Leadership

Good leadership is something that is hard to describe.?It encompasses so much, and it is hard to break it down into a definition.?I think it is easier to describe poor leadership.?Everyone has probably experienced a poor leader in their lifetime.?I think you can learn from good and bad leadership.?The bad leaders help to realize what it feels like to have poor leadership and it helps everyone to recognize great leadership.?The mixed experiences can help everyone to become better leaders overall.

What is Leadership?

Leadership is the ability to inspire a team to achieve a certain goal.?It is how you, as an individual choose to live your life.?A true leader influences, inspires, and helps others to become their best selves, building their skills, and achieving success along the way. You do not have to have a fancy title too be a leader.?Anyone can be a leader.?Leadership can be learned, and it can be enhanced.?It is never too late.

Good leaders compound leadership with their followers.?When the leader increases their leadership skills, it strengthens the leadership opportunities of their followers.?Leadership is empowering others to become effective leaders, as well.?That is why so many famous leaders credit a mentor for their success.?Leadership is being able to identify potential in others and taking the time to mentor them to achieve higher levels of success and leadership.

I have had several great leaders and mentors in my professional life.?I have benefitted and grown greatly because of their influence and guidance.?I would not have the position that I have now, without their direction in my leadership journey.?One experience that helped me to formulate a better vision of leadership was my employment with Marriott.

Developing Effective Leadership Skills

Marriott was in the senior living business for about ten years.?They had an exceptional leadership mindset.?They had in-services and resources to enhance the skills of their leaders.?One resource was a program called “Foundations of Leadership”.?Marriott required each of their leaders to attend.?It was a four-day course that engrained the foundations of leadership into everyone that attended.?I was a new leader and did not have much experience.?That course helped to establish a basis for my leadership early in my career.?I do feel it was very influential in making me the leader that I am today.

An effective leader establishes trust with their followers and takes responsibility.?They try to connect and to communicate with their team.?An effective leader does have controls but encourages the followers to present ideas and treats everyone with respect (Banwart, 2020).?I am still working to be an effective leader, but my experience with Marriott, and my own previous leaders have helped to establish a strong foundation for my leadership to expand upon.?

Becoming an Authentic Leader

Being an authentic leader is very important to me.?It is vital to act with integrity in everything.?The team should be able to rely upon the leader to deliver on promises and to fight for their interests.?The authentic leader also delegates authority and protects their team when things do not go as planned during that delegation (Weiss, 2021).??The authentic leader is trustworthy and cares for their team.?They identify potential and assist their team to fulfill their potential, even if that means losing them from the team for a better opportunity. ?I strive to be an authentic leader.?

Conclusion

In conclusion, leadership is complicated to describe but it is easy to identify a good and bad leader.?It is possible to learn from both types of leaders.?A good leader helps their followers to be their best self and compounds leadership.?Anyone can be a leader and it is never too late to become a leader or to become a better leader.?It is a continuous process.?Let’s all do our best to enhance our leadership skills and to help others to do the same!

References

Banwart, M. (2020). Communication Studies: Effective Communication Leads to Effective Leadership.?New Directions for Student Leadership,?2020(165), 87–97. https://doi.org/10.1002/yd.20371

Weiss, W. H. (2021). effective leadership: what are the requisites??Supervision,?82(2), 13–17.

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