Leadership

As defined by Webster, a leader is someone who has commanding authority or influence or a first or principal performer of a group. It is my position that Leadership, in essence, is the sum of these definitions. In order to have and maintain commanding authority, a leader must be the principal performer of his/her group.

Leadership, based on examples presented by Michael Hanna and Gerald Wilson, is dynamic. The field of knowledge has developed through a series of trials and discoveries, ranging from the Classical scientific theory to contemporary Total Quality Management. With this in mind, leadership should be classified as a soft science, just as philosophy, sociology and psychology.

Leadership, without regard to method, is an art; the skillful application of leading is much the same as the skillful application of brushstrokes by a painter. Being both rational and emotional, it involves both sides of human experience. It includes actions and influences based on reason and logic as well those based on inspiration and desire. Leadership also requires involvement working within the social context shared among all members of a group. As illustrated through the Hawthorne experiment, empathy and involvement are important elements of leadership.

Is management the same as leadership? Management is a position of authority. Management says what need to get done and supplies the material to get it done. Management tends to be the more educated than the experienced. Managers can be trained to hold a position. Though management is often a position of leadership. Leadership and management are not the same. Anyone can be a manager and not have anyone to lead. Being able to manage requires understanding the aspects of a particular task or mission. A leader must motivate followers to the completion of the mission. Simply stated, management sets the stage and directs and the leadership motivates and makes it happen. Both need support from each process in order to achieve its’ goals.

Leadership is not just based on the leader. In assessing leadership you must look at the leader, the follower, and the situation or task. In order to do an assessment of the leader, evaluate what is expected from those following. Look at the situation and environment that surrounds the whole concept. Both the leader and followers must serve a common goal. Leadership is 100% service and 100% partnership, to maintain good leadership; one must develop a working relationship between themselves and followers. There are different types of followers, alienated, conformist, pragmatist, and exemplary followers.

Alienated followers are the ones that are irritants, who like to always point out the negative aspect on everything and overlook the positive aspects. The conformist follower is the yes person, or brown noser within a group. As long as things are in conformance with social and organizational standards, as long as promotions and other aspects of the job are equal there’s really no problem. Pragmatist are not committed to workgroup goals but have learned not to make waves, basically they will do only what is needed to get by. The exemplary follower is almost like a self-leader. They can adjust to any situation. They are independent, innovative, creative and willing to stand up to superiors.

A strong follower helps a good leader to become a better leader. This could also bring on a well-bonded working relationship. In evaluating the leadership process, a lot of things come into play. Followers usually play a key role in organizational successes and failures, yet these outcomes are often attributed solely to leaders. Everyone has spent and will spend more time as a follower than as a leader. Spending time reflecting on follower experiences may be one important key to leadership success. Values play a central part of a leader’s psychological makeup. Values are animportant component of the moral reasoning process.

Values also serve to organize attitudes, which are general and enduring positive or negative feelings about some person, object, or issue. There are two sets of attitudes that play a role in leadership. They are the attitudes leaders have about themselves and the attitudes leaders have about others. Managing stress is also an important skill for leaders and followers to have. They both must learn to monitor their own stress levels and each other’s. If symptoms of stress are detected, they must work together to pinpoint the cause.

Many studies have been done and no one still knows what makes a true leader, though some characteristics have been linked to poor leadership, such as being uninformed, rigid, nonparticipating, and offensive verbally, or having an authoritarian behavior. Even those individuals with extensive knowledge of leadership research may be poor leaders. Leadership does not occur without followers.

In conclusion, whether the power of authority is legitimate, reward, coercive, expert, or referent, we all are leaders in our own way at different times in our lives. Friends look to each other for advice, parents and teachers provide instruction to children, and first line supervisors guide employees throughout the day. Likewise, we are at the same time followers under the authority of another. It is this relationship that brings together the art leadership and being a principal performer.

Karl Marx was a sociologist, philosopher and a writer of German origin. He was born in Trier in 1818. He underwent training up to the university level, where he initially studied law and later journalism. Being social with other people, he easily made friends with one of his lecturers. He was introduced to Hegel theory, which had an enormous impact on his life. This contributed to most of his later achievements as a sociologist (Kreis, 2008). This paper explores more on Karl Marx’s life and how his ideas influenced leadership styles.

