Here are some leadership thoughts from a paper Leadership Theory, one of the MBA classes I took this past year.
· “To aspire to leadership is an honorable ambition” (1 Timothy 3:1, NEB).
· Leadership is working with and through others to achieve objectives (Goldsmith, 2008). Through the years, leadership has been defined and conceptualized in many ways. The component common to nearly all classifications s that leadership is an influence process that assists groups of individuals toward goal attainment . . . to achieve a common goal (Northouse, 2007, 12). The goal of individual leadership is influencing people. The goal of organizational leadership is getting extraordinary things done in organizations through influencing and mobilizing others. (Kouzes and Posner, 2007, xi).
· “Related to leadership is the concept of power, the potential to influence (Northouse, 2007, 13).
· “Great leaders are made, not born. Can people who are already working to influence others become more effective leaders? The answer is an unqualified ‘Yes.’”(Goldsmith, 2008). “Leadership development is self-development” (Kouzes and Posner, 2007, xvii).
· Inspire others. “Great leaders move us. The ignite our passion and inspire the best in us. When we try to explain why they are so effective, we speak of strategy, vision, or powerful ideas. But the reality is much more primal: Great leadership works through the emotions. This emotional task of the leader is primal – that is, first – in two senses: It is both original and the most important act of leadership (Goleman, 2002, p. 5).
· “People first, then strategy” (Goleman, 2002, p. 220-221). “Turn the vision into action. At every opportunity, leaders need to demonstrate what the vision looks like, what it feels like, and how people can live it today as well as in the future. They lead through coaching, vision, democracy, and respect for people around them. And they call on others to live up to their own values and the mission of the organization” (Goleman, 2002, p. 221).
· Be the example. This is leadership. “It’s about putting your money where your mouth is. It’s about practicing what you preach. It’s about following through on commitments. It’s about keeping promises. It’s about walking the talk. It’s about keeping promises. It’s about walking the talk. It’s about doing what you say” (Kouzes and Posner, 2007, 75).
· “Look, you either believe that developing leaders is important or you don’t. There are so many variables that could be used to either make or break your argument for leadership development. We’re not going to play that game. We firmly believe it’s important to grow leaders who can run their businesses, their functions, and their regions, yet who can lead with an enterprisewide perspective. People make this business happen, and we will let our performance speak for the importance of developing leaders” (Ready, 2004, p. 6).
· Invest in others. Create a climate of trust. Facilitate relationships Enhance self determination. Develop competence and confidence. Foster accountability. Coach. (Kouzes and Posner, 257).
· “If you want to be great, you must be
the servant of all the others. And if you want to be first, you must be
everyone's slave” (Mark 10:43-44 NIV).
References
Goleman, Daniel. (2002). Primal
Leadership. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
Goldsmith, Marshall (2008, January 14).
Ask the Coach: Great Leaders are Made not Born. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved
April 21, 2009 from http://blogs.harvardbusiness.org/goldsmith/2008/01/great_leaders_are_made_not_bor.html.
Kouzes, J. & Posner, B. (2007). The Leadership Challenge (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Northouse, Peter. (2006). Leadership: Theory and Practice (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Ready, Douglas. (2004, December). How to Grow Great Leaders. Harvard
Business Review. Retrieved April 21, 2009 from http://hbr.harvardbusiness.org/2004/12/how-to-grow-great-leaders/ar/1.
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