What is leadership?

Leadership is a vital role in any organisation. It involves defining the direction of a team

and communicating it to people, motivating, inspiring and empowering them to contribute to

achieving organisational success. Leadership requires being strategically focused and applying

behavioural techniques to build commitment and attain the best work from your people.

The ingredients of effective leadership are complex and are widely agreed to depend on the

specific leadership situation, considering the difficulty of tasks, the degree of a leader's authority

and the maturity and capabilities of subordinates. Leadership skills often take time to learn,

because they are multi-faceted, behavioural and context dependent.

Becoming an effective leader is challenging to many new managers, but offers the rewards of

successfully orientating peoples work to be most effective and achieving excellence in team

performance. An understanding of the principles of strategic thinking, direction setting,

communications and motivation provides a springboard for developing skills and an effective

management style to suit your personality and leadership situations.

Successful leaders in business often demonstrate the following attributes;

positiveness, reliability and pro-activeness

clear vision of business goals

a firm commitment towards meeting defined goals

an ability to effectively communicate their vision

commitment to their team and to their organisation

skilfulness in planning and developing strategies

a focus on motivation and setting clear directions

the adaptability to engage with the views and needs of team members

an ability to inspire employees to meet goals

commitment to the happiness and wellbeing of their team

honesty and openness with their team

Developing leadership capabilities requires you to understand your own strengths and

weaknesses and to be willing to continuously improve your skills and knowledge as you gain

experience.

By developing your understanding of leadership, you will be better equipped to inspire and

motivate your team to achieve results for your organisation.

Leadership has been described as "a process of social influence in which one person can

enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task”. For example,

some understand a leader simply as somebody whom people follow, or as somebody who guides

or directs others, while others define leadership as "organizing a group of people to achieve a

common goal".

Studies of leadership have produced theories involving traits, situational interaction,

function, behavior, power, vision and values, charisma, and intelligence, among others.

Leaders are people who do the right thing; managers are people who do things right.–

Professor Warren G. Bennis

Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to

do it. – Dwight D. Eisenhower

The word "leadership" can bring to mind a variety of images. For example:

An army officer, leading an assault on an enemy position.

An explorer, cutting a path through the jungle for the rest of his party to follow.

An executive, developing her company's strategy to beat the competition.

Leaders help themselves and others to do the right things. They set direction, build an

inspiring vision, and create something new. Leadership is about mapping out where you need

to go to "win" as a team or an organization; and it is dynamic, exciting, and inspiring.

Yet, while leaders set the direction, they must also use management skills to guide their

people to the right destination, in a smooth and efficient way.

In this article, we'll focus on the process of leadership. In particular, we'll discuss the

"transformational leadership" model, first proposed by James MacGregor Burns and then

developed by Bernard Bass. This model highlights visionary thinking and bringing about

change, instead of management processes that are designed to maintain and steadily improve

current performance.

Leadership means different things to different people around the world, and different things in

different situations. For example, it could relate to community leadership, religious

leadership, political leadership, and leadership of campaigning groups.

This article focuses on the Western model of individual leadership, and discusses leadership

in the workplace rather than in other areas.

Pr inc ip les o f Leadersh ip

To help you be, know, and do, follow these eleven principles of leadership. The rest

of the chapters in this Leadership guide expand on these principles and provide tools

for implementing them:

1. Know yourself and seek self-improvement - In order to know yourself, you have to

understand your be, know, and do, attributes. Seeking self-improvement means

continually strengthening your attributes. This can be accomplished through self-study,

formal classes, reflection, and interacting with others.

2. Be technically proficient - As a leader, you must know your job and have a solid

familiarity with your employees' tasks.

3. Seek responsibility and take responsibility for your actions - Search for ways to guide

your organization to new heights. And when things go wrong, as they often tend to do

sooner or later — do not blame others. Analyze the situation, take corrective action, and

move on to the next challenge.

4. Make sound and timely decisions - Use good problem solving, decision making, and

planning tools.