Karl was also fascinated by Hegel philosophy of history evolving process, in which he argued that by all opposite equalization by means of a logical expression thesis, synthesis and antithesis unity would be achieved. After his doctoral thesis completion in the University of Jena, he decided to become a lecturer, though the plan failed as his friend Bauer, who he hoped would connect him to a teaching position, was dismissed. However, he started his career in journalism, but his articles were not published due to his radical political views. He moved to Cologne circle, where his article on press freedom was published in their Rhenish gazette. This helped him to be appointed as the chief editor of the newspaper (Barte, 2007).

Lenin’s contribution to Marx helped to elaborate capitalism as a means of governance and leadership. He argued that masses of workers have experienced exploitation under the capitalist leadership. They argued the necessity for struggling with the existing consciousness and related it to Marxism. This struggle was conducted as part of exercise in the struggle of material forces. This was mainly conducted by the revolutionary Marxist party. Social revolution, just like any other form of revolution, occupied the entire epoch. Its outcome was decided by the series of conflict in countries where it was emphasized and practiced. This led to tactics and strategies by revolutionary parties and also to the revolutionaries, who were guided by theoretical foundations that were laid by Karl Marx (Mitchell, 2007).

His influence on sociology was determined by the ideas he conveyed through his articles. He wrote many articles, including “The Communist Manifesto” and Das Kapital. “The Communist Manifesto” was a summary of the nature of the communist society and the anticipated revolution. He argued that the proletariat class was the determining factor of the revolution and believed they could win and result to class less society. Das Kapital was a book that contained a summary of capitalism (Slaughter, 1995). In this book, he came up with the theory which stated that a mode of economy in a particular society is what determined the classes in those societies.

The 21st century did not experience much of leadership and leadership styles. Scholars and researchers have studied leadership styles for years. These leadership theories have been tested and applied in different situations by different states and organizations. Majority of leadership theories by Karl Marx have been applied and utilized by communist countries like China, North Korea, former Soviet Union, and Cuba. To certain degree, some of these theories have worked.

However, leadership theories are not ideologies that need to be applied to the latter. In most cases, leadership theories are applied in parts and only in some situations they are applied as a whole. Some of his theories have been modified to suit different situations. Several factors have changed the way people think, work, and react towards leadership theories. Circumstances surrounding leadership styles and leaders have drastically changed over the past recent years. The business world, for instance, have become more volatile and competitive due to the influence by factors such as drastic technology change, changing demographics in the work forces, increasing international competition, markets deregulation, overcapacity in capital intensive industries, unstable oil cartels, and the raiders with the junk bonds.

Critics of Karl Marx theories on leadership argued that totality and the conflict of opposites is mainly the core of dialectics. For instance, Henri Lefebvre’s work, based on the sociology of Marx, 1968, led him to utopianism: he started with the concept of struggle of the opposites and left it at the abstract level. He left it at a level of general conflicts of alienation and praxis. These terms were taken from early works done by Marx in his early years (Avineri, 1970). He penetrated and exposed capitalism culture. These theories remained aloof from its practice. This was from the activities the class and their struggle for a working class leadership style based on Marx’s theories.

Karl Marx was mainly associated with the theory that the true conscious is achieved only through perpetual conflict. In the context of his time and era, this theory appeared quite accurate. However, his critics pointed out that there was not enough expansion in Marx’s research efforts, especially on complex relationship that exists between behavior and motives. Later, Coser joined Marx and they both expounded further on conflict and leadership theory. This has formed deep roots in this school of thought. In most cases, conflict reveals the kind of leadership being practiced by leaders at a particular point in history (Slaughter, 1995).

Other Karl Marx’s leadership theories suggested that some leaders happen to be the impetus of the conflict in their leadership. In this case, leaders and their situations play an integral part in the making of their era in history. Some individuals are trusted upon a leadership role mainly due to the situation on which they were acting. However, some individuals are destined to be effective leaders regardless of their situations or their eras.

Leadership is more than about influencing people by what you say and do. I believe it is about being humble, and willing to learn as well as having the courage to stand in the face of great challenge. I believe a good leader possesses the quality of reliability, integrity and perseverance. John C. Maxwell once said, “A good leader is someone one who takes a little more than his share of the blame and a little less than his share of the credit.” One who strives to be a good leader has to be honest, inspiring, intelligent, and stand firm for what he believes. Truly committed leaders strive to know more and study continually to improve their skills.

