In the end...

When I first started this class I was spectacle about being able to learn about leadership in a classroom. There are just some topics that cannot be taught in a classroom and are better understood when you experience them in real life... I thought leadership was one of these topics. After realizing all the different things I have learned about leadership in this class, I found that leadership could be taught in a classroom setting. There were topics about leadership that I did not even consider before taking this class. As a whole, I feel like many students are the same way. The first class we wrote down things that makes a good leader. This list mainly consisted of qualities such as organized, outgoing, persuasive, etc. These characteristics that we listed barely covered the spectrum of leadership. Throughout the class, I realized that leaders not only need the characteristics that we listed but also need to have a vision and share this with followers, they need to motivate their followers, take challenges and try new things, recognize and reward followers, and support followers. Again, this list can go on but there is a huge difference between the two lists. The second one is much more in depth and provides clearer aspects on leadership than just saying a leader is organized. The difference in the two lists just helps display the better understanding and insight that I have received with this class.

Additionally, the way that leadership was taught in this class helped us be more aware of leadership in things we do daily. For example, a movie, many of us have watched endless movies but have we ever considered the leadership in them. Until now... no. Never did I think about the leadership prevalent in a movie while watching it but as discovered through the large list of movies used for our papers, many movies have leadership in them. Also, the Airborne military program videos that we watched were a unique example of leadership. A normal viewer would never think about the extraordinary leadership ideas in those videos but after this class it is hard not to think it.

So not only has this class given me a better understand and base qualities of leadership, it has also made me realize that leadership can be observed in many facets of life.

What you want?

It was interesting to see the different comments that men and women had about the opposite sex. The main thing that got my attention was the huge difference in views between men and women. There was a huge disconnect between the two and this is what causes the underlying issue and conflict between the two. This disconnect causes issues in expectations, views, and relationships. So for years, there has never been any clarification or resolution to this problem and honestly I do not think there ever will be. This issue probably will not be changed because a lot of it has to do with genetics and just the tendencies of males and females. It would be too hard to changed learned behaviors.

The same issue can happen regarding leadership. If there is a disconnect between a leader and their follows this can only lead to problems. Having these different views in expectations can only cause future problems especially if they go unresolved. Followers not knowing what their leader expects of them only makes them unable to fulfill their duties and cause their work to not be up to par or what their boss wants. As for leaders if they do not make their expectations clearly stated then this will cause issues for their followers. Followers having unknown goals cause followers to have an unclear understanding on what to do. Even though males and females are unable to completely correct problems caused by the disconnect, leaders have the ability to clarify their goals. Clearly stating what leaders want from their followers can only provide a means to avoid problems. So creating an environment that has specified expectations and open communication can only be beneficial for the leader and followers.

Influential Leaders

Time.com has the posting for top 100 most influential people. You are currently able to vote for the 2009 candidates. Of the 205 candidates, Barack Obama, Twitter Creators Jack Dors and Biz Stone, Jim Cramer, The Charter 08 Authors, Tzipi Livni, and Bernie Madoff are some of the names included. You can vote at http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1883644_1883653_1884491,00.html.

I also looked at the Top 100 from 2008 that people voted for. The top five for 2008 were Dalai Lama, Vladimir Putin, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and John McCain. Three individuals being politicians, obviously you can observe that it was an election year. If you would like to view the remaining finalist go to http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1733748_1733757,00.html.

Survival of the leadership...

Today in class we did a group exercise about being stranded in a desert and ranking the items to be left with. So this had me thinking what are some of the survival items needed for leadership.

These are the top five things needed for survival of leadership:
1. Take risks and challenges.
2. Be specific and clear on expectations and goals.
3. Do what you say and lead by example.
4. Provide followers with information on how they are doing and give feedback.
5. Recognize people and acknowledge their efforts.

Leaders need these qualities to be able to survive. Just like being in the desert, if you do not select the proper items and survival techniques you will not make it out of the desert and with leadership if you do not have the proper tools to be a good leader you will not make it.

It was also interesting to see how teams made the decision process in obtaining the ranking for their 15 items. Particularly the teams that voted had scores that did not work in their favor. One of the worst scores was from a team that voted to get their ranking and it was interesting the Dr. Feinberg knew that this team had used voting as their method. Learning that voting was not an adequate method was unique because in many group settings voting is always thought to be the best option. It is the easier and less confrontational but as proved in class, it can be the least effective method because it does not allow discussion which can be a huge help when making decisions.

How should leaders listen?

Today in class, Feinberg discussed communication and listening. Being a leader requires the ability to be able to listen and communicate. If you are unable to do these two things, then leading is going to be extremely difficult for you. Leader must be active listeners to be able to pick up on details and have the ability to solve problems.

