Personal Influence as Leadership

I think there are many traits that define a leader. Obviously many of the individuals discussed in conversations of leadership have been known and credited with many influential roles and ideas on how to lead. 

I think a leader needs to be influential, honest, steadfast, eager, positive and encouraging. They need to know how to engage a group and rally support. I don't know if i think a leader always needs to go against what everyone thinks. I think the group variance needs to be broad enough as to not result in groupthink. 

First and foremost i would say my parents are leaders in my life. I did not want to be too cliche, but i would like to put my boyfriend up as a leader in my life. He is one of the most honest, encouraging, encompassing people i have ever met. We are very opposite in many ways, but his approach to people, work, goals and integrity are something to be admired. When people say that they know someone better than they know themselves, i honesty think this is true in our case. There have been so many times where my eyes have been opened to new thoughts, methods and mind frames on how to approach life. He forces me to be an open and honest person. I think those qualities and expectations he has for me, make me a better leader. I want to try and replicate those skills to use in my interactions with people. I am a very scheduled person, he isn't. I am all over the place. He helps keep me balanced. Things like that are crucial in leadership and his influence has shown me how to be more flexible in leadership, but also about understanding myself and my capabilities.  

Chater 5 Response

I'll have to agree with some of Lao-tzu's traits of a wise leader. I think they should be hardworking, honest, able to time the appropriateness of actions, and fair in handling conflict. First, they must be hardworking because no one will follow you if work hard and get events in control of the group. Next, they must be honest with the group because they cannot be lying to them or if something is going wrong in the group, they must tell the group and make them do it over so it is right that time. They need to be able to make the right calls sometimes. Lastly, they need to be fair and listen to each person's ideas and not go along with what everyone thinks.

I do not agree that the leader needs to be totally selfless. This goes along with the being fair when handling a conflict and listening to everyone's ideas. They need to be able to get along and the leader is the one who is to make the right decision. I am against being overpowering because the leader needs to consider of every person's say in the group, but should be the one who makes the final decisions, and gets the meetings going again so there is not arguments taking up people's time. They need to have a set schedule of the meeting like an agenda, so they can have a checklist of what needs to be done.

I would have to say my parents are like this. They have told me to work hard at school, and if I do that it will pay off in the long run. They has also told me things that have happened to them when they my age and we talk about that. They are honest, fair and care about me me a lot. I always know they are empowering over me because they can do whatever they want to keep my life safe and the best, and they know it is best for me. My dad and I talk about my future, like what I am going to do with a career, what goals I need to set up, tells me my weaknesses, which I know he is just telling me these so I can work on them and do my best. He also helps people all the time, like my neighbor or my grandparents because he cares about them a lot, which is a good trait he has, and teaches me to do the same by helping people and caring for them, like how I usually call my grandparents every week to see how they are doing. This makes them and me feel good because I am caring and understanding.

I agree with some of Lao-tzu's leadership characteristics. I think a wise leader should be hardworking, honest, and able to time the appropriateness of their actions. If a leader does not work hard, how can they expect their followers to work hard? Honesty is essential. If you are not honest as a leader, you cannot be trusted. Lastly, there are times when tough calls need to be made. I am more cautious when he mentions being fair in handling conflict, and being selfless. A wise leaders should be selfless but only to a certain extent. A leader needs to take into consideration the people they are leading. A good, trusting relationship needs to be developed between leader and followers. However, constantly putting others first might create problems for finishing one's own work. When handling conflict, I agree with Lao-tzu in that it should be handled fair- but fair for who? This part needs to be worded more carefully. Leadership is not always the easiest thing to do, and there are times hard decisions need to be made. Sometimes people will be upset and angry with you. You cannot play devil's advocate all the time.

