Classmate 1-Discussion 1
- Describe the best leader you have personally known. What makes this person such a good leader? Include in your description the characteristics detailed in the textbook. How does your leader exhibit some of these characteristics?
My sister was the most effective leader that I’ve personally encountered. My sister was both a pharmacist and a strong leader. She took the time to secure her siblings’ success in some capacity. She was aware of my weaknesses and strengths. She was capable of pointing me in the appropriate way. According to (Hughes et al., 2022), leadership is both an art and a science. Leadership is an art in the sense that it cannot be totally defined or routine into a set of rules to follow, and that it has an intrinsic human aspect.My sister has influenced me in several ways, particularly to complete my education and be the best I can be. She was an attentive listener, she would listen to my rants and distressing moments without passing judgment, and she is always willing to assist despite her hectic schedule. When I had a query, she was always trustworthy and forthright. She would always provide sound advice based on her own experience, which would also assist me in making better decisions. I consider myself fortunate to have received a little of my elder sister’s inherent optimism, intuition, and bravery. It is evident to me that the positive messages instilled in me as a young sibling were largely responsible for my development into the confidante which I am today.
- What are the essential differences between being an effective manager and an effective leader?
Management and leadership are both critical ideas in an organization’s operational portfolio. They do, however, play distinct functions in organizational dynamics, and these responsibilities should be defined throughout this research to avoid misunderstandings. It may seem straightforward to assert that managers have workers and leaders have followers; yet management is a function that should be exercised in any business, but leadership is a leader-led relationship that may help an organization grow (Shaikh et al, 2018). Management consists of personnel attempting to accomplish a goal via the use of planning, organization, and coordination (Shaikh et al., 2018). Managers, according to Edwards et al. (2015), are critical to the success of every business. A manager’s function is ingrained in the organization’s operations, including drafting business plans, establishing budgets, reviewing progress, and thinking in the near term to guarantee swift decision-making when required.
According to Edwards et al. (2015), managers exhibit five distinct attitudes when carrying out their duties inside the firm. A reflective attitude requires a manager to comprehend the past, the present, and how to improve the future. Managers with an analytical mentality should examine issues not in terms of easy solutions but in terms of in-depth information — the single and double loop notions. Additionally, managers should have a global perspective to think creatively and a collaborative mindset to develop connections with their staff and listen to their problems. Finally, change management is a characteristic of the action mentality, which enables managers to be receptive and acquire sensitive awareness or emotional intelligence.
References
Edwards, G., Schedlitzki, D., Turnbull, S., & Gill, R. (2015). Exploring power assumptions in the leadership and management debate. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 36(3), 328-343
Hughes, R. L., Ginnett, R. C., & Curphy, G. J. (2022). Leadership: Enhancing the lessons of
experience. McGraw Hill.
Shaikh, A., Bisschoff, C. A., & Botha, C. J. (2018). Measuring management and leadership competencies of business school educated managers in South Africa. Journal of Business and Retail Management Research, 13(2).
Classmate 2
Describe the best leader leader you have personally known. What makes this person such a good leader? Include your description the characteristics detailed in the text book. How does your leader exhibit some of theses characteristics?
The best leader that I have known since working for head Start is our Director, Mr. Jones. Mr. Jones is Director over the head Start programs who knows how to treat each employees. He has a smile every time you see him and always greet the employees with a hug, fist bump or a hand shape. He inspires us to be our best, self-awareness, willing to learn what his employees needs, compassion, a sense of belonging, shows a genuine interest in his employees, and he is very patience. Since he has been with us he has created changes for the better, gives us feedback, establish rules, and solves problems.
Leadership is not about the a title, a salary, or any specific trait. Leadership is a process of social influence, which maximizes the efforts of others toward the achievement of a greater good. Our leader is a good communicator, has empathy, he collaboration, he has the ability to influence others, he trust us as center managers to take care of the day-to-day operation, is very understanding, and creates a vision and purposes for the organization.
What are the essential differences between being an effective manager and an effective leader?
Leader and manager means completely different meaning. A manager tells their employees what to do while a leader encourage them. A manager accepts the status quotes, which a leader challenges it. A leader is a person who inspires, leads, guides, and direct others. Leadership is a skill, whereas, the person who does this ability is known as a leaders, on the other hand, management is a discipline, and this is known as managements. A leader can be any person having the potential to influence other people will follow a leader quicker than a manager because of people is influenced by the leader. And that is why a leader have a relationship to a group that depends on one another for the accomplishment of a goal.
Zaleznik, A. (1977). “Managers and leaders: Are they different?” Harvard Bus. Rev., 55(3), 67–78.
