...Characteristics of an Effective Leader Your Name Your Course Your Tutor’s Name 18th October 2012 Characteristics of an Effective Leader A leader should have excellent communication skills. In order ensure work flow is smooth within an organisation, one must be able to speak effectively in public coupled with exceptional writing skills. Your message should be straightforward and precise. This enables those with less formal education to understand easily. Difficult words with complex sentences can be hard for one to grasp figure out. He should set an example. Effective leaders lead from the front and set proper examples. They are sound, motivated, hardworking and zealous about their job. People will easily follow instructions or orders given by their leaders since they command enormous respect. He should be honest and trustworthy. A true leader should be exercise openness. People find it easy follow someone they trust and believe. They will also delegate authority by empowering staff members and believing in them. Trust build between a leader and a workmate ensures chances of failure are minimized but also accepted. He should have vision. This is the ability to have a perfect picture of how the organisation will look like in the future. He should have proper mechanisms and plans set up in place to help the organisation achieve their vision. Leadership needs confidence. This helps to build self-esteem amongst others within an organisation and develops a strong degree...
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...to perform at such level in today’s competitive society. If you want to get in a professional field, you must show the ambition to keep moving forward or else you will fall behind. The characteristics one must have to be an effective leader in today’s society include the ability to communicate properly, ability to manage time, and to respect others. First of all, the foremost important characteristic is the ability to communicate properly with others. Without communication, the leader will not be able to exchange ideas and be able to communicate with his followers, which in return doesn’t make that leader effective after all. An effective leader must also be a great listener, but that comes hand in hand with communicating properly. The Civil Rights movement would never be effective if communication didn’t take place. Leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X, Frederick Douglass, Rosa Parks, and etc would never have spread their words about African American Rights. Without communication; it is almost impossible to be an effective leader. A second characteristic an effective leader must have is good time management. Time management is an ability that many of us appear to learn through necessity. Nobody likes a person who lacks the ability to manage time correctly. An effective leader has to plan his day effectively so he can progress and be more productive. When time is not managed correctly; you will focus more on urgent things rather than important things....
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...History of Leadership Research Researchers have examined leadership skills from a variety of perspectives. Early analyses of leadership, from the 1900s to the 1950s, differentiated between leader and follower characteristics. Finding that no single trait or combination of traits fully explained leaders' abilities, researchers then began to examine the influence of the situation on leaders' skills and behaviors. Subsequent leadership studies attempted to distinguish effective from non-effective leaders. These studies attempted to determine which leadership behaviors were exemplified by effective leaders. To understand what contributed to making leaders effective, researchers used the contingency model in examining the connection between personal traits, situational variables, and leader effectiveness. Leadership studies of the 1970s and 1980s once again focused on the individual characteristics of leaders which influence their effectiveness and the success of their organizations. The investigations led to the conclusion that leaders and leadership are crucial but complex components of organizations. Traits Model of Leadership: Leaders versus Followers Initial investigations of leadership considered leaders as individuals endowed with certain personality traits which constituted their abilities to lead. The studies investigated individual traits such as intelligence, birth order, socioeconomic status, and child-rearing practices (Bass, 1960; Bird, 1940; Stogdill, 1948, 1974)...
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...History of Leadership Research Researchers have examined leadership skills from a variety of perspectives. Early analyses of leadership, from the 1900s to the 1950s, differentiated between leader and follower characteristics. Finding that no single trait or combination of traits fully explained leaders' abilities, researchers then began to examine the influence of the situation on leaders' skills and behaviors. Subsequent leadership studies attempted to distinguish effective from non-effective leaders. These studies attempted to determine which leadership behaviors were exemplified by effective leaders. To understand what contributed to making leaders effective, researchers used the contingency model in examining the connection between personal traits, situational variables, and leader effectiveness. Leadership studies of the 1970s and 1980s once again focused on the individual characteristics of leaders which influence their effectiveness and the success of their organizations. The investigations led to the conclusion that leaders and leadership are crucial but complex components of organizations. Traits Model of Leadership: Leaders versus Followers Initial investigations of leadership considered leaders as individuals endowed with certain personality traits which constituted their abilities to lead. The studies investigated individual traits such as intelligence, birth order, socioeconomic status, and child-rearing practices (Bass, 1960; Bird, 1940; Stogdill, 1948, 1974)...