Another communication topic in relation to leadership is two way communication. Two way communication is very important because as demonstrated in class, not having two way communication makes it extremely difficult to accomplish goals. Leaders need to check that their followers are getting the message by receiving feedback and checking that their message is being heard and interpreted correctly. Communication is such an valuable concept in organizations. If employees of the organization do not even understand the message that is being conveyed and the organization is not making sure employees understand, there will be a huge stipend in the productivity of the organization. Communication is a building block for organizations in order to accomplish goals and succeed.

Leadership in Companies

As a senior about to head into corporate American, I was curious to know about what companies are superior in regards to leadership. Also, I was wondering what different companies do to encourage leadership so I did some searching on the Internet and found interesting information about GE.

One article I found was on CNN.com that ranked the top 20 Global companies to work for that develop good leaders. The top 5 companies included General Electric, Procter & Gamble, Nokia, Hindusta Unilever, and Capital One Financial. The companies filled out a survey and was rated on leadership qualities. Along with the survey, each of the company underwent interviews to help with the ranking. The complete list can be see at http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/leadership/2007/global/index.html.

So I looked at GE to see what they offer their employees to help build their leadership skills. They offer promotions for leadership positions from within the company which is a motivator for their employees. Also, GE stressed helping employees develop their leadership and providing information. They spend billions of dollars for training and educational programs to help create leaders. GE has built the John F. Welch Leadership Center that is the world's first major corporate business school. Much of GE's leadership development comes from the constant training and education. GE is committed to improving leadership within the company and building excellent leaders. Much of their leadership is focused on learning. They also offer their employees two leadership programs to aid individuals in their leadership abilities. This shows that not only is GE taking on the challenge of creating these leaders but they also see the importance of constantly evolving and never stop learning. These are important qualities to have in order to survive in leadership. These strides that GE has taken not only help improve their leaders but also show innovation and the importance of leadership. GE realizes that leadership has a huge role in their organization and in order to improve this area they have devoted time and money. More information can be found on their website at http://www.ge.com/company/culture/leadership_learning.html.

“We have always believed that building strong leaders is a strategic imperative. When times are easy, leadership can be taken for granted. When the world is turbulent, you appreciate great people.” — Jeff Immelt, GE Chairman and CEO

I think it is interesting that he said leaders are often taken for granted. This is a valid point and true. A lot of times, good leaders go under appreciated because people tend to focus on the negative. So when a leader is doing a good job they are often not thanked or shown appreciation. When a leader is doing a poor job, this is when people take notice and repercussions occur.

Show Your Recognition

One of the main components of leadership is to give your followers recognition. This can be done in a variety of creative ways. If leaders are aware of this they can greatly improve their teams productivity, communication, and costs. Also, some employees might be more motivated by recognition than their paycheck. It is more important for them to be noticed and appreciated by their employer than receive a monetary bonus.

This website, http://www.maketheirday.com/, discusses different ways to motivate your employees with recognition. It discusses what different generations are motivated by and helps show how different individuals are motivated by a variety of things. It also has workshop information, a blog, and other educational information. Additionally, this website discusses the importance of realizing that recognition and rewards are two different things. Showing recognition does not cost that much because it can be as simple as telling employees about the extraordinary work of a co-worker during a meeting or a boss writing a letter to an employee thanking them for their hard work. On the other hand, rewards are another way to show appreciation but can be more expensive and often include more planning.

So as a leader, showing your appreciation for your workers can be a very effective leadership attribute.

Leadership Website

Check this website out:

http://www.leadershiparticles.net/

There is a plethora amount of information about leadership and endless articles.

One article, "What Television’s First Woman President Has To Teach Us" discussed women in leadership which is highly important because women have started to break the glass ceiling. It is no longer rare to see a female CEO or manager which to me is such a great accomplishment. Even though women are not completely considered equals, there have been great strides made to providing more equality. In addition, this article discusses this particular leaders communication style. Her communication style is laid back but one that demands respect. So not only do her followers respect and listen to her but also feel comfortable around her. Having a unique communication style that appeals to followers can help a leader be more effective. It is important to find your personal communication style as a leader.

Also, women were not usually considered an authoritarian figure therefore women have to create authority but they have to do this while still keeping their feminine aspects and not appearing too masculine. So when women communicate they need to consider their volume and projecting while they talk, possibly lowering the pitch of their voice, and avoid intonation to help build authority and credibility. It is not difficulty enough for females to try and obtain these positions in the first place but now we have to think of all the factors that go into being a female leader such as our voice, appearance, and gaining respect.

