Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001). Besides being a driver for vision, leaders must recognize the potential for conflict that exists within the different views and personal motivations and goals that each group member brings to the table. Additionally, effective leaders must be able to channel and direct this conflict in a productive way so that it does not hinder the success of the group (Komives & McMahon, 1998).
Leaders approach every situation with a heart of humility and are not afraid of going outside of their defined role for the benefit of the group (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). Everyone in the team has a role to play, but the leader oftentimes has to be able to fill in the gaps between team members for the overall benefit of the group.

This Week's Definition:

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision. A great leader is able to take a group and to make it more than a sum of just its part. They are able to exploit the synergies and strengths of the group while offsetting the weaknesses of the group to make it more than just a sum of its parts. Great leaders motivate the group to try harder and to do more.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001). Besides being the driving force behind the overall vision, leaders must recognize the potential for conflict that exists whenever people with different viewpoints and personal motivations and goals are gathered together in a group. Effective leaders must be able to channel and diffuse this conflict in a productive way so that it does not hinder the success of the group (Komives & McMahon, 1998).
In addition to actually leading the group and facilitating the formation of a collaborative group vision, leaders must also be wary of approaching every situation with a heart of humility and not be afraid of stepping outside of their defined "role" for the benefit of the group (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). Everyone in the team has a role to play, so to speak, but the leader has to be ready and willing to identify those gaps between team members and to fill in those gaps when necessary for the overall benefit of the group.

Analysis:

My definition of leadership did not change this week. As the Sessions article brought up, it is important for a leader to be aware of the differences in dynamic and experience that could arise when people who are used to collaborating and working with each other online meet in person. However, I think this just goes along with adaptability and being able to recognize and accommodate the differences or to help group members ease into the process. The Saphiere article brought up this idea of complex communication styles and the different factors that influence the way we communicate with each other. This is definitely something important to consider and take into account when you're working on a diverse team.

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001).
Leaders approach every situation with a heart of humility and are not afraid of going outside of their defined role for the benefit of the group (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). Everyone in the team has a role to play, but the leader oftentimes has to be able to fill in the gaps between team members for the overall benefit of the group.

This Week's Definition:

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001). Besides being a driver for vision, leaders must recognize the potential for conflict that exists within the different views and personal motivations and goals that each group member brings to the table. Additionally, effective leaders must be able to channel and direct this conflict in a productive way so that it does not hinder the success of the group (Komives & McMahon, 1998).
Leaders approach every situation with a heart of humility and are not afraid of going outside of their defined role for the benefit of the group (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). Everyone in the team has a role to play, but the leader oftentimes has to be able to fill in the gaps between team members for the overall benefit of the group.

Analysis:

My definition did not change this week. While I found the concept of self-directed learning interesting and potentially helpful, I don't think it's 100% essential in the ways of being a good leader. The idea of self-directed learning is centered around this idea of identifying the gaps between your ideal and real self and then using that as a starting point for building upon your strengths while reducing those gaps. However, I feel that this process is much easier said than done and that oftentimes, in self-reflection, it can be hard to remove ourselves from the entire process and to see the big picture. Therefore, I think it's extremely difficult for us to be able to adequately or effectively gauge this "gap" and harder still to identify the key actions and drivers that we can take to reduce it.

Additionally, I think that while self-directed learning is definitely a method that a person can undertake,it is by no means the only way of tracking and monitoring a person's progress toward their goal self. Boyatzis' article captures this idea of a complex and discontinuous system by which to capture and monitor the change process. However, I don't think this is something that can be captured and made into a model because it is so complex and completely dependent on the individual and countless factors in their environment.

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.

Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2006). "The Function of Ethics -- and Its Main Impediement." Understanding the Foundations of Ethical Reasoning (pp. 4 - 36). Dillon Beach, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking.

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

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

Astin, H. S., & Astin, A. W. (1996). A social change model of leadership development: Guidebook (version III) (pp. 4 - 27). Los Angeles: University of California Los Angeles Higher Education Research Institute.

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.

Kegan, R., & Lahey, L. L. (2009). "Identifying Each Person's One Big Thing" (pp. 63 - 67). Boston: Harvard Business Press.

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.

Previous Definition of Leadership:

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001).
Leaders approach every situation with a heart of humility and are not afraid of going outside of their defined role for the benefit of the group (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). Everyone in the team has a role to play, but the leader oftentimes has to be able to fill in the gaps between team members for the overall benefit of the group.

This Week's Definition:

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001). Besides being a driver for vision, leaders must recognize the potential for conflict that exists within the different views and personal motivations and goals that each group member brings to the table. Additionally, effective leaders must be able to channel and direct this conflict in a productive way so that it does not hinder the success of the group (Komives & McMahon, 1998).
Leaders approach every situation with a heart of humility and are not afraid of going outside of their defined role for the benefit of the group (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). Everyone in the team has a role to play, but the leader oftentimes has to be able to fill in the gaps between team members for the overall benefit of the group.

