Introduction
Not all people are born leaders, yet everyone has a particular way they direct people if given such a chance. Knowing how a person performs in a leading role is critical for the success of an organization. The future of every company depends on the ability of its managers to direct it with the expertise and knowledge required to convince people of the benefits of cooperation and following one’s values, goals, and interests (Boddy, 2020). Being a leader of an organization, one can further improve managerial skills by understanding how power can be accumulated via personal growth and skill development. In this paper, I will discuss my leadership style, how I can improve it, what traits support this set of goals, and what leaders I would follow myself.
My Leadership Style
After reading the textbook, I concluded that my leadership style is transformational, as I strive to assist others with developing autonomy while directing them toward a common goal. It is a socially responsible approach that reinforces the intellectual stimulation of others through personalized motivation efforts (Dugan, 2017). I do believe that my presence creates a healthy atmosphere that nurtures creativity through mutual support and empathetic connection. To achieve my goals, I often seek ways to accommodate others’ needs and desires in the process. I think that I can provide a vision that is easy to follow and often serves as an example of a worker that is desirable for an organization. The skill I utilize the most when leading is my job-related expertise since it gives me the confidence to inspire others and show them the way they can follow.
Theories, such as a trait-based assessment and a path-goal approach to identifying a leadership style, were an essential part of my self-assessment. The trait theory of leadership considers one’s competencies that make a good leader for a specific situation (Dugan, 2017). For example, my behavior is more suitable for situations where affinity among members of a team is critical for reaching a goal. The path-goal theory is a valuable tool in assessing one’s leadership style as well. An efficient leader should understand how their followers perceive the benefits of contributing to the cause and work on increasing their pay-offs (Dugan, 2017). This understanding of the necessity to complement others’ skills through adaptive behavior contributes to making people satisfied with their work, further enhancing the impact of intrinsic motivation.
I have realized that I often strive to create a path for others that is based on my belief in others’ strengths and decision-making capabilities. When I am appointed as a leader, my primary concern is the people that put their trust in me. This goal further signifies that a classic team manager is a suitable model of management that describes my approach (Schermerhorn & Bachrach, 2020). A transformational leader needs to be able to establish good relationships with any employee, which also gives them an edge in switching between different types of management. While I am not flexible enough for a situational approach to leadership, learning how to adapt is one of my priorities.
I can note that providing explanations and resolving conflicts are among my primary behaviors as a leader that contribute to a positive atmosphere in the workplace. Judging by this approach to analyzing one’s managerial style, I identify my methods as relational and coaching, which can also be seen as parenting (Dugan, 2017). This theory implies that I can become a better leader by creating traditions and stories that make an organizational culture of mutual respect and teamwork. Overall, this overarching desire to help others achieve their best defines my leadership qualities.
Leadership Traits
I think that my traits fit into a vision of a transformational leader. The primary feature that allows me to inspire others is self-confidence, as it gives me the ability to lead by example in many situations where my expertise is applicable. Moreover, my self-management allows me to project my approach onto others. An essential leadership quality that enables transformational leaders to coerce others to perform work to the best of their abilities is emotional intelligence (Schermerhorn & Bachrach, 2020). By reading the emotions of others, I can instill similar confidence in them.
My ability to resolve conflicts further complements my leadership style. Finding the status quo and convincing others to compromise is an essential quality for a team-oriented leader (Dugan, 2017). This trait is well-supported by an insightful person, as information regarding both sides’ opinions must be fully understood. Conflicts are an inevitable part of the managerial process, as every stakeholder has an agency that does not always align with others’ views (Boddy, 2020). Therefore, insightfulness is a trait that I believe suits my type of managerial approach.
There are traits that I would like to develop that can enhance my ability to lead. Some traits are essential for any manager, which include self-motivation, honesty, integrity, cognitive skills, flexibility, and job-relevant knowledge (Schermerhorn & Bachrach, 2020). They lie at the foundation of any efficient leader and must be focused regardless of an identified leadership style. I realize that I lack some of the said traits, which makes me a worse choice for expediting particular tasks. For example, there are times when I have trouble being honest with people whose performance is lacking. A transformational approach may be better replaced with more authoritative tones to ensure cooperation. I will strive to achieve greater flexibility in my leadership style and attempt to adopt a situational approach whenever necessary.
Preferred Leaders
As a follower, I must admit that I prefer working under a similar style of leadership. However, I recognize that a slightly more strict approach to leading others is required periodically, making transformational leaders less efficient in some cases. Therefore, situational leaders who can change their behavior depending on a situation are easier to follow from my perspective (Dugan, 2017). I think that there are works that require an authoritative leader and cannot be performed efficiently without solid guidance. At the same time, a creative task requires one to be inspired not by stern directions but by an empathetic and accommodating person who can be a source of support when needed. In other words, as a follower, I value flexibility over other personal traits that a leader must possess.