What would your living obituary consist of?

This week for class we were asked to write a living obituary for another student in the class. Overall this assignment was a little challenging to do because I personality never have written one and not really sure what it entails. Looking at the examples helped but overall this was a challenge... writing an obituary for someone that is still living? Interesting?

After talking with my partner for the assignment and thinking about all the things that she has been involved in, I tried to think of what the main components of her life were. Even though this was difficult, I thought it was much easier to do this for someone else than for myself. It will be interesting to see what my partner came up with as the essence of my life and if I found the same.

Describing the essence of some one's life made me think of what the essence of my life includes. The main essence of my life to be honest has been school. For 17 years, I have been going to school and my main goal has been to excel in my studies. This is interesting because during elementary school this was a struggle for me. Learning to read was not the easiest for me and it is ironic because after elementary school, I rarely go below a B in any of my classes for the rest of my schooling. So my life has been revolving around achieving exceptional grades and constant A's. This to me in not that impressive since recruiters look for more. For example, the JcPenney's recruiter said that she not only looks at GPA but what leadership roles and what else the candidate has done. This can highly influence a company selecting a different candidate over myself.

Therefore, this got me thinking what else I can do? I have had leadership roles but they were minimal. More leadership is constantly needed and more challenging roles. My grades are just not enough because they do not tell enough about my capabilities. I no longer want the essence of my life to be schoolwork and grades.... I want it to be something that is more extraordinary that will set me apart. Let the brainstorming and action plans begin! Average is not OK for many people, and it is not alright for me. Why blend in when you can stand out...

Top 10 Leadership Qualities

These are the Top 10 Leadership Qualities found on http://www.hrworld.com/features/top-10-leadership-qualities-031908/.

1. Vision 6. Openness
2. Integrity 7. Creativity
3. Dedication 8. Fairness
4. Magnanimity 9. Assertiveness
5. Humility 10. Sense of Humor


It is unique because many of the qualities are similar to the ten leadership qualities in The Leadership Challenge and consistent with other leadership qualities needed. I think a sense of humor is an interesting quality realating to leadership but I understand why it would be beneficial for a leader to have. A sense of humor not only helps make a leader less intimidating but can also help their followers have more open and better communication. Also, a sense of humor can make a stressful situation a little less stressful.

Additionally, I thought humility is a very important quality for leaders to have. When leaders realize their dependence on their followers and know that they are important assets this helps the team function more properly. If a leader values their followers then this helps the team work better together. The leader having this quality can aid a team in being successful.

Encourage Your Followers

An interesting aspect of leadership is encouraging your followers. Not only do you want to be a good leader but you also want to improve the abilities of your followers. A good leader aids their followers in bettering themselves and motivating them to take challenges.

Oprah can be a good example of this idea, not only does she strive to better her life but she aids her followers in finding ways to better theirs. Many topics on her show involve normal, average people that do extraordinary things. This helps show her viewers that they can also do great things even though currently they are living a normal life. Everyone has the ability to be great and above average, but do you take the opportunities to do this.

In return to a leader motivating their followers to accomplish amazing achievements, followers also need to have a drive to obtain these accomplishments. Therefore it is also the followers responsibility to take opportunities and strive to do better.


As a leader what can you do for your followers? As a follower, what can you do to be bold and different?

Leaders are not born...

When discussing leadership, the question "are leaders born or made?" is often a debatable topic. The book, The Leadership Challenge, says that leaders are not born and this is a myth. There is no proven gene that makes one individual a better leader than another, which I agree with. All leaders are born because all human beings are born but all leaders are made because those individuals have to take the incentive to be leaders. They are made into leaders because they gain experience and obtain leadership roles.

There is no human gene that makes an individual take a leadership position or challenge. People make their choices to be an exceptional leader or not, not their DNA. They have the power to have a vision and carry out that vision, no human genetics can make you do that. An individual might be born in an environment that encourages leadership, such as parents encouraging their children to take risks and challenges, but this has to do with outside factors and an individual's environment. People learn and develop into leaders.

The "Wow Factor"

In class, Dr. Feinberg often talks about "wowing" him and also "wowing" your interviewers. So it is interesting to think what is your "wow factor." Individuals need to set themselves apart and really stand out. The "wow factor" is being distinctive, different, and making your interviewer think, "we have to have this person work for us!"

