Exploring Leadership Theories: Developing A Leadership Style

Influential Leadership Theories and Ideas

The notion of leadership has emerged as one of the most pivotal concepts within the spectrum of the modern day world and provides wide ranging benefits to the individuals as well as the organization utilizing them (Andersen 2017). As opined by Bolman and Deal (2017), the major benefit of the effective use of the construct of leadership is the fact that it enables the leaders to motivate or influence their followers towards the achievement of their goals. Epitropaki, Mueller and Lord (2018) are of the viewpoint that the machinery of leadership also helps the leaders to not only create an effective culture within a team but also to enhance the individual performance of the team members. However, Foti et al. (2017) argue that there are some basic character traits that the leaders are required to have like effective people management skills, motivational skills, communication skills and others. In addition to these, the leaders are also required to have integrity of character, critical decision making skills, effective time management skills and others (Storey 2016). This report will discuss about my profile as a leader in the light of the various leadership theories and ideas which have helped me to become an effective leader.

Antonakis and Day (2017) are of the viewpoint that leadership can be seen as a practical skill which encompasses the ability of an individual or a leader to effectively influence the behavior of others. I believe that this process of influencing the behavior of other individuals can be multiple reasons, firstly, to help them to achieve the targets or the objectives that they have outlined for themselves. Secondly, to help them work in synchronicity with the overall targets or the objectives of the organization that they are working for and others. I would like to say at this juncture that there were various leadership theories as well as traits which were discussed in this unit which has enabled me to effective formulate my own leadership style.

The course began by providing an overview of the concept of leadership and the associated benefits of the effective use of this process by an organization or individual. I would also like to say in this regard that the course introduced me to various kinds of leadership theories which not only expanded the spectrum of knowledge regarding leadership but also helped in the development of my leadership style. Some of the most important theories of leadership which were taught in the unit are the Great Man Theory, Trait Theory, Behavioral Theory of Leadership, Autocratic style of leadership, Transformational leadership, Transactional leadership and others. In addition to these, some of the most recent theories of leadership like situational leadership, leader-member exchange theory, ethical leadership and others were also taught in the unit.

Developing a Leadership Style

The Great Man Theory of leadership is one of the oldest theories of leadership and states that the leaders are not created but born (Freeman 2016). As opined by Anderson et al. (2017), in the earlier times the viewpoint that the great leaders were born with particular skill sets which help them to lead their followers in an effective manner gained prominence. However, I personally believe that this is not only true in the contest of the present day scenario since it is seen that the majority of the contemporary leaders are self made ones. Furthermore, when I analyze this theory in my particular context, I would say that I was not born with any extraordinary leadership skills rather the unit has helped me to develop my leadership abilities. The Trait Theory and also the Behavioral Theory of leadership state that there are various kinds of skill sets that the leaders are required to have to achieve success (Hannah et al. 2014). I agree with the precepts of these two theories since when I undertook an analysis of the contemporary leaders I found that most of them had some common skill sets like integrity, motivational skills, decision making skills and others.

Landis, Hill and Harvey (2014) are of the viewpoint that the transformational style of leadership is one of the most important ones within the context of the contemporary world and the effective use of this style requires the leaders to lead by example. Howard Schultz is an important example of a contemporary leader who actively takes the help of this style of leadership (Shamir 2018). I would like to say that this is one of the most important style of leadership from my perspective since it personally believe that a leader needs to play an exemplary role and also show the followers the manner in which they can perform a task. This is something that I would like to use or follow as a leader for the purpose of leading them towards the achievement of their goals. In contrast to this, the transactional style of leadership requires the leaders to take the help of the notion of “reward and punishment” (Wilson 2017). I have a mixed opinion regarding the effectiveness of this leadership style since as a leader I would definitely like to use the notion of rewarding the followers but I would not like to punish the followers until and unless it is the need of the hour. Thus, from this style of leadership I have only taken the aspect of rewarding the followers within the cannon of my leadership style.