Analysis:

I thought that the Komives article did a great job of addressing conflict: how it can arise and the various ways that it can be dealt with and the effect that can have on the group. Being a leader of a student group, much of what I do is trying to understand the various directions and visions that everyone is bringing to the table and what they want to get out of the entire experience while still staying true to who I am as a leader and what I want to accomplish over the course of the year. Because of these various viewpoints, tensions and conflicts arise frequently. I personally hate dealing with conflicts and confrontations, but at this point in the year, I've come to recognize that addressing these issues head and having a productive and respectful discussion about them can lead to more innovation and better ideas. As a leader, I think being able to step up and take control of the conflict in your group is a really important quality to have.

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.

Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2006). "The Function of Ethics -- and Its Main Impediement." Understanding the Foundations of Ethical Reasoning (pp. 4 - 36). Dillon Beach, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking.

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

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

Astin, H. S., & Astin, A. W. (1996). A social change model of leadership development: Guidebook (version III) (pp. 4 - 27). Los Angeles: University of California Los Angeles Higher Education Research Institute.

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.

Kegan, R., & Lahey, L. L. (2009). "Identifying Each Person's One Big Thing" (pp. 63 - 67). Boston: Harvard Business Press.

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.

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001).
Leaders approach every situation with a heart of humility and are not afraid of going outside of their defined role for the benefit of the group (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). Everyone in the team has a role to play, but the leader oftentimes has to be able to fill in the gaps between team members for the overall benefit of the group.

This Week's Definition:
Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001).
Leaders approach every situation with a heart of humility and are not afraid of going outside of their defined role for the benefit of the group (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). Everyone in the team has a role to play, but the leader oftentimes has to be able to fill in the gaps between team members for the overall benefit of the group.

Analysis:
I chose not to incorporate either of the articles from this week into my definition of leadership. Personally, I did not find the Kegan article to be very insightful or applicable. The article seems to want you to focus on one specific trait, one big thing, to work on as a leader to develop your leadership style more fully. However, it would seem that if there was such a thing as our "one" fatal flaw, it would be something big, composed of several smaller pieces with many interrelated parts. This article seems to want to oversimplify the complexity of such things and lump it into just "one big thing".
"Get on the Balcony" was much interesting of a read in that it is important to be able to see yourself as a player in a complex dance and understand what role you play and how that fits into the role of the rest of your team members. Additionally, it touched on this idea of being able to distance yourself from what's going on when it's necessary and to get on that "balcony" in order to get a perspective on things that you might not otherwise see from the ground level. This I found very applicable to leadership, but I believe that I already touched on that in my definition of leadership with this idea of having an overall vision for the group. Part of that I believe is being able to periodically step back and monitor how the group is advancing toward that vision.

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.

Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2006). "The Function of Ethics -- and Its Main Impediement." Understanding the Foundations of Ethical Reasoning (pp. 4 - 36). Dillon Beach, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking.

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

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

Astin, H. S., & Astin, A. W. (1996). A social change model of leadership development: Guidebook (version III) (pp. 4 - 27). Los Angeles: University of California Los Angeles Higher Education Research Institute.

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.

Kegan, R., & Lahey, L. L. (2009). "Identifying Each Person's One Big Thing" (pp. 63 - 67). Boston: Harvard Business Press.

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001).

This Week's Definition:
Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001).
Leaders approach every situation with a heart of humility and are not afraid of going outside of their defined role for the benefit of the group (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). Everyone in the team has a role to play, but the leader oftentimes has to be able to fill in the gaps between team members for the overall benefit of the group.

Analysis:
I found this week's Wheeler article on Servant Leadership particularly interesting. Currently, in my role as the President of my student organization, I have found this approach particularly necessary. Part of my role as leader of my group is to understand what people want to get out of the experience as well as what experiences and strengths they're bringing to the organization. Everyone in our group has a role to play but oftentimes, it falls on me as the leader of the group to support them in those roles or to fill in the gaps where those roles don't necessarily overlap. In that sense, I feel like the Astin and Wheeler article go very much hand in hand. The Astin article talks a lot about this idea of bringing technical competence to a group or working extra hard to bring yourself up to that level. Because we have such a large board of 15, and some of us are more experienced than others, as a leader, I oftentimes find myself having to guide people in the right direction in terms of how they can improve upon the "weaknesses" that are dragging us as a group down. I think this is a particularly important trait for a leader to have; this idea of approaching people as if you are the one serving them instead of the other way around. Being in a position of more experience dictates that you should definitely be willing to help those who aren't as experienced and to bolster the functionality and skills of the group as a whole.