So why don't they include the "wow factor" in preparing for interviews? Most college students have learned that in preparation for an interview they need to be able to answer basic questions such as their strengths and weaknesses, have a solid handshake, research the company, and be prepared to ask questions but college students are not taught anything about impressing their interviewer and creating this "wow factor". Interviewees need to leave the interviewers wanting them as an employee. So not only do individuals need to display confidence, interest, leadership, and intelligence but they need to do this in a way that makes them different than any other interviewee. Also, the "wow factor" is not solely based on your personality but includes your accomplishments and achievements. Therefore, it is important to challenge yourself and continue learning and growing to be able to constantly "wow" people. If college students gained a better understanding of this idea and obtained motivation to really "wow" people, I think they would be more involved in organizations and be more adamant to gain leadership experience. Learning this information prior to college can really help students take a path that can help them be a more impressive potential employee.

You cannot be just be mediocre, you need to extraordinary!

Can you really define leadership?

In many situations we have been asked to define leadership and leaders... but is this really possible.

There are so many factors that go into leadership and being a leader that there is no way to come up with a definite definition. Also, since leadership requires constant evolution and change, I really do think that it is difficult to create a specific explanation that is lasting. There are many similarities in the definitions that are given but there are also outlying factors.

The movie, The Queen is an example that helps demonstrate this idea. In the movie, Queen Elizabeth's definition of leadership and her leadership style were very traditional and old fashioned. She based a lot of her decisions on what has been done in the past and what she thought was logical. With the aid of the Prime Minister and her realisation that times have changed she was able to change her older views and evolve into a leader that could better suit her followers. She was able to transform her leadership for the good of her people. This is an extraordinary quality of a leader and what I think aids a leader in being successful over extended periods of time. She evolved with the times to eliminate out of date leadership styles and stay current and modernize.

Additionally, since technology constantly changes this also influences aspects of leadership. Years ago, CEO did not know the impact computers and the internet would have on their corporations. With these innovations came the responsibility of these leaders to evolve with these technologies in order to improve their corporations. To stay current leaders must adapt.

Again with the definition of leadership, many of the definitions are minimal and do not really capture the essence of leadership. One description of leadership is, "the ability to lead". That does not even suffice the many areas that leadership entails. Leadership involves aspects of motivating others, supporting others, technology, human resources, coaching, organizing, enthusiasm, business, and many others. This list is endless, it is simply not just the "ability to lead".

Leaders are risk takers...

Through the different books and assignments that we have done for class, I have realized another attribute of leadership is taking risks and having challenges. Leaders have to be willing to take risks in order to make changes. They accept the possibility of failure and this not only helps their followers realize that failures are acceptable but that failures are a learning experience. Also, leaders have to accept challenges and make challenges for themselves and their followers. If leaders never made challenges then they would not make changes and reach impressive goals.

In class, the individuals that stood up to become a team leader took a risk and accepted the challenge to lead a group. They did not know what their challenges and tasks would include throughout the semester but they took the chance. This is a very valuable quality of a leader. This allows leaders to constantly make changes and rise to a challenge. Leaders do not just avoid difficult situations but face them and try to improve them. I realized that taking risks and accepting very difficult challenges are not something that I do often, which is an extremely bad quality. Knowing this made me recognize that I need to change this in order to make myself a better leader. By learning the different characteristics that leaders have, I gain a better understanding on what areas I need to improve on to become a more effective leader and what qualities I already posess.

Why should a company select you?

Why should a company select you? Why should you be selected as a leader? These are important questions in the interviewing process. As a graduating senior, this class has definitely made me think about what will set me apart from other potential employees during the interview process. It is actually a pretty scary thought that my skills and experiences might not be as impressive as other individuals. Therefore, it is important to realize this and strive to continuously learn and improve my abilities. Regarding leadership, I have held leadership positions but I need to continue to challenge myself and develop my leadership skills.

A lot of leadership has to do will taking the actions that you talk about. So "doing what you say." In an interview, if you say that you take the initiative and are a leader you better portray these qualities in your actual job. If you don't do what you say you will, you could get terminated. As a leader it is highly important to follow through with what you talk about. If you do not do this, your followers will have a lack of respect and empowerment. Your followers will not do what you say because you do not even do what you say.

Kirk Weisler on Leadership

Overall I found that Mr. Weisler provided some valuable points on leadership. A lot of the ideas that he portrayed to us were many concepts that we have discussed in class and through assignments. He suggested that as leaders we continue to grow and the importance of always reading. I thought this was significant and also very true. In order to stay current, allow growth, and continue learning leaders definitely need to read. I think this is one area that many people struggle with due to busy schedules.

He also discussed the need to be enthusiastic and have a contagious mood. This was a unique point because it is very true. If you have a negative attitude for the day, this attitude can definitely influence other people's moods. So as a leader it is important to have a positive mood and be enthusiastic because in return your followers will implement these attitudes.