Classmate 3
- Which Leadership Skill have you chosen for your Skill Building Assignment? Tell us why you have made this choice and what your plans are to improve in this skill area.
The Leadership Skill I have chosen for my Skill Building Assignment is adaptability. During unprecedented times, such as the COVID-19 Pandemic, adaptability has become extremely prevalent in all aspects of our lives. As a student and educator, I relate to this dearly. All learning was shifted remotely. Many educators, and professionals in any field for that matter, had to adapt to these conditions; fast. Zoom and Microsoft Teams are two softwares that we all have become extremely familiar with using at this point. At the beginning of 2020, the majority of us felt like the world was coming to an end, nor did we ever anticipate these conditions to last as long as they did. And what did we have to do once this virus was never going away? We had to adapt. The world had to keep moving regardless of these external circumstances we were all faced with. That is exactly what we did. We adapted to our new reality by familiarizing ourselves with these softwares, quarantining if we were sick, staying 6 feet away from others to social distance in order to decrease the chance of infection, wear face coverings, start having food delivered, attend virtual appointments, and the creation of vaccines. These are all the result of adapting. This skill is extremely prevalent when it comes to teaching because something can always go wrong with a lesson, and the show must go on. That is why I have made the choice to improve in this skill area.
- If you were to design the perfect leadership development experience for yourself, how would you do so and what would it include? How would you know whether it was effective?
If I were to design my own leadership development experience for myself, I would start by reflecting on my personal leadership philosophy, or coming up with one if I have not already. After doing so, I would draw out on paper the most important values that shape my philosophy of leadership. This would be effective for me considering it is a visual representation of my thoughts. It also requires me to practice mindfulness. I would know if my leadership development experience was successful and effective if I am able to comprehend it and clearly explain it during conversation to another individual.
Classmate 4
- Which Leadership Skill have you chosen for your Skill Building Assignment? Tell us why you have made this choice and what your plans are to improve in this skill area.
Effective communication is the leadership skill that I have selected to develop for my skill-building assignment. Communication skills are fundamental to leadership. As a leader, you must maximize your communication, and strengthening your abilities and techniques will get you there. Furthermore, excellent communication skills are a vital need for successful leadership. The leader’s ability to communicate information and ideas is essential if he or she is to instill a feeling of urgency and passion in others. Without an effective leader who can properly communicate their message while also motivating others to act on it, having a message is meaningless (Wandberg, 2001). I selected communication since it is the key to problem-solving and understanding your colleagues’ perspectives. Effective communication is necessary for creating credibility, synchronizing activities to pursue goals, and encouraging positive change. Communication is a skill I would continue to develop since one becomes more proficient with practice. In order to improve in this area, I want to practice purpose-driven communication, which entails understanding precisely what I want the conversation’s conclusion to be and learning to ask excellent questions to get the answer to the issue at hand swiftly. In addition, I will practice listening more than speaking since active listening encourages your employees to communicate openly and honestly. According to Beaupre (2021),Active listening demonstrates engagement with your employee. Active listening will reveal new features of the information. It will lessen the likelihood of misunderstanding by eliciting clarification by questioning, repeating a summary, and asking whether this has been correctly received.
- If you were to design the perfect leadership development experience for yourself, how would you do so and what would it include? How would you know whether it was effective?
By establishing a deeper knowledge and shared set of ideas, effective communication skills inspire people to adhere to the concepts and values their leadership want to inculcate in them. Leaders must be able to express to their personnel effectively and clearly everything from the company’s goals to the particulars of given tasks (Doyle, 2019). Effective communication is comprised of numerous elements, such as careful listening, body language comprehension, and written communication such as emails (Doyle, 2019). Moreover, I believe my communication style is assertive. Considered to be the most effective mode of communication, the assertive communication style is defined by an open, non-aggressive communication channel. In addition to expressing my own wishes, thoughts, feelings, and ideas, assertive communicators also consider the needs of others. In each situation, assertive communicators strive for a balance between their own rights and the rights of others.
Improving my communication abilities would be the ultimate experience for my leadership growth. I would begin by enrolling in communication courses to improve my ability to interact with my employees. In addition, I will perform several exercises with my collages and enquire about the toastmaster program. I shall document the dos and don’ts of good communication with others. If I can communicate more effectively, I will know if things are successful.
References
Beaupre , B. (2021, June 16). 8 best practices for Effective Leadership Communication. 8 Best Practices for Effective Leadership Communication. Retrieved May
10, 2022, from https://www.dashe.com/blog/8-best-practices-for-effective-leadership-communication
Doyle, W. (2019). Brand Communication and the attention economy. Communication in the Era
of Attention Scarcity, 49–61. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20918-6_5
Wandberg, R. (2001). Communication: Creating understanding. LifeMatters.