Motivation to Become a Leader

As opined by Dinh et al. (2014), the situational style of leadership requires the leaders to adapt or amend their leadership style as per the need or the merit of the situations and thereby to deal with these situations in an isolated manner rather than in the context of the general leadership followed by them. I personally believe that this is one of the best styles of leadership and has distinct merits over the other ones. Following this style of leadership, I would like to become a leader who also deals with the individual situations as per their merits and importance. This is not only important from the perspective of my own leadership style but at the same time this style of leadership is the need of the contemporary business world. Another important style of leadership which has influenced me in a substantial manner is the ethical leadership. Ghasabeh, Soosay and Reaiche (2015) are of the viewpoint that the leaders taking the help of this leadership style are required to take into effective consideration the various concepts of ethics but also to create ethical and meaningful relations with their subordinates. This is important since I personally believe that the effectiveness of a leader depends to a large extent on the kind of relationship he or she shares with the followers. Thus, taking the help of this framework I would like to create the kind of relations with my followers which will not only help me to inspire them to achieve their targets but also to deal with them in an ethical manner.

Anderson et al. (2017) are of the viewpoint that the effectiveness as well as the efficiency of a leader depends to a large extent on the ideas or the notions that has motivated or influenced the individual to become a leader. In some of the cases, it is seen that there are various extrinsic influences which motivate the individual to become a leader whereas on the other hand there are cases wherein there are intrinsic influences as well. As for me, I would like to say that the factors which motivated or influenced me to become a leader can be ascribed to both the intrinsic and also extrinsic factors. For example, intrinsically there is the inherent desire inside me to lead a team and also to emulate the success or the achievement of the past as well as the present great leaders. On the other hand, there are the extrinsic influences to become a leader like the perks or the benefits associated with the process of being a leader, the reputation and the power that an individual gets by becoming a leader and others. Thus, it can be said that it is the conglomeration of both these influences which has influenced me to become a leader. Furthermore, at the same time, I would like to say that the leadership theories and their influence of the practice of these theories as well as styles which were taught to me in this unit had also influenced me to become an effective leader.

Importance of Skills for Effective Leadership

I personally believe that one of the most important reasons for the effective development of my leadership skills over the last few months has been because of the concepts which were taught to me in this unit. Some of the theories taught in the unit like the situational leadership theory, leader-member exchange theory, transformational leadership theory and others have enabled me to reinvigorate my leadership style. In addition to these, the unit at the same time taught me that most of the effective leaders of the world whether the past or present ones, had some character traits in common. It is with this objective that I set about to acquire various skills like effective communication skills, time management, critical decision making, motivational skills and others so as to gain the right kind of qualities necessary to become a leader. I personally believe that the acquisition of these skills is vital for a leader since it not only enables a leader to lead the followers in an effective manner but also helps them to manage the different members of their team as well. As opined by Hannah et al. (2014), the leaders in the contemporary business world can be seen as the stewards of an organization and thus they need to perform the job roles of the managers and also the leaders. This is an approach which has influenced me in a substantial manner and thus currently I am not only trying to inculcate inside me the qualities of an effective leader but also the qualities of a manager as well.

As opined by Landis, Hill and Harvey (2014), the effectiveness of a leader depends to a large extent on the manner in which the concerned leader is being able to use the past learning experiences of theirs for the development as well as the improvement of their leadership style. It is with this objective that during the course of this unit I undertook a thorough analysis of my past experiences and learn the positive aspects of those experiences. These past experiences not only gave me an overview of my weaknesses on which I need to work on to become an effective leader but also gave me an idea about my strengths which I need to fortify. Furthermore, the contents of the unit and also my own past experiences also offered me insightful details about the opportunities that I can utilize to become not only a better individual but also a leader as well.

Acquiring the Right Qualities for Leadership

I would like to say that for the improvement of my leadership style I have chalked out a detailed plan regarding the skills that I need to develop. In this regard, I would say that I have sufficient amount of skills to deal with different kinds of people, to make ethical as well as critical decisions and others. I believe that these skills have not only contributed in a positive manner towards the development of my leadership abilities but have also helped me to motivate them as well. However, some of the most common qualities that I feel I need to inculcate or develop for the development of my leadership abilities are communication skills, motivational skills, people management skills, time management skills and others. An acquisition of these skills is likely to help me become a better leader. However, I also believe that I would have to focus on the attainment of one skill at a time since most of the above mentioned skills are interlinked. In addition to these, for the effective development of my leadership skills I also believe that watching the speeches and also reading the biographies of the past and present leaders would also help me in a significant manner. Lastly, I believe that an effective utilization as well understanding of the concepts of the unit would also enable me to improve my leadership abilities. 