Leadership Model Analysis
In my perception, I influence people by helping them see how they can achieve a set goal and letting them realize this potential. Management textbooks give an in-depth explanation of what this managerial approach must represent. Dugan (2017) states that a transformational leadership style focuses on “the concurrent importance of people, process, and purpose” (p. 219). I agree with his statement since I did notice that it is impossible to view each part in separation when managing teams. The primary power of a transformational leader lies in delegating work to highly motivated workers, which makes people-oriented views overshadow task-oriented strategies (Boddy, 2020). For example, I can see how people recognize my authority when my advice gives them an edge in their tasks.
Being a transformational leader implies possessing a high level of social awareness. Transformational leadership leverages followers’ intrinsic motivation in opposition to the transactional approach that focuses on its extrinsic (financial) sources (Dugan, 2017). I often influence others by identifying people’s sources of motivation correctly. Finally, a transformational leader is a person who presents the ideas of a company and blends them with others’ personal goals. The integration requires two-way communication that is often seen among transformational leaders who can share responsibility yet take charge when needed (Dugan, 2017). For example, when I am coaching people, I am willing to answer any question, and I understand that my followers’ learning process depends on my ability to provide a reasonable explanation. At the same time, I know that the failures of others may stem from my lack of experience in a particular field. There are cases where my leadership style is a hindrance that I must avoid, as I cannot positively influence others.
My Future Goals and Plan of Action
As a future example for many employees, I must understand how I can lead others with greater efficiency. Since my main strength lies in motivating others through personal and relationship power, I must work on improving these aspects. First of all, the way a transformational leader affects others depends on their ability to find a personalized approach to motivating each employee. For example, I need to understand who are the key employees and support their initiatives, as building a team around strong members strengthens a leader’s power (Boddy, 2020). Moreover, some paths significantly enhance group cohesion, and I must learn how to explore such opportunities. Acceptance of others’ differing views in a group is the key to improving teamwork (Boddy, 2020). It is not always that my actions may lead to improving someone’s morale. To understand any underlying factors that hinder my cooperation with another person, I must seek to gain feedback on my actions. This information must be put to use, but only when it is genuine, and its implications are understood clearly.
To achieve my self-improvement goals, I will need to learn how to create a mental checklist for each member of a team. Their needs and the benefits they bring to an organization must be correctly identified and assessed for a possible impact on a workflow. My and my organization’s views and requirements must be aligned with employees’ wishes to achieve maximum productivity (Schermerhorn & Bachrach, 2020). Therefore, I must learn how to seamlessly blend such ideas into an employee’s workflow and convince them that their tasks are essential for their benefit. In short, I need not only to command but to befriend and get closer to each employee to uncover their desires.
Moreover, I will need to learn how to gather and analyze their feedback efficiently. This goal can improve not only my way of directing others but also help me monitor their progress and personalize my advice. I would like to learn how to become a great coach for my followers, as this behavior is linked with high levels of direct involvement in organizational activities and support for individuals (Dugan, 2017). I believe that directing others through my experience is the best way to achieve this goal.
Lastly, each worker’s input has its value, and I must be able to assess their performance on the fly to improve my flexibility. Since I am motivated by working in a close-knit team, this approach will boost my desire to help others achieve greater results together. I found that I must work on my feedback analysis and “others-centered” views on goal attainment. A specific step that I need to take to become a highly motivated leader is to learn how to improve others’ performance without harming my standing with them. Convincing people that my ideas are worth following is a part of being a transformational leader. I intend to work on my diplomatic skills to avoid raising conflicts from my desire to participate in training other employees actively.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I think that my transformational leadership style can be further improved by exhibiting a proper attitude toward hard work, as other workers expect their leader to be as efficient at their task. Some theoretical models can help people identify their strengths as leaders with great precision and contribute to their understanding of how they can improve their managerial skills. Either a trait or path-goal theory can be applied to one’s experience with being a leader to correctly identify the core ideals that constitute their style of management. It is necessary to realize how a person can hone their social skills and emotional intelligence to make people genuinely want to follow their directions. As a transformational leader, I must prove to others that the company has its interests at heart and vice versa. Convincing and motivating employees as a transformational leader requires one to be empathetic, and this trait is not quickly developed. I think that I can improve my leadership qualities by paying more attention to people’s needs. Aligning their personal development with organizational goals is the way I want to lead.
References
Boddy, D. (2020). Management: Using practice and theory to develop skills (8th ed.). Pearson.
Dugan, J. P. (2017). Leadership theory: Cultivating critical perspectives. John Wiley & Sons.
Schermerhorn, J., & Bachrach, D. G. (2020). Schermerhorn’s exploring management (14th ed.). Wiley.