Over the summer, my friends and I started a community outreach ministry in downtown Tulsa. I was responsible for organizing and leading sandwich runs. At that stage of my leadership career, I was very task-oriented. I completed everything that was assigned to me and oftentimes went beyond what was asked of me. I created teams that made the care-packages and bought the materials.

The ministry was successful on many levels; we had hundreds of youth participate, and also had many opportunities to share the gospel. Looking back now I realize that true leadership meant so much more than authority and recognition from the outside world. Instead, it was about making decisions that are not self-serving but in the interests of the people that we serve. Another experience I encountered with leadership was when I played sports in middle school. Playing in both losing and winning teams made me realize that even if I fail or lose that is no reason to give up.

I learned from my mistakes and prepared myself to benefit the team. By listening to my peers, and learning from my errors, I became a better leader. Through this, I learned that even when failing, great leaders believe in their abilities. Acknowledging and learning from mistakes allowed me to lead by example, and encouraged my teammates to see mistakes not as the end of the line, but as the beginning of growth. In doing this, we create a common sense of purpose in which we can all thrive, and deliver that common purpose while still providing the resilience to face the difficult challenges.

There is nothing easy about leadership. It is one of the most difficult jobs in the world, but it is also one of the most rewarding things you can do. Through every experience I learned that true leadership is about developing people and helping others reach their full potential. One day I want to use my leadership skills to not only maximize the success of an organization, but also the lives of individuals. I want to help break down barriers and lead others through the uncertainty of the future.

Am I a manager or a leader? As a Senior Non Commissioned Officer (SNCO) in the Royal Air Force (RAF), I am expected to be both. Depending on the working environment and role I am expected to perform, there might be a greater emphasis needed in one or other activity. In most organisations, it is a management process that makes decisions, yet it is leadership that provides the drive and inspiration without which that management is ineffective.

I am in the military which has leaders and managers appointed to positions of authority, within a chain of command. This therefore introduces an associated military term, ‘Command’, that fully embraces both activities. Command is the authority vested in an individual of the military for the direction, co-ordination and control of activities. To achieve this a commander has to effectively use all available resources both manpower and material. A commander therefore needs to be a manager.

Management is the art of making and implementing decisions to achieve a satisfactory solution to a problem utilising the four main management functions of planning, providing, directing and control of resources. Whilst this element of decision making is important, it is also dependent on the element of leadership in order to be effective. Any decision made is merely an intention until the skill of leadership is applied. Clearly it is possible to have commanders that are strong leaders but poor decision-makers.

These commanders will be very effective in leading people albeit in the wrong direction. Equally, it is possible to have commanders that are very good at making decisions but incapable of getting people to carry out those decisions. In a military organisation, a good commander needs to display strong qualities from both elements. All ranks are therefore carefully assessed on a yearly basis and only those displaying the right qualities are promoted.

In my position as a SNCO, I will have been assessed as being a competent leader and manager and hence having the attributes required to command effectively. The move into a command role is a part of natural progression within the RAF and tends to happen at a relatively young age compared to our civilian counterparts. Since promotion to my first position of authority I have had to practice varying methods of leadership to achieve goals. As a young Corporal, I was expected to lead by example, accomplishing tasks by motivating my subordinates.

An example would be as an aircraft movements supervisor, where I was responsible for ensuring that all aircraft were ready for flight. This would entail checking that the aircraft had been serviced to the correct standard; that it had the correct fuel loaded for the expected sortie length; that the correct munitions had been loaded for the sortie and all necessary safety devices fitted; that the aircraft’s groundcrew were in place and had the various aircraft’s systems running and in a condition ready for the aircrew to make an immediate departure on arrival.

Like most kinds of leadership, I needed to be self-motivated enthusiastic about what I was doing. I also needed to be knowledgeable and able to practice what I preached, guiding and instructing in the practicalities of what was required. Having been in their position, I was able to empathise with them and assess their understanding of the situation. This understanding helped me to influence these people. Having been exposed to the 3 main leadership/management styles of Autocratic, Laissez-faire and Democratic, you have a pre-defined idea of how you will behave.

