my blog

Emerging Definition of Leadership Week 10

2011-08-15T16:15:56Z

Last week's definition: Leadership is the combination of leading people work together, looking after team members, and thinking rationally from multiple perspectives.

This week's definition: Leadership is constant guidance and care that lead the team towards the ultimate goal from the beginning to the end.

Analysis of the differences: This week's definition is not very different from previous weeks' definitions, since I have developed a general sense about what leadership should be. However, this week, I did learn something new. According to Komives, S. R., Lucas, N., & McMahon, T. R. (1998), there are four stages of group development: forming, storming, norming, and performing, and every stage requires appropriate leading techniques to evolve to the next stages. For example, in storming stage, leaders should embrace team members' conflicts and respect each member's opinion. Since in this early stage, teams are more delicate, leaders should be more patent and pay attention to team members' differences. Another thing I learned from Komives, S. R., Lucas, N., & McMahon, T. R. (1998) is that leaders should be careful when choosing decision-making methods, because a method works in one situation might not work in another. Although majority control can make fair decision quickly, leaders need to consider the general knowledge required to make the decision and allow the right person to do the right thing. From Yoon, S., & Johnson, S. (2008) I learned that Virtual teams are similar to traditional work teams, which usually go through five stages of the team development. However conflicts are not detected in early stage for virtual teams, which are usually task oriented. Online tools will also supplements online team communication, which explains why we have a super efficient team.

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.

Yoon, S., & Johnson, S. (2008). Phases and patterns of group development in virtual learning teams. Educational Technology Research & Development, 56(5), 595-618. doi:10.1007/s11423-007-9078-x

Emerging Definition of Leadership Week 9

2011-08-11T18:22:59Z

Last week's definition: Leadership is the art of guiding people to collaborate in order to achieve long-term goals in the future.

This week's definition: Leadership is the combination of leading people work together, looking after team members, and thinking rationally from multiple perspectives.

Analysis of the differences: This week's definition is very similar to previous weeks' definitions, yet more comprehensive. I like thinking leadership from various aspects: biological, ethical, philosophical, and so on. While this week, after the reading, I started to realize that all those traits that are deep inside of a person sometimes can be worthless compared to an attractive appearance. Gladwell (2005) states that people often make decision based on physical appearance without spending time to research on whether or not the chosen person is truly qualified, and this is known as the "Warren Harding Error".
Another thing that captured my attention from the reading is racism. According to Tatum, B. D. (1997), historical research on leadership focused too much on white majority while neglecting people of other race. We sometimes are misguided by appearance, but we should never judge people based on race or color, because when the table returns we don't want to be treated unfairly either. As a leader, it is important to consider problems from multiple perspectives, or the decision will likely be flawed or even offensive.

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.

Emerging Definition of Leadership Week 8

2011-08-04T21:58:49Z

Last week's definition: Leadership is a leading role of teamwork and decision-making process to incorporate changes.

This week's definition: Leadership is the art of guiding people to collaborate in order to achieve long-term goals in the future.

Analysis of the differences: In this week's definition, I added the importance of collaboration between team members as well as the role of leadership in facilitating the team-building process. Sessions (2010) underlined the importance of face-to-face meetings, which can strength the relationship between teammates who work together online, though sometimes face-to-face meeting may harm weak tie groups when they conduct in-group talks. Although it is often the team members' responsibility to collaborate, Palloff (2005) argued that social presence is a critical element of online community. This is especially true for online courses. According to Palloff (2005), to achieve better results, instructors need to set the process of team-building, revise it constantly, and provide students with feedback to satisfy their needs to move forward.

Since I'm taking this online course right now, I find team collaboration especially important. Every week we have to work on the group discussion, and at beginning it is very hard for us to collaborate, since we need to find an appropriate time to work together online, which is particularly hard for a group of strangers who never met each other before. But every week, after our discussion topics, we also write an analysis of that week's team work process, which allows instructor to track our working process in order to see if we are on the right track. I also find the feedbacks from weekly discussion topics and blog very helpful.

Sessions, L. F. (2010). How offline gatherings affect online communities: When virtual community members 'meet up'. Information, Communication & Society, 13(3), 375-395. doi:10.1080/13691180903468954

Palloff, R. M., & Pratt, K. (2005). Learning together in community: Collaboration online. Paper presented at the 20th Annual Conference on Distance Teaching and Learning, Retrieved from http://www.uwex.edu/disted/conference/Resource_library/proceedings/04_1127.pdf

Emerging Definition of Leadership Week 7

2011-07-24T04:59:13Z

Last week's definition: Leadership is the responsibility of organizing team collaboration, meanwhile looking after team members.

This week's definition: Leadership is a leading role of teamwork and decision-making process to incorporate changes.