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...Leadership Development When looking at the characteristics of an effective leader, you can go back at least 20 years to compare how the years have changed the expectations of an effective leader. Looking in the past 20 years of leadership development and becoming an effective leader over continents and cultures there are four main characteristics you should have. Effective Leader Characteristics Honesty, a visionary, competent, and inspiring were all common votes, honesty being #1. If you look at the current continents and cultures they put creativity as #1 and then integrity (honesty). Being an effective leader is having not just one of these characters but all of them. When having innovation as a leader, it can help to bring out all of these characteristics. As a leader you can look at your team and decipher how to motivate them. According to Meredith (2010) “Bringing out the creative talents and innovation gifts of team members by constantly seeking, identifying, and fostering these talents” (p.19). This will create a more effective team and bring out their best work. Also, giving the team challenges to bring out their creativity are ways to be an effective leader. The fact that a team needs the tension to flourish and be creative is a great way for an effective leader to keep the environment running smoothly. Being a serious leader and keeping the goals of the team in prospective is effective in any workplace. Having challenges and rewards...
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...important in the nursing. Leaders assist in motivating, teaching, collaborating, and guiding others to reach a specific goal. Leaders must possess certain characteristics to be considered and effective leader. This paper will entail the difference between leaders and managers. Characteristics needed to be an effective leader will be identified and discussed. Personal Views Leadership is guidance provided by individuals in authoritative position like managers and non-authoritative positions, like staff nurses. Leaders must obtain skills such as interpersonal communication, feedback through communication, and delegation. Other skills leaders must have are patience, compassion, and problem-solving and multi-tasking skills. Leaders must also possess the ability to be effective listeners and adaptive to multiple personalities and changes within the environment. Leadership versus Management Leaders and managers are often mistaken as meaning the same thing. Sullivan and Decker (2009), defines leaders as individuals who use “interpersonal skills to influence others to accomplish specific goals” (p. 329). Managers are individuals responsible for accomplishing organizational goals (Sullivan & Decker, 2009). Leaders can be in positions with authoritative and non-authoritative roles. The difference between leaders and managers is the goals in which the individuals desire to accomplish. Leaders choose to accomplish specific goals pertaining to a specific department. Leaders provide direction...
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...Table of Contents 1.0 INTRODUCTION 7 2.0 WHAT IS LEADERSHIP AND CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EFFECTIVE LEADER? 7 2.1 WHAT IS LEADERSHIP? 7 3.0 LEADERS IN REVIEW: WHO IS MORE EFFECTIVE LEADER? 9 3.1 BIOGRAPHY - RICHARD BRANSON & VIJAY MALLYA 9 3.2 WHO IS THE MORE EFFECTIVE LEADER? 10 4.0 CONCLUSION 14 5.0 REFERENCE 15 1.0 INTRODUCTION The objective of this research paper is to analyse the differences between the leadership qualities of Richard Branson and Vijay Mallya and come to the conclusion as to who is more effective leader. The paper first defines the leadership and then briefly discusses the concepts associated with the leadership. It then presents two leaders with some brief biographies, characteristics and their contribution to their individual company. It would then conclude who is the more effective leader by providing with some aspects of leadership and leadership framework. 2.0 WHAT IS LEADERSHIP AND CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EFFECTIVE LEADER? 2.1 WHAT IS LEADERSHIP? Leadership is an interesting and widely discussed subject and has been described by James MacGregor Burns (1978) as “one of the most observed and least understood phenomena on Earth”. Northouse (2010) defines leadership being a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal. The leadership definition that I favour and think is more suited to the 21st century is “The process by which an agent induces a subordinate to behave in a desired manner”...
