Rachel's Leadership blog tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013-01-26:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151 2013-05-04T23:09:43Z Movable Type Enterprise 4.31-en 11th Leadership Definition tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151.394861 2013-05-04T22:29:18Z 2013-05-04T23:09:43Z Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future.... chazi013 Last week's definition:
A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future. They also have the ability to intentionally bring about desired changes in a sustainable way. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. He or she serves, supports, and provides for the group. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

This week's definition:
A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future. They also have the ability to intentionally bring about desired changes in a sustainable way. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to focus on completing a desired task. He or she serves, supports, and provides for the group. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

Analysis of Differences:
This week I changed that a leader inspires the group to "focus" on completing a desired task. The reading "Factors Affecting Communication Style: Starring acts in the circus," emphasized the need for a coach or facilitator and how they demonstrate the "pause" button. The "pause" button is "taking a mental step backward, taking a deep breath, and calling for a break from the discussions at hand to better understand where each performer is coming from, what they are intending, and how to refocus on desired outcomes" (Saphiere, 49). I think it is very important that a leader has the ability to step back and refocus the group in completing a desired task.

Work Cited:
Saphiere, D. H., Mikk, B. K., & Devries, B. I. (2005). "Factors Affecting Communication Style: Starring acts in the circus." 47 - 82. Retrieved from http://www.download-it.org/free_files/Pages%20from%20Chapter%2003%20-%20Factors%20Affecting%20Communication%20Style-c2c273a32b32ce590fe42518fa48db05.pdf.

]]> 10th Leadership Definition tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151.393655 2013-04-24T19:46:41Z 2013-04-24T20:18:30Z Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future.... chazi013 Last week's definition:
A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. He or she serves, supports, and provides for the group. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

This week's definition:
A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future. They also have the ability to intentionally bring about desired changes in a sustainable way. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. He or she serves, supports, and provides for the group. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

Analysis of Differences:
This week I added to my definition that leaders "have the ability to intentionally bring about desired changes in a sustainable way." This is a major point that I took away from Boyatzi (2006) "An Overview of Intentional Change from a Complexity Perspective." I think intentionally bringing about desired changes is a very important quality of a leader. As Boyatzi points out, without intentional efforts, the changes are slow. It results in worse unintentional consequences to the original desire, and arouses a shared hopelessness about the future (Boyatzi, 619).

Work Cited:
Boyatzis, R. E. (2006). "An Overview of Intentional Change from a Complexity Perspective." Journal of Management Development, 25(7), 607-623. doi:10.1108/02621710610678445

]]> 9th Leadership Definition tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151.393145 2013-04-20T21:15:55Z 2013-04-20T21:36:31Z Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future.... chazi013 Last week's definition:
A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

This week's definition:
A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. He or she serves, supports, and provides for the group. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

Analysis of differences:
This week I added in that a leader "serves, supports, and provides for the group," which I took away from "Interacting in Teams and Groups" (1998). I agreed when Komives stated "leaders are not commanders and controllers, bosses and big shots. They are servers and supporters, partners and providers" (Kouzes & Posner, 1993, p. 7). I think it is very important for a leader to support and serve the group; it promotes a strong relationship among everyone. I think it is difficult for a group to share ideas and provide their best work when a leader is too controlling.

Work Cited:
Komives, S. R., Lucas, N., & McMahon, T. R. (1998). "Interacting in Teams and Groups." Exploring Leadership: For college students who want to make a difference (pp. 165 - 194). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

]]> 8th Leadership Definition tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151.391945 2013-04-12T04:02:03Z 2013-04-12T04:12:17Z Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future.... chazi013 Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

This week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

Analysis of Differences: This week I chose not to alter my definition because nothing stood out to me as being a new quality of what I think a leader is that my definition doesn't include. The Gladwell (2005) reading described the Warren Harding error, which a leader should not incorporate into his/her leadership duties. It also emphasized that we have the power to change our first impressions, which I agree with but don't think it's worthy of being in the definition of a leader. The Kezar (2000) reading emphasizes positionality being a powerful theory for better understanding leadership on college campuses which is not anything a leader can be defined with, and the Tatum (1997) reading speaks about racism in our society, also not anything a leader could be defined with.

Work Cited:

Gladwell, M. (2005). "The Warren Harding Error: Why we fall for tall, dark, and handsome men." Blink: The power of thinking without thinking (pp. 72 - 98). New York: Pushkin Enterprises.

Tatum, B. D. (1997). "Defining Racism: Can we talk?" Why are all the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? (pp. 3 - 17). New York: Basic Books.

Kezar, A. (2000). "Pluralistic Leadership: Incorporating Diverse Voices." The Journal of Higher Education, 71(6), Nov. - Dec., 2000, pp. 722-743. http://z.umn.edu/kezar

]]> 7th Leadership Definition tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151.391156 2013-04-06T16:53:21Z 2013-04-06T17:04:20Z Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization. A successful leader builds trust, respect,... chazi013 Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

This week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization with a vision for the future. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

Analysis of Differences: This week I chose to add that a leader has "a vision for the future" after reading "Ten Leadership Lessons from the Steve Jobs School of Management." According to the reading, Steve Jobs always had his eye on the future and took his employees on a yearly retreat where the discussion would be focused on what the company should do next (Lomas, 2011). I think this is extremely important for a leader to be focusing on the future as well as the present. Focusing on the future is what has made Apple such a successful company because they are always innovating.