Analysis of the differences: While last week's definition was mainly about taking care of team member, this week's definition comes to the critical point of change.
According to Goleman, Boyatzis, & Mckee (2002), to improve leadership performance, we should come up with a learning plan that fits our styles, built on our strength, and easy to implement. Goleman, Boyatzis, & Mckee (2002) also argues that leaders should practice in a good way so that they could improve their bad habits. To make sure we get enough feedback, according Kegan & Lahey (2009), we are recommended to consult with not only the people we work with, but also the ones we live with. In this way, as a leader, we will surely become more open minded and less likely to miss the one-big-thing.

Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R., & McKee, A. (2002). "Metamorphosis: Sustaining leadership change." Primal Leadership: Learning to lead with emotional intelligence (pp. 139 - 168). Boston: Harvard Business School Press.
Kegan, R., & Lahey, L. L. (2009). "We Never Had a Language for It" Immunity to Change: How to overcome it and unlock the potential in yourself and your organization (pp. 61 - 84). Boston: Harvard Business Press.

Emerging Definition of Leadership Week 6

2011-07-19T04:32:25Z

Last week's definition: Leadership is the wisdom of keeping a group/ organization right on track and the courage to make radical changes when necessary.

This week's definition: Leadership is the responsibility of organizing team collaboration, meanwhile looking after team members.

Analysis of the differences: Last week's definition mainly focuses on the duty of a leader, which is to do the right thing and make the right choice. However, this week, after reading the course materials, I redefined the leadership as a responsibility, which is more than just duty. When reading Goleman, D. (2006), I saw something similar ideas about social intelligence from Goleman, D., & Boyatzis, R. (2008). The main point Goleman, D., & Boyatzis, R. (2008) made is that a leader should understand how to motivate other people and be sensitive team members' needs. Similarly Goleman, D. (2006) argues that a successful leader should help people recover from emotional distress and take care of them whenever is needed. Thus, my definition of leadership is extended to not only lead people to do the job together, but also make sure no one gets hurt, not even for personal reasons.

Certainly there are a lot of ways to motivate team members to increase efficiency and productivity, but the well-balanced stress level could be an effective way. According to Goleman, D. (2006), if stress level is too low, people will feel bored, and if stress level is too high, people will show fear and anxiety, so the balance point of boredom and anxiety is where efficiency and productivity achieve the most. Therefore, it is the leader's responsibility to keep team members happy and relaxed.

Goleman, D. (2006). "The Sweet Spot for Achievement." Social Intelligence: The new science of human relationships (pp. 267 - 284). New York: Bantam Books.
Goleman, D., & Boyatzis, R. (2008). "Social intelligence and the biology of leadership." Harvard Business Review, 86(9), 74-81. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=keh&AN=33983120&site=ehost-live

Emerging Definition of Leadership Week 5

2011-07-12T20:39:16Z

Last week's definition: Leadership is a duty of doing the right thing based on ethics.

This week's definition: Leadership is the wisdom of keeping a group/ organization right on track and the courage to make radical changes when necessary.

Analysis of the differences:

This week's definition came from the combination of this week's new learning experience and my previous definitions about leadership.

In my second week's blog, I wrote about the importance of visionary guidance as an essential ability of leadership. After this week's readings, I came to the same conclusion.
According Heifetz (2002), an effective leader should not only know how to "engage on the dance floor", but also know to take a step back and "get on the balcony" once in a while. Too often we only see the world from our own perspectives, without getting a clear view from above. In other words, a successful leader should have the vision to see the big picture.

Another thing I learned is that leaders should be able to make changes when necessary.
According Heifetz (2009), leadership changes through out the time, and to keep up to date, leaders should not be afraid to adapt changes, even though some changes could seem radical and unconventional. Personally, I think fewer people have the courage or the power to do that, and usually failing to do that could impair a group/organization's further growth, in some cases, even end the group/organization. It's not hard to find examples like this: Google's Gmail adopted changes and replaced Yahoo Mail the leading position; Netflix introduced online streaming after Blockbusters DVD rental service and became the world's largest movie streaming website.

Heifetz, R., Grashow, A., & Linsky, M. (2009). "Leadership in a (permanent) crisis." Harvard Business Review, 87(7), 62-69. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=keh&AN=41997981&site=ehost-live
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.

Emerging Definition of Leadership Week 4

2011-07-08T17:42:39Z

Last week's definition: Leadership is the ability to influence other people with the power inside them.

This week's definition: Leadership is a duty of doing the right thing based on ethics.

Analysis of the differences:

My brand new definition was inspired by this week's reading on ethics, and of course, there are some differences between this week's definition and that of last week.