However, as time runs on and you become more experienced in dealing with people and situations, you find that you use varying or a combination of styles to achieve your objective. As a trade manager, I was responsible for everything related to the engineers assigned to me, from their trade ability, training, attitude, to their welfare, deportment and discipline. Additionally, I was expected to ensure the squadron was able to perform its duties without hindrance or handicap. In this role, it was important to promote discussion and communication.

The benefits of open discussion gives you enhanced knowledge for making decisions such as how to split people into matched shifts of equal experience whilst avoiding potential conflict within. In some situations it might be reasonable to leave a group to work through a situation on their own without exercising any control over them. This usually happened if the team was highly motivated towards the task. There were always times when a more autocratic line was required with continual pressure and direction to get things done.

All three styles of leadership/management were therefore being used on very nearly a daily basis. I found that an important aspect of managing a group of people in this was to empower others by delegating responsibility whilst remaining on top of the situation by co-ordinating the results. The granting of responsibility usually gave the recipient the motivation and enthusiasm to ensure a job was done well. Enthusiasm is contagious and controlled properly can move mountains.

How to become a true leader? This question has worried mankind since time immemorial, because, whatever you say, history is the result of the actions of outstanding people, and everyone wants to leave a bright trace in history. Therefore, discussions about the essence of leadership go back to hoary antiquity, but do not lose their relevance today.

Confucius also believed that the ruler should read “5 wonderful qualities”: in kindness, not be wasteful; forcing labor, do not cause anger; not to be greedy in desires; to be magnificent, but not proud; respect in the absence of cruelty. I think that much of the above should be remembered by the modern leader. But it seems to me, first of all, you need to have a specific goal, a high idea, because the closest synonyms for the word “leader” are the words “leader”, “leader”, “leader”. No wonder Maximilian Robespierre, one of the leaders of the French Revolution, wrote: “The leader has two important features: firstly, he himself goes somewhere, and secondly, he can lead people.”

And another important point: yes, they have followed you, but will they all come? Therefore, I think the real leader is forced to balance on a fine line: to be strict, but not rude; be friendly, but not weak, modest, but not timid, show firmness and confidence, but not arrogance, have a sense of humor, but be tactful. And, most importantly, he must remember that leadership is a responsibility. Responsibility to people who have trusted you, and to the work that you do together. That is, there is a direct emotional and moral connection between the leader and those who follow him. Charisma plays an important role in these relations – the ability to impress others with charm. If the leader is charismatic, then not a few people will follow him, the masses will follow him. But the moral responsibility of such a person is much higher.

These are the qualities that should be possessed by a person who has chosen the role of a leader for himself, and, I think, these qualities are universal for any era. However, it is impossible not to take into account temporary factors, because each period of human history leaves its mark on everything, including the leader’s perception.

So what should be a successful leader in the 21st century? Something remains unchanged: good organizational skills, a developed sense of responsibility, self-confidence, personal charm – this is always valuable. But this is not enough in the world of high information technologies, and today, in my opinion, we need the qualities that time itself dictates: the ability to make decisions quickly, insight, the ability to find new ideas. In addition, the modern leader must be able to absorb information from all possible sources and see new opportunities before the rest. It is not in vain that the proverb characterizing our age is the words: “He who owns information, he owns the world.”

Such, in my opinion, is the general characteristic of a true leader of the 21st century. And I try to follow this ideal, because in order to become successful in the future, you need to educate and develop these qualities in yourself right now. Of course, some may object to me that, they say, leadership qualities are akin to musical ear: a person either has them or does not have them. I think that is to some extent true. But still, if you do not develop these qualities in yourself, then you can hardly count on high results, because not all people with a fine ear become great musicians. The road to work, patience and perseverance leads to the heights of success.

That is why I have been a member of the class asset since the first grade; for several years I was elected the commander of my class team. Having become a ninth grader, I took part in the election campaign of the School’s Parliament, the student’s self-government body, and took the post of Minister of Culture. Together with other members of the School’s Parliament, we developed a plan that we implemented throughout the year. I was engaged in the organization of celebrations, concerts, discos. Frankly, this work took me quite a lot of time and effort, but I saw the result of my labors, and he pleased me. I received recognition from the students of our school: at first they simply recognized me, then respected me.