5. Set the example - Be a good role model for your employees. They must not only hear

what they are expected to do, but also see.We must become the change we want to see-

Mahatma Gandhi

6. Know your people and look out for their well-being - Know human nature and the

importance of sincerely caring for your workers.

7. Keep your workers informed - Know how to communicate with not only them, but also

seniors and other key people.

8. Develop a sense of responsibility in your workers - Help to develop good character

traits that will help them carry out their professional responsibilities.

9. Ensure that tasks are understood, supervised, and accomplished - Communication is

the key to this responsibility.

10. Train as a team - Although many so called leaders call their organization, department,

section, etc. a team; they are not really teams... they are just a group of people doing their

jobs.

11. Use the full capabilities of your organization- By developing a team spirit; you will be

able to employ your organization, department, section, etc. to its fullest capabilities.

The Process o f Great Leadersh ip

The road to great leadership that is common to successful leaders:

Challenge the process - First, find a process that you believe needs to be improved

the most.

Inspire a shared vision - Next, share your vision in words that can be understood by

your followers.

Enable others to act - Give them the tools and methods to solve the problem.

Model the way - When the process gets tough, get your hands dirty. A boss tells

others what to do; a leader shows that it can be done.

Encourage the heart - Share the glory with your followers' hearts, while keeping the

pains within your own.

Who is a Leader?

At the most basic level, a leader is someone who leads other. But what makes someone a

leader? What is it about being a leader that some people understand and use to their advantage?

What can you do to be a leader? Here's what you need to know and do.

A leader is a person who has a vision, a drive and a commitment to achieve that vision,

and the skills to make it happen. Let's look at each of those in detail.

The Leader's Vision

A leader has a vision. Leaders see a problem that needs to be fixed or a goal that needs to

be achieved. It may be something that no one else sees or simply something that no one else

wants to tackle. Whatever it is, it is the focus of the leader's attention and they attack it with a

single-minded determination.

Whether the goal is to double the company's annual sales, develop a product that will

solve a certain problem, or start a company that can achieve the leader's dream, the leader always

has a clear target in mind. This is a big picture sort of thing, not the process improvement that

reduces errors by 2% but the new manufacturing process that completely eliminates the step that

caused the errors. It is the new product that makes people say "why didn't I think of that", not

just a toaster that lets you select the degree of darkness of the toast. Edison did not set out to

build a better candle, he wanted to find a whole new way to illuminate the darkness. That's the

kind of vision a leader has.

The Drive to See It Through

It is not enough to just have a vision. Lots of people see things that should be done, things

that should be fixed, great step forward that could be taken. What makes leaders different is that

they act. They take the steps to achieve their vision.

Is it a passion for the idea, an inner sense of drive, or some sense of commitment?

Whatever it is, it is the strength that lets leaders move their vision forward despite all the

obstacles, despite all the people saying it can't be done, it's too costly, we tried that before, or a

dozen other excuses. The true leader perseveres and moves forward.

Trait and Skills A Leader Must Have

There are things that set leaders apart from other people. Some people are born with these

characteristics. Others develop them as they improve as leaders. These are not magic bullets.

They are things you can do and be if you want to be a leader.

Traits of a Leader

There are as many traits of a leader as there ae lists of what makes a leader. Here are the

fundamental traits of a leader from my perspective:

Has integrity. People have to believe that you are pursuing your dream because it's the right

thing to do, not just because you are ego driven.

Is a people person. Understands the differences that make people unique and is able to use

those individual skills to achieve the goal.

Is positive. A leader encourages and rewards people and makes you want to do it and do it

right. A leader is not a negative person and doesn't waste time and effort tellng everyone what

they're doing wrong.

Leadership Skills

Beyond the personal traits of a leader, there are specific skills someone must master if they

want to be a leader.

Effective communication - it's more than just being able to speak and write. A leader's

communication must move people to work toward the goal the leader has chosen.

Motivation - a leader has to be able to motivate everyone to contribute. Each of us has

different "buttons". A leader knows how to push the right buttons on everyone to make them

really want to do their best to achieve the leader's goal.

