Transformational Leadership and the Development of Individual Strengths
For a leader’s professional and personal development, it is necessary to improve the individual’s strengths. Transformational leaders have strong personalities and rely on their best qualities. To create a personal leadership philosophy, in addition to module readings, articles by Anselmann and Mulder (2020), Asif et al. (2019), and Boamah (2021) were used. These works identify that transformational leaders have a positive impact on the level. Nurse job satisfaction reduces burnout and turnover and improves patient outcomes and safety.
The main leadership behaviors presented in the articles are followers’ motivation, the stimulation of personal and professional development, and attention to the individual qualities of team members (Anselmann & Mulder, 2020). These qualities enable transformational leaders to build cohesive teams based on a shared vision. In addition, being attentive to the followers’ individual needs and interests helps develop each team member’s strengths. Thus, transformational leaders inspire the achievement of common goals by emphasizing the importance of each follower’s individual contribution.
Core Values
Nursing practice focuses on the benefit and safety of patients. For nurses, caring for other people is a paramount task that guides all their activities. Thus, the first of my core values is altruism, as I want to do my best to help people and work for their good. It is also essential for nurses to consider the characteristics and needs of patients when working with them, as well as to respect social, cultural, and personal factors. Human dignity is the second core value for me since when providing care, it is necessary to ensure the comfort and safety of the patient.
A third core value is linked to the previous aspect, which is the need to ensure patient privacy. This is important for nurses as it keeps sensitive patient information safe. Finally, to provide the best possible care and patient safety, my fourth core value is honesty, which allows me to provide only necessary care in the patient’s interests.
However, some values are not related directly to patients but mainly to the nursing practice. First, one of these core values is autonomy since, as a professional, I need to apply the full range of my skills and knowledge in a nursing setting. Additionally, it is critical to participate in the decision-making process and express my professional opinions.
Another core value is the opportunity to participate in ongoing professional development and growth, including nursing research. My third core value in this area is applying evidence-based practice in patient care. This is essential to ensure better care and patient safety. Finally, social justice is my core value, as nurses often provide care to the most disadvantaged populations. Such professionals should be able to conduct social work to improve access to and quality of care.
Mission and Vision Statement
Mission: To serve as a nurse leader, encouraging continuous professional growth, better job satisfaction, and more efficient collaboration to ensure the best quality care and patient safety.
Vision: I will be a nurse leader who supports and develops the best personal and professional qualities of all the team participants to provide the best nursing care for patients.
CliftonStrengths Assessment Analysis
Of the 34 topics highlighted within the assessment, my key ones are restorative, ideation, individualization, and arranger. First, the restorative theme emphasizes that I love solving problems and finding solutions for them. Within nursing practice, this is an important quality that allows you to consider the most non-obvious factors in caring for a patient to achieve the best outcomes.
For a transformational leader, this is one of the critical aspects that allows you to pay attention, including structural problems, to bring about meaningful changes (Broome & Marshall, 2021). Additionally, the restorative theme helps the leader identify gaps in nursing activities and apply evidence-based practice to address them (Duggan et al., 2015). Thus, this quality is key to providing transformational leadership activities.
The second theme is ideation, which defines the love for identifying ideas and developing concepts. This trait defines me as a creative person who can notice complex connections between events and create innovations. Ideation is essential for transformational leaders who can inspire and motivate followers, “stimulating team efficacy and energizing employees to achieve collective goals/visions beyond their capacity” (Boamah, 2021, p. 2817). Ideation allows the leader to determine the path for further development, develop a shared vision, and set ambitious goals. However, this theme does not describe a person’s ability to implement ideas and apply concepts within the framework of real-life practice.
Includer and individualization themes are interrelated and the most important within the assessment. Includer describes the ability to create a sense of community and include every person in a team regardless of their differences. On the contrary, individualization allows you to identify the most significant personal and professional differences of each follower to form the most balanced groups.
Together, these qualities allow you to show the best qualities of a transformational leader by focusing on individual strengths and developing the best qualities of followers (Anselmann & Mulder, 2020). Creating the strongest teams based on a shared vision is essential for the most effective collaboration (Asif et al., 2019). These aspects allow the leader to use his skills for followers’ professional and personal development and achieve better results through teamwork.
Finally, the arranger is a necessary theme for execution and task management. This trait is essential for a leader because it allows you to break complex problems into smaller tasks that are easier to delegate and address. Arrangers are also significant because they are flexible and can adapt to changing and dynamic situations, which is essential for transformational leaders (Broome & Marshall, 2021). Together with the ability to identify problems, this item can provide a comprehensive framework for dealing with various professional situations.
Based on the analysis, it is possible to determine which two key behaviors need strengthening to achieve their most significant benefits. The first is individualization since this capacity is one of the most significant for transformational leaders (Anselmann & Mulder, 2020). The second key behavior that needs to be strengthened is ideation since a leader needs to develop concepts and inspire followers with them (Anselmann & Mulder, 2020). As a leader, I need to develop the ability to communicate my ideas to create a shared vision with team members.
Development Plan
Constant growth and development are essential for both the professional and the leader. To strengthen the key qualities that have been identified, it is necessary, first of all, to have better communication skills. In this regard, empathy is one of the most significant capacities that are the basis for transformational leadership (Broome & Marshall, 2021).
When working in a team, I need to pay increased attention to the needs and characteristics of people. This will allow me to notice their differences and identify strengths and weaknesses. Empathy is necessary to understand team members’ moods, values, and interests better and make appropriate decisions in certain situations. For example, paying more attention to human emotions will allow me to discern them over time and adjust my behavior accordingly more quickly.
To enhance an ideation, a leader needs to persuade followers and create a sense of shared vision among them. Thus, I need to improve my communication skills to articulate the most ideas and concepts accurately. For example, I should explain in detail to my team members all aspects of my ideas so that they can understand their value and relate to them. It is also essential to pay attention to the opinions of followers and collect any feedback, as this can help refine the idea or identify its weak points. Thus, to develop this capacity, I need to work on the precise articulation of my thoughts and a calm attitude towards criticism and suggestions.
References
Anselmann, V., & Mulder, R. H. (2020). Transformational leadership, knowledge sharing and reflection, and work teams’ performance: A structural equation modelling analysis. Journal of Nursing Management, 28, 1627-2634. Web.
Asif, M., Jameel, A., Hussain, A., Hwang, J., & Sahito, N. (2019). Linking transformational leadership with nurse-assessed adverse patient outcomes and the quality of care: Assessing the role of job satisfaction and structural empowerment. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16, 1-15. Web.
Boamah, S. A. (2021). The impact of transformational leadership on nurse faculty satisfaction and burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic: A moderated mediated analysis. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 78, 2815-2826. Web.
Broome, M., & Marshall, E. S. (2021). Frameworks for becoming a transformational leader. In M. Broome & E. S. Marshall, Transformational leadership in nursing: From expert clinician to influential leader (pp. 2-19). New York, NY: Springer.
Duggan, K., Aisaka, K., Tabak, R. G., Smith, C., Erwin, P., & Brownson, R. C. (2015). Implementing administrative evidence-based practices: Lessons from the field in six local health departments across the United States. BMC Health Services Research, 15, 1-9. Web.
