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.