At the beginning of this school year, I again tried my hand at the election of the President of the school Parliament, and I managed to get the most votes. I must say that the struggle was not easy, but I understand that the main difficulties lie ahead. I have to prove that the guys did not trust me in vain, that I really deserve to be called the leader of my school. And I believe that someday I can proudly say about myself: “I am the leader of the 21st century!”

The day I put an on My Sergeant’s strip, I wonder how to be a better leader. Over the past few years, I have probably read more than ten books about the leaderships and attended many workshops that talk five levels of leadership and extraordinary leadership. The all the seminars and all the books did not make any sense until my introduction to SFC Branch. She has the vision and moral, ethical compass to empower subordinates to be a successful. SFC Branch leadership legacy, and the impact it makes is directly influenced by historical decisions she made by her values. SFC Branch planted a seed in my leadership ability that form which I consistently examine my performance as a leader. This paper is to shed light on how SFC Branch displayed Army leadership attributes in her leadership and how Impacted my leadership growth.

Leader attributes and competencies positively impacted the Army As a Businessman, I believe companies need a growth plan to improve, so do those who work for me. What I am implying is as we lead others, we must set them on a course for success as well. As Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric as stated in one of his speeches, “Anyone can steer the ship, but it takes a leader to chart the course.”

This paper is an attempt to highlight what it means to be a great leader that carries strong Army leadership traits. A leader is someone that provides direction and motivation. I will further explain why, without proper leadership, we would have a difficult task to carry out our mission and will not able to live up to our army value. All the books I read over the years, and all the workshops I have attended all of them have one thing in standard “leaders are develope through discipline, hard work, training, and dedication.” (Maxwell, 1998)

In a book, the five-level leadership by John Maxwell states that leaders must have the passion to not only lead others but for leading them effectively. It reminds me of a quote that read in John Maxwell’s book 21 irrefutable law of leadership. He says, “he who thinks he leads but has no followers is only taking a walk.” As a businessman, I always looked up to Jack Welch’s approach to leadership. As we all know, Jack Welch worked for GE for 40 years, succeeding his way through the ranks until he becomes chairman and CEO of GE. Under his leadership, GE, a corporate giant, grew in size and profit and became global dominance. Jack Welch once said that “Integrity is just a ticket to the game. If you do not have it in your bone, you should not be allowed in the Field” (Welch, 2005)

As a Non-Commission Officer (NCO) in the New Jersey National Guard, I have seen my share of corrupt leaders that failed as leaders also as a good human being. Some of them talk about the attributes that make a great Army leader but failed severely, living up to those Army values. One Staff Sergent he shall not be name always scolded younger soldiers about Character and Integrity and their lack of moral values, but, as an NCO, he failed to live by. He was first arrested in June 2018 in Salt lake city, Utah, during the panther Strike exercise, which made a National News. Shopper caught him for taking upskirt photos of the female shopper.

After this incident, he was caught four more times for taking photos up a female’s skirt without her knowing. This NCO failed as a leader and not only a stain on the NCO community but, brought shame to all of us who knew him and saw him as a leader. During my time in the national guard, I also have seen so many great leaders that have the integrity to tell the bitter truth and keep their word. Their Intelligence and having enough curiosity and breadth of knowledge to lead others. The maturity that able them to handle stress and setbacks and perform their duties while respecting other’s emotions.

Out of all these leaders, SFC Branch stands out for Her Integrity, Presence, Intellect, and her ability to lead is unmatched. When I hear the word “competence is my watchword. My two basic responsibilities will always be uppermost in my mind- the accomplishment of my mission and the welfare of my Soldiers” (NCO Creed) it reminds me of SFC Branch. Her ability to handle stress and setbacks without being arrogant and having a sense of humor.

SFC Branch’s ability to thrive on action, relish on unexpected changes. Her in-depth knowledge of her Job and strong persuasion skill and her ability to make a tough decision and fulfill the mission even when all the information was not available There were more than few occasions when during leadership conference call for the upcoming drill weekend she took control and bailed out our first Sergeant and was able to execute perfect convey operation to Fort Dix without missing our SP time. She was able to overcome obstacles of poor planning by our leadership and complete the task without taking credit for it. SFC Branch is such a person who has passion, and she is always excited about her work. She is still learning and growing as a leader and helping those around her to win and be successful.