Planning - the leader has a plan to achieve the goal. He/she doesn't get too bogged down in the

details, that's what managers are for, but rather uses a high level plan to keep everyone moving

together toward the goal.

Bottom Line

Leaders dream dreams. They refuse to let anyone or anything get in the way of achieving

those dreams. They are realistic, but unrelenting. They are polite, but insistent. The constantly

and consistently drive forward toward their goal. You can be a leader. You will be - when it

matters enough to you.

The Characteristics of a Good Leader

What makes a good leader? Here are some of their most important characteristics:

Self-Awareness.   You have an intimate knowledge of your inner emotional state. You

know your strengths and your weaknesses. You know when you’re working in flow and

you know when you’re over worked. You know yourself, including your capabilities and

your limitations, which allows you to push yourself to your maximum potential.

Self-Direction.  You’re able to direct yourself effectively and powerfully. You know how

to get things done, how to organize tasks and how to avoid procrastination. You know

how to generate energy for projects, to calm yourself when angered. You can make

decisions quickly when necessary, but can also slow to consider all the options on the

table.

Vision.  You’re working towards a goal that’s greater than yourself. It could be something

small, like the success of the team, or a larger vision like world peace. Working towards a

vision is far more inspiring than working towards personal gain.

Ability to Motivate . Leaders don’t lead by telling people what they have to do. Instead,

leaders cause people to want to help them. A key part of this is cultivating your own

desire to help others. When others sense that you want to help them, they in turn want to

help you.

Social Awareness.  Understanding social networks and key influencers in that social

network is another key part of leadership. Who in the organization has the most clout,

both officially and unofficially? Who moves the hearts of the group?

These are some of the most important characteristics of good leaders.

Emotional Intelligence and Leadership- Most of these traits tie directly into emotional

intelligence (EQ). Leaders with high EQ are intrinsically more self-aware. They

understand their mental processes and know how to direct themselves. They’re more in

touch with what they’re deeply passionate about. They naturally care more for others and

receive more compassion in return. They’re more socially in tune.

Leadership is more often than not about “soft skills” rather than hard skills. Yes, a leader

who understands what drives the bottom line is valuable. Yet it’s the leader who can get others to

perform at their best who ultimately creates winning organizations.

LEADERSHIP STYLE

A leadership style is a leader's style of providing direction, implementing plans,

and motivating people.[1] There are many different leadership styles that can be exhibited by

leaders in the political, business or other fields.

Authoritarian

The authoritarian leadership style or autocratic leader keeps strict, close control over

followers by keeping close regulation of policies and procedures given to followers. To keep

main emphasis on the distinction of the authoritarian leader and their followers, these types of

leaders make sure to only create a distinct professional relationship. Direct supervision is what

they believe to be key in maintaining a successful environment and follower ship. In fear of

followers being unproductive, authoritarian leaders keep close supervision and feel this is

necessary in order for anything to be done. Authoritarian leadership styles often follow the vision

of those that are in control, and may not necessarily be compatible with those that are being led.

Authoritarian leaders have a focus on efficiency, as other styles, such as a democratic style, may

be seen as a hindrance on progress.

Examples of authoritarian communicative behavior: a police officer directing traffic, a

teacher ordering a student to do his or her assignment, and a supervisor instructing a subordinate

to clean a workstation. All of these positions require a distinct set of characteristics that give the

leader the position to get things in order or get a point across. Authoritarian Traits: sets goals

individually, engages primarily in one-way and downward communication, controls discussion

with followers,and donates interaction

Several studies have confirmed a relationship between bullying, on the one hand, and an

autocratic leadership and an authoritarian way of settling conflicts or dealing with disagreements,

on the other. An authoritarian style of leadership may create a climate of fear, where there is

little or no room for dialogue and where complaining may be considered futile.

Paternalistic

The way a Paternalistic leader works is by acting as a father figure by taking care of their

subordinates as a parent would. In this style of leadership the leader supplies complete concern

for his followers or workers. In return he receives the complete trust and loyalty of his people.