Action Plan for the improvement of Communication skills

Specific	I would join a workshop which would help me to develop my public speaking abilities
Measurable	Regular timely mock assessments and the effectiveness with which I would be able to speak and express my thoughts in groups.
Attainable	This goal is completely attainable provided I am willing and dedicated to devote the right kind of time to this activity.
Relevancy	This goal is completely relevant since it will help me to achieve my broader goal of becoming an effective leader.
Time-Bound	I hoping that I would be able to attain this skill in six months.

Conclusion

To conclude, the notion of leadership has gained a substantial amount of prominence in the contemporary times and the use of this is not only restricted to the business world or politics but in almost all walks of life. In addition to this, it is seen that the leaders are required to posses various skill sets like communication skills, motivational skills, time management skills and others. However, at the same time, it needs to be said that an individual for the development of his or her leadership style needs to take into effective consideration the different theories as well as styles of leadership. These theories and styles of leadership not only provides an overview of the manner in which a leader needs to formulate his or her leadership style but also the manner in which they can effectively lead their team as well.

References

Andersen, J.A., 2017. Leadership studies: all bridges have been burned. LSE Business Review.

Anderson, H.J., Baur, J.E., Griffith, J.A. and Buckley, M.R., 2017. What works for you may not work for (Gen) Me: Limitations of present leadership theories for the new generation. The Leadership Quarterly, 28(1), pp.245-260.

Antonakis, J. and Day, D.V. eds., 2017. The nature of leadership. Sage publications.

Bolman, L.G. and Deal, T.E., 2017. Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership. John Wiley & Sons.

Dinh, J.E., Lord, R.G., Gardner, W.L., Meuser, J.D., Liden, R.C. and Hu, J., 2014. Leadership theory and research in the new millennium: Current theoretical trends and changing perspectives. The Leadership Quarterly, 25(1), pp.36-62.

Epitropaki, O., Mueller, J.S. and Lord, R.G., 2018. Unpacking the Socio-cognitive Foundations of Creative Leadership: Bridging Implicit Leadership and Implicit Creativity Theories. In Creative Leadership (pp. 39-56). Routledge.

Foti, R.J., Hansbrough, T.K., Epitropaki, O. and Coyle, P.T., 2017. Dynamic viewpoints on implicit leadership and followership theories: approaches, findings, and future directions. The Leadership Quarterly.

Freeman, R.E., 2016. Ethical leadership and creating value for stakeholders. In Business ethics: New challenges for business schools and corporate leaders (pp. 94-109). Routledge.

Ghasabeh, M.S., Soosay, C. and Reaiche, C., 2015. The emerging role of transformational leadership. The Journal of Developing Areas, 49(6), pp.459-467.

Hannah, S.T., Sumanth, J.J., Lester, P. and Cavarretta, F., 2014. Debunking the false dichotomy of leadership idealism and pragmatism: Critical evaluation and support of newer genre leadership theories. Journal of organizational behavior, 35(5), pp.598-621.

Landis, E.A., Hill, D. and Harvey, M.R., 2014. A synthesis of leadership theories and styles. Journal of Management Policy and Practice, 15(2), p.97.

Shamir, B., 2018. Social distance and charisma: Theoretical notes and an exploratory study. In Leadership Now: Reflections on the Legacy of Boas Shamir (pp. 225-254). Emerald Publishing Limited.

Storey, J., 2016. Changing theories of leadership and leadership development. In Leadership in Organizations (pp. 33-58). Routledge.

Wilson, A.L., 2017. Measuring the Impact of Implicit Leadership Theories on Leadership Efficacy and Developmental Readiness. Cardinal Stritch University.