SFC Branch has uncanny ability to see around the corners and her ability to gauge the future and anticipate the problem and be prepared to address the changes. During our Annual training, last year, she was able to plan training when our first sergeant traning plan did not martialize. She was able to gather resources and made sure all the soldiers received excellent training. A few years back, during our Cyber Blitze Anuall traning, our Command Post of the Future (CPOF) SFC Branch was able to switch to acetate map overlay was able to brief guest visitors and they did not even suspect that CPOF was not also functioning. This is one of an example that SFC Branch demonstrates her ability to see around the corners and anticipated what some of us did not expect.

One thing that I learned from SFC Branch is her ability to adapt to changes and not lose her focus. To make change more palatable, she always made sure everyone around her knew and were aware of how to react to changes. I met many “change agents,” but we know the real deal when we discover someone who responds fearlessly in the face of the unknown(welch, 2005).

SFC Branch is that “change agent.” SFC Branch is a person who sees the opportunities in a disaster even if someone’s poor planning brings them. SFC Branch strategy is straight forward. She keeps it very simple and implements it like hell. It reminds me of a quote by Jack Welch, ” if you want to win, when it comes to strategy, ponder less, and do more.” I do not think anyone else is more suitable for this quote than SFC Branch. SFC Branch relentlessly seeks out the opportunity to create a positive environment and foster esprit de corps. She executes this by look both inside and outside of our unit, and she is always seeking to find a better way or a better idea to make mission successful and avoids unnecessary risk. I’ve seen her less time evaluating and more time mentoring and building trust in the subordinates.

SFC Branch is one of those NCOs that always perform beyond all expectations. She continuously expands her Job in such a way that not only she makes look subject good, but the leadership also looks better. She manages her subordinates in such a way that when someone asks them about her, they will say that she is fair and cares, and she is willing to show tough love.

In my view, SFC Branch has conveyed six attributes of the army leadership that leaves long-lasting legacies in people mind, and NCO like me can emulate and improve my Army Leadership skills.

First, SFC Branch keeps her soldiers engaged. She does this setting organizational boundaries that enable high involvement, and she does this by setting a clear vision of where her platoon and whole company needs to go. SFC Branch does this by explaining why. I think she does this because when soldiers understand why a decision is made, they are in a better position to deal with any changes and be resourceful enough to decide the best way to work towards fulfilling mission.

Second SFC Branch Is always soldier focused and available to help. SFC Branch becomes a mother to a baby boy. I remember texting her with a question regarding the upcoming drill weekend. She promptly replies with the solution, and later, she followed up with about how the drill weekend went. This shows me that she cared and demonstrated her interest in my success and shows me that she is genuinely invested in my development. SFC Branch is an active leader not only because she accomplishes what she set out to do, but does so with the help of others. She always provides guidance and leads others toward success; this is true in my development as an NCO.

Third, SFC Branch is an example of a true leader. A leader who instills purpose, direction, morals, values, passion subordinate as well as her peers. When I was struggling to come up traning plan for my platoon she sat down with me and gave me the resources to come up with training plan that fulfills our company training requirements and help us exceed our expectation during Panther Strike exercise.

Forth SFC Branch is known to set the environment for the whole company performance to flourish as a result of soldiers’ performance. She accomplishes this by outlining clear expectations, ensuring the subordinate and peers have all the resources available for soldiers to accomplished their Job. Last year right before Kosovo deployment, she scheduled foundry training for Humint soldiers to go and refresh their report writing skills, and due to this particular traning, Humint soldiers were able to perform at a very high level and be able to complete given task during deployment successfully.

Fifth, SFC Branch used uncertainty to inspire her subordinates. I’ve seen SFC Branch create a traning opportunity during cyber Blitze in 2016 Annual traning. When CPOF went down, Instead of stumbling, she immediately used blunder as an opportunity to teach soldiers how to prepare map overlay full-filling critical task 113-579-5060 from the METL task. I think that is innovation in Motion. I believe that is a perfect example of her Intellect and her Mental agility.

Sixth Attributes I admired about SFC Branch is that she gives feedback to all of her soldiers. She makes an effort to share feedback immediately and not let the unresolved question linger. I personally really like this attribute about her. I always saw her give good and sometimes not so pleasant feedback to her sub. I believe that the desire to improve is something we all want, and if the input helps your subordinate improve, then that is our contribution to bettering the unit and Army as a whole and strengthen our fighting abilities. SFC Branch is a leader who not only aspires for more but also did more to create transfer legacy that soldiers remember and espouse.