Throughout the years, I have had numerous "heart-to-heart," talks with my dad. He would call it "tough love." There have been occasions when I thought he was not being fair; but he was acting in my best interest. It was not always what I wanted to hear or do, but it was the right thing to do. Both of my parents empower, are honest, fair, think, and put both my sister and I first. They love us dearly and I love them dearly. I am choosing my father from a professional standpoint. We talk business and about my future. I trust my dad's professional opinion and he is always straight with me. He tells me what I need to do, what I need to work on, and how I can reach my goals. He informs me of my weaknesses. It is hard to swallow criticism- I think that is human nature. He lets me know about these things now so I can work on them and correct them for the future. He has helped me break/change some of my habits that detracted from my productivity in the classroom. We talk about mistakes he has made in the past and what he has learned from them. One of his strong suites is networking. I feel like he knows everyone on earth. He is very proud of my sister and I that he brings us up to other people and always wants us to meet new people. My father works extremely hard for others. He does this not only to support the family, but he knows that others will turn around and help him out if the need arises.

Chapter 5 Response

I agree with some of the leadership traits described in Lao-tzu’s from the text. Hardworking, honest, able to time the appropriateness of actions, fair in handling conflict are among the leadership traits that I agree with. From experience, hard work and devotion has been vital in good leadership, because hard work enables people to succeed in what they are trying to accomplish. Honesty plays an important role because a person needs to be true with themselves and others to be an effective leader. I agree with Shelly when an honest opinion can be difficult, especially when going against a popular opinion. Honest opinions need to be stated though when trying to accomplish change. Able to time the appropriateness of actions I believe comes from a person’s experience and how to manage a given situation. Theses actions stem from background and experiences that I believe by experimenting and learning overtime will develop in personal leadership. Dealing with conflict goes along with appropriateness of action, because given certain situation fairness needs to be understood for good leadership.

I do not completely agree with the traits of being selfless and able to ‘empower others.’ Leaders should have an agenda for the goals they are trying to accomplish, which means they cannot be solely concerned with others. From my experience, a leader needs to provide a certain degree of belong for the followers, but also focuses at the tasks at hand. Along selfless, I do not agree with the word ‘empower’ in the description given. The word empower should be replaced with motivate. The ability to motivate people allows leaders to succeed, because people are encouraged to accomplish goals, whereas ‘empower’ demands accomplishments through force.

My advisor at St. Norbert College has motivated me, been honest with me, and fair to me. I have developed my personal leadership skill through his courses and discussions with him. I have been motivated to do the best I can in college and how to be successful in my college career. Honesty has helped me realizes my strengths and weaknesses, even though hearing weaknesses might have been difficult at times. I was able to learn from my weakness that improved my academic career. Honesty and fairness from my advisor encouraged me to study abroad and has shaped my college career.

Chapter 5

"The wise leader, according to Lao-tzu, was to be selfless, hardworking, honest, able to time the appropriateness of actions, fair in handling conflict, and able to 'empower' others (to use a more current vernacular)." p. 101 of the text.

I wanted to write more about the quote from our text. I completely agree with Lao-tzu's description, although I might slightly disagree with selfless. I think that great leaders think of others first, but I don't think a leader should be completely selfless. I think you need to take care of yourself in order to help care for others. Okay....so, I have one disagreement and a minor one at that. But, overall, I think leaders think of others first when it comes to making decisions, group tasks, etc. Hardworking - I think we all work hard at our SNC career and that makes us better leaders. I believe it's important to be honest, even when your honest opinion is not going to popular with those around you. This is sometimes very difficult, but it's important to honest to everyone....including yourself. The ability to time the appropriateness of actions - this is an interesting quality and I'm not sure how you learn to do such a thing. But, some people truly have a talent for knowing the right time to say or do something for maximum effect. Coming from a background of having been an RA and a hall director, I can't say enough about needing to be fair in handling conflict. There is nothing like a building full of roommate conflicts to make you understand how important it is to be fair to everyone. And, the ability to empower others...do you remember some of the people who have empowered you? When you are working with leaders that empower you, it is a truly great feeling. I love that feeling! It really makes you feel powerful to know that you have the complete trust of the "person in charge" and are able to do what you think you need to do.

So, who are the leaders I think of as I talk through these ideas? Martin Luther King, Jr.? Ghandi? Mother Theresa? No....although these words may describe those people. This quote makes me think of people who have personally touched my life. They make me think of my mother, brother and sister. I think of former supervisors, friends, faculty members. The beauty of Lao-tzu's quote is that it makes me think of people I know, people who have helped me become a better person.

Think about those people who have empowered you, been honest with you, fair to you and thought of you first. Pick one and tell me a little about him or her and a situation where these kinds of things happened.