able to give his all to the achievement of the goal. Even though the blame for a failure is given to the team, we all know that most of the blame is indirectly given to the leader. I believe that all will work well if commitment is given. We should actively run the team; energize them, educate and empower. I believe that some of my leadership philosophy is just adapted from all of the leaders that I believe to be good at leading and has achieved a lot of success. It is not wrong to idolize others, but we should also think of our own ideas, another characteristic of a leader. Leaders should act consistently because of a firm commitment to certain personal values. My commitment as a leader is to be able to share my ideals to my team members, look for their input and to inspire other people. I believe that everything we do in our life shows what kind of leader we are and what king of philosophy we have.
References
Arneson, S. (2009). Leadership Philosophy. Executive Excellence Publishing.
Peryam, R. (n.d.). Leadership Philosophy and Mutual Expectations. Monroe County Sheriffs Office.
Smith, B. (2014). Personal Leadership Philosophy. Academy Leadership.
Taggart, J. (2009). Authentic Leadership: A Personal Philosophy. Word Press.