SFC Branch transfers her knowledge, expertise, and lessons learned onto newcomers leaders to raise the bar on the leadership.

Introduction

My leadership skill, as well as style, revolves around my personality. Through understanding myself that is, what I can do, when and how I can approach task has helped me to understand my personality. I have had to perform swot analysis of myself and my leadership to find out my style and skills of leadership.

Thesis statement

The call for individuals in the leadership positions to perform a self assessment of their leadership has been dominant in many Multinational Corporation, government, and other institutions (Dye, 1999). This has been posted as a tool that would influence how these bodies are run and could also influence their productivity positively as well. This paper seeks to present my leadership styles and skills assessment through my personality examination by use of various tools. Emotional intelligence tool has been defined as the potential to perceive, manage and assess one’s emotions and for others as well.

Understating my emotions and feeling has been very key in my leadership and works as a platform in which I tame or control myself when responding to heated environments. Before I started embracing this tool I used to find it difficult to control my eager. It was very hard to have work flowing since at such level stress was high. I could not manage to have a good working relationship since controlling my impulse was very tricky. However understanding other people emotions it serves as a mirror which I use to evaluate how to respond to others, manage myself and manage them. It helps manage the feedback from people before I get it by shaping my leadership comment skill to achieve positive feedback. I can say that I have seen myself initiate process and at the same time having a good relationship with my workmates.

As I put efforts to learn emotions of people around me I realize that I spend sizable time listening to them. When I listen to them they feel appreciated and in the process, it becomes easy for me to influence then to take actions. While examining the perception of others it has been very easy for me to create an environment where discussions, negations, and debate can germinate. Here others are relaxed to listen and comment. Having the in this cool mood helps in solving problems. This makes my work easier to manage a team (Karsh, 2009). It makes more aware of myself and others and through working this environment it has become easy for me to control work issues and related stress well. It is a drive even support to have a sound work-life balance policy. Self-competence has assisted me to analyze my collaboration, teamwork, and social awareness skills. This is a tool that governs how to approach environments through examining the reactions from others especially workmates.

It instructs my autocracy and through an application of interpersonal skill it moves others on my side. I consider this very key in the work place since it is easy to instill confidence to my workmates. When it comes to reassigning duties and job rotation I am very keen to use my experience with workmates and even others to factor specialization (Stefl, 2008). This makes me have people where they would want to be in the assignment and it work wonder in the end results since people end up doing work happier. The morale even helps me to engage them and work even more. Hemisphere Dominance is a personality assessment tool where scholars have argued that brain hemispheres affect the skills and leadership style. People whose brain is dominated in the right hemisphere are said to be creative. They are therefore ideal people to launch new systems, products, and services in a company.

It is amazing I happen to be in the committee in our company where we set strategies and procedure for every new product our company is introducing to the market. I find myself genius thinking and placing opinions on the strategy formulation which take center stage of the entire process. My opinion at a time is coupled with criticism from teammates but in a composed manner, I have managed to drive my points home. I feel encouraged to continue offering my leadership especially after ideas go through and by seeing the institution embrace my creatively (Stefl, 2008). People whose brain is dominated in the left hemisphere are considered to be people of details.

They are hooked to implementing strategic plans. I wonder whether I fall under these scholars work as I consider myself to be a very specific person not only at the workplace but at homes story is that even as a child this was witnessed. That said this assessment helps me to be keen and to operate the center of the hemisphere since being too details my times it has worked against many leaders. It is very important at times to be lenient to steps especially by subject (Karsh, 2009). Many young people join companies and need time to adjust to the work environment. Being very strict it can be detrimental. It could raise resistance which is dangerous to any leader and when people are responding to this go-slows and demonstration comes out to affirm leadership failure.

Conclusion

It is very difficult to others before leading one’s self. I have managed others by first understanding my weaknesses such as eager and specific attitude and learning to work around them. The end result of assessing my leadership style and skill has transformed my work environment, my friendships, and life in general. It has tremendously influenced my productivity and worked around minimize failure in my leadership.