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.

Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2006). "The Function of Ethics -- and Its Main Impediement." Understanding the Foundations of Ethical Reasoning (pp. 4 - 36). Dillon Beach, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking.

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

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

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

Astin, H. S., & Astin, A. W. (1996). A social change model of leadership development: Guidebook (version III) (pp. 4 - 27). Los Angeles: University of California Los Angeles Higher Education Research Institute.

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001).

This Week's Definition:

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001).

Analysis:

I found this week's article to be an interesting read. I definitely believe that an important quality a leader should have is his or her ability to think on their feet and to adapt to a rapidly changing environment or an unexpected situation. However, my leadership definition for this week did not change since this element of adaptability was already built into my previous definition. Additionally though, to elaborate on both the Linsky article and my definition, I think that in addition to a willingness and ability to adapt, a leader must always be on the constant lookout for any potential changes that could be made for improvement, rather than simply embracing change as it becomes necessary.

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.

Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2006). "The Function of Ethics -- and Its Main Impediement." Understanding the Foundations of Ethical Reasoning (pp. 4 - 36). Dillon Beach, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking.

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

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

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001).

This Week's Definition:

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001).

Analysis:

I found both of the articles for this week interesting to read but did not find much of what they had to offer applicable to my personal definition of leadership. While the Paul & Elder reading was thought provoking in its claim of people being "egocentric" in the way that we approach our decision making, I believe that it's important to an extent for us to be somewhat "egocentric" in our approach in order to make sure that the decisions that we make as leaders are grounded in our personal values. While I don't believe rational thinking and staying true to our personal values are mutually exclusive, I do feel that in terms of effective leadership, sticking to your values trumps that of "rational thinking". You may make choices that you feel are for the benefit of this "greater good" but at the same time, if your personal values do not line up with these beliefs, your leadership in regards to these choices will lack conviction and will not be effective. This goes along well with the thoughts provided in the Kidder reading; this idea that when choices get tough and, in particular, when you're faced with two equally "right" decisions, it really comes down to knowing where your personal values lie and being okay with the path that you choose.

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.

Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2006). "The Function of Ethics -- and Its Main Impediement." Understanding the Foundations of Ethical Reasoning (pp. 4 - 36). Dillon Beach, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking.

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

Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand.

This Week's Definition:
Leadership is the ability to inspire others and to unite those from different backgrounds together to work toward common goals. A good leader is able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve a goal, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms a personal vision into a collective group vision.
The foundation of leadership rests upon an individual's ability to define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, it is also necessary for a leader to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effectively to the situation and setting at hand. Leaders must be self-aware, not only of what their goals and visions are, but also of where their personal values lay; to incorporate their personal vision with their leadership vision (Lee & King, 2001).

Analysis:
I thought this week's Lee and King reading hit on a particularly important point in regards to the importance of understanding your personal values in order to develop your personal and leadership visions. This reading touched on some similar points brought up in previous readings; the idea of knowing where your leadership strengths lie and being able to incorporate them and use them effectively in your leadership vision. You can't be an effective leader if you don't know where your strengths lie or by forcing yourself to adapt a leadership style that isn't in line with whom you are as a person. The same goes for your vision as a leader. It is doubtful that you will be successful and effective leader if you are pursuing a vision that isn't in line with your own personal values.

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.

A good leader will be able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve the goal at hand, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to then clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms it into a collective group vision."

This Week's Definition:

I still adhere to my previous definition of leadership. The very foundation of leadership is built upon the ability of a leader to clearly define a vision and to motivate others to it. However, additionally, a good leader has to be able to adapt their leadership style quickly and effective to the situation and setting at hand.

Analysis:

I think it is easy for most people to come up with a list of traits they believe should be exhibited by good leaders. While many of these traits are indeed useful in leadership, its important for leaders to not be so deeply entrenched in their ways so that they are unable to adapt to new situations.

Goleman's article defines six various leadership styles commonly utilized by executives to achieve leadership results; Coercive, Authoritative, Affiliative, Democratic, Pacesetting and Coaching. I would disagree with the approach taken by Goleman in his article.

I don't believe that anyone should have a particular "style of leadership" that they lean upon. For example, you might have someone that's great at leading a group of highly motivated individuals or works great when they are able to set their own pace and plan things in advance. However, this same person might fall apart when leading a group of people who are not intrinsically motivated or when they are under a situation of high stress or unforeseeable complications. A great leader should be able to view every situation and group as unique and adapt a "style" of leadership that is tailored to the situation at hand.

A good leader will be able to coordinate and direct a group to complete a task or achieve the goal at hand, but a great leader has a vision that they are able to then clearly and effectively communicate to others in a way that transforms it into a collective group vision.