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...5/13/2012 leaders are born not made If you order your custom term paper from our custom writing service you will receive a perfectly written assignment on leaders are born not made. What we need from you is to provide us with your detailed paper instructions for our experienced writers to follow all of your specific writing requirements. Specify your order details, state the exact number of pages required and our custom writing professionals will deliver the best quality leaders are born not made paper right on time. Out staff of freelance writers includes over 120 experts proficient in leaders are born not made, therefore you can rest assured that your assignment will be handled by only top rated specialists. Order your leaders are born not made paper at affordable prices with Live Paper Help! . Leaders are born, not made Over the years there has been many opinions on this statement, and when trying to understand leadership success many approaches have been looked at. Researchers at the start of the 0th century focused on traits that leaders possessed. It was thought that some people were born with traits which made them a leader. Before the nd World War a lot of research was carried out, which sought to identify these characteristics. This is known as the Great Man Approach, since being born with these characteristics made you a “great man”. So is it true that leaders are born? Before seeking to answer this question, the theories should be examined. Stodgill...
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...Traits and Characteristics By Kristina G. Ricketts, Community and Leadership Development Most individuals would consider these people to be some of the greatest leaders of all time. In the early 20th century, leadership traits were studied to determine what made certain people great leaders. Common thoughts of leadership back then suggested that leaders were born and not made. These perceptions originated out of an observation that many great leaders possessed something out of the ordinary—natural, inborn characteristics that allowed them to excel above the rest. This perception translated into limited opportunities for leadership among the common people, as they were not endowed with these “special” leadership characteristics. However, research did not end up supporting this hypothesis and came back disappointingly negative. Researchers compared leaders and followers and looked for obvious differences. Even after comparing aspects such as IQ, personality qualities and personal characteristics, no consistent trends were found. As mentioned above, effective leadership often relies upon certain traits held by the leader. So leadership effectiveness is based upon the working relationship between the leader and other group members. Individual Differences Framework (IDF) states that leadership can be defined relatively straightforwardly as influencing people towards a shared goal. Determining that effective leadership was about much more than just certain characteristics, researchers...
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...Effective Leadership and Management in Nursing Shirley J. Mitchell University of Phoenix HSC 492 Instructor: Linda Westermann March 12, 2012 Effective Leadership and Management in Nursing According to Sullivan and Decker (2009), leadership is influencing others into working toward accomplishing a common goal. Some people are born with an innate leadership quality within them. Others require learning leadership and management skills. It takes a certain personality trait that makes them a natural leader. Intelligence, personality, and abilities are three categories of the trait theory that is a part of the profile of successful leaders (Sullivan & Decker, 2009). I will discuss my personal views of leadership. It will describe how leadership differs from management. Finally, the characteristics of an effective leader will disclose. What are your personal views of leadership? Everyone is a leader at one time or another. A good leader is one that knows just when to pull back from the leadership role and let the team proceed on his or her own. These leaders have a natural ability to guide their team effectively with his or her charismatic approach that the team believes they are well supported. They know when to lead, when not to lead, when to let the team lead, and they know just when to dance. How does leadership differ from management? There is not much difference with leadership and management. In most situations, the terms are used interchangeably...
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...at ease with the language of special accountability and commitment. Leadership is not just for people at the pinnacle but everyone can learn to guide by discovering the authority that lies within each of us to make a difference and being prepared when the call of guide comes. Leadership is applicable to all aspects of life. This is a competency that one can gain knowledge of to expand perspectives, set the circumstance goal, understand the dynamics of human performance, and take the proposal to get the organization to where they want to be. Leadership is the universal idea of setting a innovative course or vision for a group that is followed by the leader. A leader’s effectiveness is the extent to which the leader’s organizational unit performs its task successfully and attains its goals (Yukl, 2006). It is also noted that a leaders efficiency is calculated in terms of the leader’s contribution to the value of the group processes, as perceived by the employee’s or outside observers. Developing a personal leadership style is not an easy quest. Anytime that one is trying to influence behavior is engaging in a leadership role. There are many ways to transform leadership; vision, planning, communication, or imaginative actions, that has a optimistic effect on unifying individuals around a set of standards and beliefs to accomplish obtainable goals. This paper will address the type of leadership that best fits this writer. This...