Leaders: Should they make us look good?

Class was very interesting this past Wednesday. The team leaders had a task to collaboratively work together to come up with the top five qualities for success in CSR 309. It was interesting to see the leaders work together and observe there behavior and this was a good way to observe their leadership abilities. The final group was particularly interesting because they had the most attention getting approach to the task. Not only did the group get the attention of the audience but they also exhibited exceptional leadership skills. The main team spokes model/leader helped display to the class that a good leader makes everyone look good in the group and does not have just have their personal achievements in mind. Leaders also have the achievements of their teammates in mind and want others to do well. A exceptional leader makes the whole group look good and in return this makes the leader look good.

Leadership and Pain?

It was interesting that during class today we had to write a situation that has caused us pain. I am interested to see how this will be related to leadership in a future class. I do believe that many leaders have undergone some sort of pain and this has caused them to make changes and take on leadership positions. I think that pain does help make some people stronger and learn how to persevere. No life is perfect, so I think everyone at some point in their life has to deal with pain and difficulties. The way a person deals with these situations can aid in making them a better leader. A leader does not just give up in hard situations, they stick with it and keep trying. This can help separate good leaders from great leaders, if they are able to keep trying and stay positive.

Also, it was interesting to see the potential group leaders have to answer the question about their leadership story. This definitely put these students on the spot and you could tell what students were nervous and which students truly were ready for the challenge. I believe that this showed a good judgement of a student's leadership ability because leaders are constantly put in challenging situations. They need to be ready for the challenge and able to handle it. There are a lot of solid leaders in our class and many students have great potential.

Leaders and Followers

I realized that all leaders need followers and during class we discussed this idea. I thought this was a valid point. The way that a leader treats their followers can greatly impact their success or failure. It is very imperative for a leader to treat their followers/teammates with respect. Leaders need to give back to their followers in order to succeed.

Also during class, we were asked "will an outsider pay for what you have" and this was very interesting. Currently I am job searching and this is a very important question. I need to be able to offer companies something that they can't live without and have leadership abilities that makes them clearly understand why they should follow me in the future. These are two very hard questions to answer and I know I need to make strides to improve these two areas.

Two Themes

The themes of the class are leading others and leading self which is imperative in leadership abilities. I found leading self to be interesting because this has to do with the first two weeks of class. We had to lead our self and take on a leadership role to make sure we did assignments on time and turned them in. It was up to the individual to make sure they completed their work, no leader was there telling them when things were due and how to accomplish them. I thought this was very interesting to see the variations in individuals when leading themselves. The emails that were read in class gave examples of the various differences in individuals ability to lead them self. Some individuals did not turn in assignments or struggled to make components of the assignment work. I think this really did challenge individuals leadership skills and their capability of finding a solution. As for learning to lead others, people definitely need to learn how to do this and improve their skills because they will be doing this in their work environment. We have not experienced this that much in class yet but will once we start working with groups. Overall, this course can be very beneficial but I believe that it is in the student's hands on what they choose to get out of it. If you apply yourself you can improve your leadership abilities but if you decide just to do what you can to get by it will be less beneficial.

The Queen

Today during class we watched The Queen to observe leadership aspects. The class actually had organization compared to the last class, with the help of the TA, Courtney. It was interesting to see how many people tried to asked her questions in order to get some answers but obviously she had instructions not to answer these questions. Students are still trying to obtain structure and leadership in this course but I think they should just relax and try to do assignments to their best ability. They need to be flexible.

Leadership without defined tasks is chaos.

Again class was interesting due to the lack of instruction. All through college, students have gone through semesters with structured courses where the whole semester is outlined and discussed in the syllabus. I believe that this course is trying to get students to go against the norm and not be so structured. I think it is good for students to have a course like this because it helps us be more flexible and learn how to adjust. Especially when it comes to leadership, individuals need to learn how to be able to adjust to different situations. The leadership that was displayed in class was good and bad. I do think it was hard to lead the class today due to the fact that the individual that stood up had no authority or idea what they were to accomplish. It is hard to lead others when the leader does not know their intended goal and tasks. The class had a combination of leaders and individuals that would follow but overall the whole class period was chaotic. Through the semester it will be interesting to see the dynamics of the class continue to evolve.

In the beginning...

The first day of class was very interesting since the class structure was completely different than what most students are used to. Most students do not respond well to mystery and unknown circumstances of class. I think this was done on purpose to see how students would respond and which students would take the lead and try and provide some organization for the class. Also, I think the first class was structured this way to see how students would interact with each other and which students would take the responsibility in trying to provide information to the class and be a leader.