A641.1.3.RB – What is Great Leadership?
I started
to work at the age of fifteen years old. Since, I have experienced an array of
leadership personalities. Some fortunately, left a great impact in my life
while others, not so much. If I were to think of a leader whom I have worked
with and brought out the best in myself, that would be my manager at Dick’s
Sporting Goods, John Case. At worked as a Customer Service Specialist for over
a year. Although this job was meant to be momentary until I get a better job,
it turned out to be the best experience I could have asked for. From the moment
he hired me, the way he spoke, and his ideals were just the kind of leader I
needed in my life. I clearly remember him saying that he needed someone who is
passionate about their work and willing to change the morale of the store. He
needed some who was going to inspire others into making a better job. He
believed in second opportunities and never failed to hear others before
attempting to judge people. More importantly, he was kind, yet firm in his
decisions. All my coworkers then, had an immense respect for this man. Not only
was he a great leader but he was looking for leaders to take over the company’s
tasks. Therefore, if I were asked again to work for him, without a doubt I
would do it.
On the
other hand, I have also had the misfortune of dealing with a leader was the
complete opposite of what a leader should be. A couple of years ago, when I was
not sure that I wanted to go to medical school, I worked for a law firm. To
begin with, the attorney left me at the mercy of a senior paralegal who made my
life at work miserably. When they hired me, I had explained to them that I had
not worked as a paralegal in about two years, and that I was going to need
training in order to refresh my memory and they all approved. Nevertheless,
three weeks into the job, Coraly, the paralegal made feel as I was bothering
every time I had a question. Additionally, I felt, as she was micromanaging me
at everything I did. At that time, we shared an office and she would interrupt
my phone conversations with clients to correct me without any anticipation,
making the client uncomfortable because they could hear her on the other side
of the line. In one instance, probably, my second month, I had made a mistake
and she directly told me that her attorney does not like mistakes and that if I
were to make one more, I would be loosing my job. Every single paralegal
working for the other attorneys disliked her attitude and felt sorry for me. At
first I did not understand why would everyone dislike her, but soon after, I
was able to understand why. All in all, she made me feel aggravated and I felt,
as my leader was not rooting for me but instead against me.
The video
by Dr. Richard Boyatzis (n.d.), “What is great leadership, ” does indeed
provide a significant amount of feedback of what we, people, normally expect
from our leaders. One important point he touches is “inspiring leadership
through emotional intelligence” (Boyatzis, n.d.). It is known that, emotional
intelligence is “the ability to recognize, assess and manage one's own emotions
and the emotions of others” (Terziyan & Kaikova, 2015, para. 14). In other
words, when a leader provides emotional intelligence skills to a team, he or
she is capable of offering understanding to other’s behaviors. With such skills
or domains, a company or group can face any challenge, as their leader can help
them discern any problem they may encounter. Needless to say, this type of
leader takes time to get to be a good leader. A leader with great set of skills
is a learner and does not arrogantly tell his or her followers, he or she knows
it all. Instead, good leadership comes with background experience because he or
she has failed before, but know how to continue or when to backed down. More
importantly, a good leader knows to be inspiring rather than a dictator.
References
Boyatzis, R. (n.d.). What is great leadership. Case Western Reserve University.
Terziyan, V., & Kaikova, O. (2015). The 'magic square':
A roadmap towards emotional business intelligence. Journal of Decision
Systems, 24(3), 255-272. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/docview/1717303566?accountid=27203
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