Workers under this style of leader are expected to become totally committed to what the leader

believes and will not strive off and work independently. The relationship between these co-

workers and leader are extremely solid. The workers are expected to stay with a company for a

longer period of time because of the loyalty and trust. Not only do they treat each other like

family inside the work force, but outside too. These workers are able to go to each other with any

problems they have regarding something because they believe in what they say is going to truly

help them. 

One of the downsides to a paternalistic leader is that the leader could start to play

favorites in decisions. This leader would include the workers more apt to follow and start to

exclude the ones who were less loyal. In today’s market paternalism is more difficult to come by

according to Padavic and Earnest who wrote “business dimensional and Organizational

Counseling.” They believe this because there have become more lay-offs and stronger

unionization. This affects paternalistic leaders because the co-workers may not believe that their

jobs are 100% ensured. When this happens, workers begin to look for bigger and better job

opportunities instead of staying at one company for a longer period of time. Because of this, the

leader may be thinking that you could be leaving and not fully believe you when you tell them

something about a job opportunity. This could put the workers and leader at risk for a bad

situation.

According to B. M. Bass who wrote Leadership and Performance Beyond Expectations,

workers who follow paternalistic leadership also have better organization skills. The leader

encourages organization because they allow the workers to complete tasks so that they can stay

on top of their work. The workers complete tasks this boosts self-confidence and it makes them

work harder to reach a goal and exceed the goal to prove to their boss they are working hard.

Having this style of leadership can also help implement a reward system. This system will allow

their workers to work even better because there is something for them at the end of the tunnel.

While doing this they will also be able to accomplish more work in a set time frame. 

Democratic

The democratic leadership style consists of the leader sharing the decision-

making abilities with group members by promoting the interests of the group members and by

practicing social equality.

This style of leadership encompasses discussion, debate and sharing of ideas and

encouragement of people to feel good about their involvement. The boundaries of democratic

participation tend to be circumscribed by the organization or the group needs and the

instrumental value of people's attributes (skills, attitudes, etc.). The democratic style

encompasses the notion that everyone, by virtue of their human status, should play a part in the

group's decisions. However, the democratic style of leadership still requires guidance and control

by a specific leader. The democratic style demands the leader to make decisions on who should

be called upon within the group and who is given the right to participate in, make and vote on

decisions.[5] Traits of a Good Leader compiled by the Santa Clara University and the Tom

Peters Group:

Honest  — Display sincerity, integrity, and candor in all your actions. Deceptive behavior

will not inspire trust.

Competent  — Base your actions on reason and moral principles. Do not make decisions

based on childlike emotional desires or feelings.

Forward-looking — Set goals and have a vision of the future. The vision must be owned

throughout the organization. Effective leaders envision what they want and how to get it.

They habitually pick priorities stemming from their basic values.

Inspiring — Display confidence in all that you do. By showing endurance in mental,

physical, and spiritual stamina, you will inspire others to reach for new heights. Take charge

when necessary.

Intelligent  — Read, study, and seek challenging assignments.

Fair-minded — Show fair treatment to all people. Prejudice is the enemy of justice. Display

empathy by being sensitive to the feelings, values, interests, and well-being of others.

Broad-minded  — Seek out diversity.

Courageous  — Have the perseverance to accomplish a goal, regardless of the seemingly

insurmountable obstacles. Display a confident calmness when under stress.

Straightforward — Use sound judgment to make a good decisions at the right time.

Imaginative  — Make timely and appropriate changes in your thinking, plans, and methods.

Show creativity by thinking of new and better goals, ideas, and solutions to problems. Be

innovative!

Research has found that this leadership style is one of the most effective and creates

higher productivity, better contributions from group members and increased group morale.