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...Characteristics of a Good Leader Introduction Leaders have an important role within an organisation related to its success, productivity and the performance of the employees. The ‘fundamental task of a leader is to build and maintain a high performing team’ (Furnham, 2005, p.566). However, Yukl (2013, p.18) argues that there are numerous and diverse definitions concerning the concept of a leader as well as the term leadership, although a general consensus appears to suggest it involves a process of influencing and guiding relationships within an organisation . Guirdham (2002, p.15) emphasises the importance of leaders having good interpersonal and communication skills, which as Yukl suggest involves the ability to persuade others. Yukl (2013, p.18) further states there are additional factors that contribute to good leadership such as the situational context and the use of power. Another issue regarding the characteristics of leaders is that many theories and models have been based on Western perspectives (House and Aditya, 1997, p.409) and typically based on research with white males (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, CIPD, 2008, p.7). There is some cultural crossover in servant leadership, which according to Northouse (2013, p.219), was originally proposed by Greenleaf in the 1970s, and also has origins in ancient Eastern and Western philosophies; for example, it is deeply embedded in Arab-Islamic culture (Sarayrah, 2004, p.59). A further concern is raised...
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... According to the Miriam-Webster Dictionary; Leadership is the office or position of a leader, the capacity to lead and the act or an instance of leading. My personal definition of leadership is “one who has the capability to lead a group or organization. By doing so, such person’s decisions are not solely based on his/her ideas and opinions only. A leader listens, supports, represents, never gives up and most of all is a role model to his subordinates. He have the ability to motivate and empower others to achieve a goal”. There are individuals who may agree with my definition and there are others who may add or subtract. Whatever the case may be; this justifies one fact about Leadership which is; everyone have their own way of how leadership is defined. Everyone have their unique Leadership styles and characteristics. There are many characteristics and qualities that come to mind when I consider a leader in my life and the influence that they have had on my values, skills and knowledge of what makes an effective leader. In gathering these various characteristics and qualities, I have a portrait of what an ideal leader can and should be. This paper will examine the characteristics of a leader that I would be willing to walk through the streets of Bagdad for, even if all I have was a squirt gun. My Ideal Leader falls under the category of Team Leadership. In Team Leadership; the leader has special responsibilities for functioning in a manner that will help the group or organization...
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...3.) CHARACTERISTICS, TRAITS, AND BEHAVIORS OF EFFECTIVE LEADERS Characteristics and Traits of Effective Leaders Understanding leadership requires an understanding of leaders as individuals. This section will highlight findings about the personal characteristics and behaviors of effective managerial leaders. An assessment of the characteristics and behaviors of leaders translates into the idea that these same positive attributes of a leader will facilitate his or her effectiveness in comparable settings, such as customer service departments in different companies. Possessing certain characteristics and traits does not in itself guarantee success. Yet effective leaders differ from others in certain respects. Studying leadership traits is also important because a person who is perceived to embody certain traits is more likely to be accepted as a leader. Here we present a sampling of factors relevant to many work settings. 1. Drive and passion. Leaders are noted for the effort they invest in their work and the passion they have for work and work associates. Carol Bartz, the CEO of Yahoo, observes, “If you’re not excited, how can you get others excited? People will know. It’s like how kids and dogs can sense when people don’t like them.” 2. Power motive. Successful leaders exhibit power motivation, a strong desire to control others and resources and get them to do things on your behalf. A leader with strong power need enjoys exercising power and using...
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...activities to achieve goals. Effective leadership increases the firm’s ability to meet new challenges. Leader: The person exerting the influence. Personal Leadership Style: the ways leaders choose to influence others. Some leaders delegate and support subordinates, others are very authoritarian. Managers at all levels have their own leadership style. | Slide 3 : | Leadership Across Cultures Leadership styles may vary over different cultures. European managers tend to be more people-oriented than American or Japanese managers. Japanese culture is very collective oriented, while American focuses more on profitability. Time horizons also are affected by cultures. U.S. firms often focus on short-run efforts. Japanese firms take a longer-term outlook. | Slide 4 : | Sources of Power Figure 13.1 | Slide 5 : | Sources of Power Used to affect other’s behavior and get them to act in given ways. Legitimate Power: manager’s authority resulting by their management position in the firm. Can be power to hire/fire workers, assign work. Reward Power: based on the manager’s ability to give or withhold rewards. Pay raises, bonuses, verbal praise. Effective managers use reward power to signal employees they are doing a good job. | Slide 6 : | Sources of Power Coercive Power: based in ability to punish others. Ranges from verbal reprimand to pay cuts to firing. Can have serious negative side effects. Expert Power: based on special skills of leader. First & middle managers...
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