FIrst, the fundamental approach to analyze leadership is different. Last week's definition mostly was based on biological perspective: "what our body tell us to do", whereas this week's leadership is based on philosophical view: "what is the right thing to do". According to Kidder (1995), when people make a decision, they often face a dilemma, and it could be truth vs loyalty, individual vs community, short-term vs long-term, justice vs mercy. From here, I realized that things I believe are right could be wrong from another person's perspective, which reminds me of a term from ethics: "relativism". It basically means that there is no absolute right or wrong, and people could have different views on just one thing.

Second, according to Lee and King (2001) personal vision can have a big influence on leadership, and we ought to discover our visions to actualize our full potentials.

Finally, as a leader, we often make tough choices. However, our decisions should not only come from the goal of our actions, but also the social norms that guide us to do the "right" thing.

Lee, R. J., & King, S. N. (2001). "Ground your leadership vision in a personal vision." Discovering the Leader in You: A guide to realizing your personal leadership potential (pp. 31 - 54). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Inc.

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

Emerging Definition of Leadership Week 3

2011-07-01T16:17:39Z

Last week's definition: Leadership is an appropriate guidance that gives a team or a group of people visionary view and unite people to work as one.

This week's definition: Leadership is the ability to influence other people with the power inside them.

Analysis of the differences:
There are some differences between this week's definition and that of last week.

First, last week's definition is based on my previous personal experience about leadership, but this week I realized something different after reading Goleman and Boyatzis (2008), which holds a view from biological perspective. According to Goleman and Boyatzis (2008), when people interact with each other, neurons in the brain can influence emotion, which could affect people's judgment. Thus when people are experiencing emotion, they should not trust their instincts.

Second, besides the biological view of leadership, I saw something similarities between Kyle (1998) and Goleman and Boyatzis (2002) definitions. One of the important things about presence in Kyle (1998) is that leaders should not abuse their power and force other people to follow the lead, because that will create an effect of "over shadow". Similarly, Goleman and Boyatzis (2002) suggests that commanding is the least effective way to lead.

Finally, I also understand that social intelligence, a set of interpersonal competencies built on specific neural circuits, Goleman and Boyatzis (2008) plays an important role in leadership.

Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R., & McKee, A. (2002). "The dissonant styles." Primal leadership: Learning to lead with emotional intelligence (pp. 71 - 88). Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

Goleman, D., & Boyatzis, R. (2008). "Social intelligence and the biology of leadership." Harvard Business Review, 86(9), 74-81.
Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=keh&AN=33983120&site=ehost-live

Kyle, D. T. (1998). "The sovereign: The power of presence." The Four Powers of Leadership: Presence, intention, wisdom, compassion (pp. 159 - 191). Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications Inc.

Emerging Definition of Leadership Week 2

2011-06-22T21:12:25Z

Before the start of the course, my personal understanding about leadership is an art of leading people. Through the reading I saw things I've missed before. Leadership is an appropriate guidance that gives a team or a group of people visionary view and unite people to work as one.
From an excerpt of Zone for Leadership (Terry), I learned that there are many characteristics of leadership, and every aspect has two sides that are contradictory to each other. For example, "is leadership born or made? ", "is leadership individual or relational?", and "is leadership positional or everywhere?", etc. Even though it is hard to define leadership with two extreme definition, I now have a deeper understanding about what leadership is made of. It is not necessary to judge what real leadership should be, after all there are different situations that make this question more complex. One of the controversial question discussed in Terry's article is whether Hitler should be considered as a leader. My answer is absolutely. The simple explanation is he leads people. Moreover, he and his alliance almost ruled the world during the period of World War 2. Hitler not only made his believe that he could change the fate of his country, but also served as a spiritual leader that brings hope to people that and makes them believe there is a way to solve the problem, no matter the solution is good or bad for the world as a whole.If some argue that evil leader shouldn't be considered as a leader, I would question them how do you know if the motive of leader is evil before you saw the consequences. Obama is a leader, at least for now, but is he necessary qualified for what he did so far? I think American people will answer this question soon.
Another thing I learned from the reading is that a leader can have different styles of leadership, and there is no absolute right or wrong, though the least effective skill is commanding. According to Goleman's article each style of leadership has its strengths and can has strong impact on people. (Goleman) Moreover leaders can change their styles overtime, which I think is a good idea, since we all need a sort of leader in different situations. The best leader, in my opinion, should know all these styles and know when to use it.

Resources:
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.
Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R., & McKee, A. (2002). "The leadership repertoire." Primal leadership: Learning to lead with emotional intelligence (pp. 53 - 69). Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

My Five Strengths Week 1

2011-06-11T20:07:02Z

Analytical, achiever, futuristic, focus, individualization