Democratic leadership can lead to better ideas and more creative solutions to problems because

group members are encouraged to share their thoughts and ideas. While democratic leadership is

one of the most effective leadership styles, it does have some potential downsides. In situations

where roles are unclear or time is of the essence, democratic leadership can lead to

communication failures and uncompleted projects. Democratic leadership works best in

situations where group members are skilled and eager to share their knowledge. It is also

important to have plenty of time to allow people to contribute, develop a plan and then vote on

the best course of action.

Laissez-faire

The laissez-faire leadership style is where all the rights and power to make decisions is

fully given to the worker. This was first described by Lewin, Lippitt, and White in 1938, along

with the autocratic leadership and the democratic leadership styles. The laissez-faire style is

sometimes described as a "hands off" leadership style because the leader delegates the tasks to

their followers while providing little or no direction to the followers. If the leader withdraws too

much from their followers it can sometimes result in a lack of productivity, cohesiveness, and

satisfaction.

Laissez-faire leaders allow followers to have complete freedom to make decisions

concerning the completion of their work. It allows followers a high degree of autonomy and self-

rule, while at the same time offering guidance and support when requested. The laissez-faire

leader using guided freedom provides the followers with all materials necessary to accomplish

their goals, but does not directly participate in decision making unless the followers request their

assistance.[9][unreliable source?]

This is an effective style to use when:

Followers are highly skilled, experienced, and educated.

Followers have pride in their work and the drive to do it successfully on their own.

Outside experts, such as staff specialists or consultants are being used.

Followers are trustworthy and experienced.

This style should NOT be used when:

Followers feel insecure at the unavailability of a leader.

The leader cannot or will not provide regular feedback to their followers.[9]

Transactional

The transactional style of leadership was first described by Max Weber in 1947 and then

later described by Bernard Bass in 1981. Mainly used by management, transactional leaders

focus their leadership on motivating followers through a system of rewards and punishments.

There are two factors which form the basis for this system, Contingent Reward and management-

by-exception.[10][unreliable source?]

Contingent Reward Provides rewards, materialistic or psychological, for effort and

recognizes good performance.

Management-by-Exception allows the leader to maintain the status quo. The leader

intervenes when subordinates do not meet acceptable performance levels and initiates

corrective action to improve performance. Management by exception helps reduce the

workload of managers being that they are only called-in when workers deviate from course.

This type of leader identifies the needs of their followers and gives rewards to satisfy

those needs in exchange of certain level of performance.

Transactional leaders focus on increasing the efficiency of established routines and

procedures. They are more concerned with following existing rules than with making changes to

the organization.

A transactional leader establishes and standardizes practices that will help the organization reach:

Maturity

Goal-setting

Efficiency of operation

Increasing productivity.

Effect on work teams

Survey done by Jun Liu, Xiaoyu Liu and Xianju Zeng on the correlation of transactional

leadership and how innovations can be affected by team emotions. The research was composed

of 90 work teams, with a total of 460 members and 90 team leaders. The study found that there is

a relationship between emotions, labor behavior and transactional leadership that affect for the

team. Depending on the level of emotions of the team; this can affect the transactional leader in a

positive or negative way. Transactional leaders work better in teams where there is a lower level

of emotions going into the project. This is because individuals are able to

Think freely when setting their emotions aside from their work.

Have all of their focus on the given task.

A transactional leader is:

1. Negatively affected when the emotional level is high.

2. Positively affected when the emotional level is low.

Transactional leadership presents a form of strategic leadership that is important for the

organizations development. Transactional leadership is essential for team innovativeness.

Transformational

A transformational leader is a type of person in which the leader is not limited by his or her

followers' perception. The main objective is to work to change or transform his or her

followers' needs and redirect their thinking. Leaders that follow the transformation style of

leading,challenge and inspire their followers with a sense of purpose and excitement. They also

create a vision of what they aspire to be, and communicate this idea to others (their followers).

According to Schultz and Schultz, there are three identified characteristics of a transformational

leader:

Charismatic leadership has a broad knowledge of field, has a self-promoting personality,

high/great energy level, and willing to take risk and use irregular strategies in order to

stimulate their followers to think independently

Individualized consideration

Intellectual stimulation