Work Cited:
Lomas, N. (2011). "Ten leadership lessons from the Steve Jobs school of management." Silicon.com. Retrieved from http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/cio-insights/ten-leadership-lessons-from-the-steve-jobs-school-of-management/39748225

]]> 6th Leadership Definition tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151.390234 2013-03-29T21:34:33Z 2013-03-29T22:28:44Z Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a... chazi013 Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

This week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

Analysis of Differences: This week I decided to add in "leaders are able to critically evaluate what is going on in the organization." This is the biggest thing I took away from the "Get on the Balcony" reading. I think it is very important for a leader to be able to shift perspective, ask what is going on, and be able to critically evaluate it. As Heifetz (2002) points out, "self reflection does not come naturally," and I believe that being able to critically evaluate what is going on is a desired task of a leader.


Work Cited:

Heifetz, R. A., & Linsky, M. (2002). "Get on the balcony." Leadership on the Line: Staying alive through the dangers of leading (pp. 51 - 74). Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

]]> 5th Leadership Definition tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151.389077 2013-03-16T03:46:08Z 2013-03-16T03:58:16Z Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a... chazi013 Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task.

This week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task. A leader is willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people.

Analysis of differences: This week, I decided to add in a characteristic of a "servant leader" to the definition of what a leader is. Personally, I think that a "servant leader" embodies almost all of the characteristics of what I believe is a positive and successful leader. The part that I thought was most important and included into my own definition is that a leader is "willing to sacrifice his/her own self interest for the good of the people" (Barbuto, 2007). I think it's very important for a leader to sacrifice his or her own interests for the good of the group.

Work Cited:
Barbuto, J. E., & Wheeler, D. W. (2007). "Becoming a Servant Leader: Do you have what it takes?" Retrieved from www.ianrpubs.unl.edu/epublic/live/g1481/build/g1481.pdf

]]> 4th Leadership Definition tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151.387268 2013-03-03T01:20:20Z 2013-03-03T02:01:03Z Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a... chazi013 Last week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task.

This week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task.

Analysis of differences: I did not make any adjustments to my definition this week because this week's readings were mostly about being ethical, which I think is important for a leader, but I don't think a leader is defined by being ethical necessarily. I think that Kidder's three ways to solve right vs. right dilemmas is valuable in terms of how I view leadership. Ends-based thinking, rule-based thinking, and care-based thinking are all valuable ways for a leader to think when put into right vs. right dilemmas (Kidder, 2003).

Kidder, R. M. (2003). "Overview: The ethics of right vs. right." How Good People Make Tough Choices (pp. 13 - 29). New York: Simon & Schuster.
Due: March 2, 2013

]]> 3rd Leadership Definition tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151.386422 2013-02-23T22:17:20Z 2013-02-23T22:47:07Z Last weeks definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader can build trust, respect, and commitment among people, and inspire them to effectively complete a desired... chazi013 Last weeks definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader can build trust, respect, and commitment among people, and inspire them to effectively complete a desired task.

This week's definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader builds trust, respect, commitment and effective relationships among people, and inspires them to successfully complete a desired task.

This week I used your feedback and deleted the word "can" from my definition because it didn't sound as effective. After reading "Deciding What You Believe," I really agreed with the argument that a leader focuses on the team rather than the individual, and that "it involves the people skills that connect and built effective relationships" (Terry, 2001). Therefore, I added in that a leader builds effective relationships.

Work Cited:

Terry, R. (2001). "Deciding what you believe." Seven zones for leadership: Acting authentically in stability and chaos (pp. 20 - 40). Mountain View, CA: Davies-Black Publishing, Inc.

]]> 2nd leadership definition tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151.385589 2013-02-16T06:13:09Z 2013-02-16T06:25:11Z Last weeks definition: Someone taking an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Someone who empowers being a leader can bring people together to inspire them and complete a desired task. This weeks definition: A leader... chazi013 Last weeks definition: Someone taking an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Someone who empowers being a leader can bring people together to inspire them and complete a desired task.

This weeks definition: A leader is someone who takes an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. A successful leader can build trust, respect, and commitment among people, and inspire them to effectively complete a desired task.

From this weeks readings, I really enjoyed Goleman's explanation of what the democratic style of leadership embodies. He said that a democratic-style leader "builds trust, respect, and commitment" (Goleman, 2000). I used these three traits to adjust my definition of a leader because I thought they were very accurate descriptions of what a leader embodies.

]]> How I define Leadership tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/chazi013/rachelsleadershipblog//17151.383238 2013-01-27T01:32:58Z 2013-01-27T01:39:01Z I define leadership as someone taking an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Someone who empowers being a leader can bring people together to inspire them and complete a desired task.... chazi013 I define leadership as someone taking an initiative to guide a group of people with knowledge and charisma. Someone who empowers being a leader can bring people together to inspire them and complete a desired task.

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