Understanding the concept of leadership
Understanding the concept of leadership is a complex phenomenon as an individual needs to be conversant with its different aspects including characteristics. Primarily, many people perceive it to be about working with other individuals to do things that not only promote their overall development but also provides a sense of direction. Alternatively, it can be explained as the ability to mobilize people to perform specific tasks and to give their best in whatever they do. Becoming a great leader requires numerous aspects that are not common to every human being but only found in a few. Over the years, different explanations were developed to provide the actual comprehension of how these persons develop such unique abilities. For instance, Warren Bennis provides that leadership is not an inborn ability but is formed over a given period through distinct experiences.
The Great Man Theory
On the other hand, the great man theory established by Thomas Carlyle suggests that people are born with the necessary attributes that make them unique in the society and giving them the ability to assume authority and power in the society (Spector, 2016). However, with the changing aspects of the modern economy, it should be understood that becoming a good and effective leader is a complex process that does not only depend on the natural attributes but mostly on lifelong experiences. As such, this study will evaluate several explanations to prove that innate abilities do not have a significant influence on an individual's leadership abilities but rather the nurturing process that prepares them over time.
Understanding Leadership
A leader is an individual with the ability to create and inspire vision and influences other to achieve both personal and group objectives. Moreover, they effectively use their skills and intuition to help in finding solutions to some of the problems that affect society. In most cases, they take responsibilities to guide and inspire others to succeed regardless of the challenges they face. If leaders were born and not made, anybody born with the relevant skills would automatically gain leadership positions in society. People with traits such as confidence, assertiveness, team spirit, excellent problem-solving skills, and creativity nurture this exceptional expertise but do not depend on nature. For instance, Henry Ford came from a humble background and experienced different hardships in the early stages of his life. However, he grew to become one of the most influential persons in the corporate sector.
Role of Society in Leadership Development
Primarily, leadership is a skill that any individual in the environment can learn if the right conditions and circumstances are provided. According to scholars, society plays an important role in determining a person personality. Social institutions such as the family, schools, and religion have great effects on leadership and how human beings associate with others (Forbes Leadership Forum, 2016). Family, for instance, is the first environment that determines how a person relates with peers, develops trust and learns how to love. Such skills acquired over a given period will, in the long run, determine other aspects such as beliefs and values. Notably, as one grows from childhood, the also learn to be sensitive to other people's emotions and to understand their problems.
Peer Influence and Personal Leadership Growth
Moreover, peer influence also has a significant effect on the growth of personal leadership skills. Although the family is still a great determinant of an individual's skills, friends introduce a person into a different environment that is more challenging. One has to learn how to solve problems on their own, make the right decisions, accept the concept of diversity, refrain from unethical behaviors (National Society of Leadership and Success, 2017). Over time, one starts to sharpen different skills including conflict resolution, confidence, and effective communication. Additionally, great leadership is gained through teaching some of the important arts like communicating, listening and providing essential feedbacks that can prompt proper building of relationships.
Character
Leaders can be determined by different aspects including their character. Personality is not only a natural factor but also a nurtured concept that explains how leaders carry out themselves in society. Traits such as confidence in their tasks such as delivering a speech and handling some of the complex conflicts can only be learned over time (Seijts et al., 2015). Interaction with others and the ability to develop a positive relationship with others helps an individual not only to understand their environment but also elevate their self-esteem.
Social Experiences also promote honesty and integrity among leaders. While the former can be explained as the ability to communicate feelings and thoughts even when they are unpopular, the latter is the ability to express an individual's point of view. Notably, to motivate and inspire their followers, leaders have first to gain their respect and trust before they can demonstrate any form of decency and honor (Khade, 2015). Developing these aspects is a complex process and requires a significant amount of time to win the trust of society. Excellent leadership is about identifying qualities that can help in growing the community and increasing its productivity. Both integrity and honesty are skills that should be practiced and sharpened over a given period and also practiced often.
Good interpersonal skills are also essential leadership abilities that are not inborn but need to be nurtured over a given duration. Considerably, these abilities entail aspects such as good communication, facilitating, mentoring, decision making, negotiating and stress management (Sosik et al., 2018). This skill is a social aspect that is developed through continuous interaction with other people in society and perfecting requires constant practice. Negotiating abilities, for instance, entails the expertise to comprehend what others say, inculcating the situation and analyzing the situation logically. An individual needs to be conversant with the interest of both parties and the consequences of poor decisions after the process. Communication skills, on the other hand, entail the ability to listen effectively and to provide proper feedback that can support the accomplishment of goals (Pandya, Dirks & Kwok, 2017). Other important leadership traits nurtured over time include delegation, empowerment, being a role model, accountability, empathy, creativity, and innovation as well as passion.
Leadership Presence
Leadership presence involves the ability to connect effectively and authentically with the feelings and thoughts of other individuals. It comprises of different facets including the ability to command, assume leadership among diverse audiences, sharing opinions, balancing your talking and speaking and sharing opinion and thinking critically (Ford et al., 2017).
Enhancing leadership presence is a practice that has to be nurtured and perfected over time and cannot be naturally instilled in a person. Taking command in a room, for instance, entails the ability to administrate different people both directly and indirectly. Factors such as punctuality, being a role model, eloquent communication, as well as being open-minded and knowledgeable enables an individual to gain the upper hand in controlling the operations of the room. A compelling presence can also be achieved by adapting the energy levels of the audience and to comprehend their needs and cadence (Evans et al, 2015). For instance, if a leader engages a lesser energetic gathering, he/she needs to rev up the vigor and to talk more to create room for more conversation.
Leadership presence can also be demonstrated by assuming a leadership role among different audiences. To be an effective leader, one has to be conversant with various aspects including understanding their environment, develop a winning strategy, and to measure the impact of the approaches developed. Different groups have varying needs and it's upon a leader to understand his role in any given situation. Some of the shared responsibilities include monitor progress, making decisions, providing prompt feedback, encouraging self-assessment, enhance creativity, delegate authority and to empower team members (Ford et al., 2017). To carry out these tasks effectively, a leader must be physically present and to engage others in case of any complexity.
Presence can also be demonstrated by reaching out and making connections with both subordinate and group members. This aspect can be achieved through the employment of different methods including increasing the level of interaction between the two parties, organizing group discussion, involving others in complex decision-making process and building relationships. All these aspects are complex and require a proper evaluation of the environment and comprehending subordinates' interests. Moreover, a good leader develops a mechanism of making everyone in the society feel heard and that their ideas are utilized in finding solutions affecting the society (Madrid et al., 2016). Some of the methods they can use to achieve this include sensitivity when handling certain situations and using active as opposed to passive listening. As such, leadership presence is a nurtured aspect of leadership and helps in enhancing proper achievement of goals and performance of their roles.
Leader Intellect
Leaders are intelligent beings that have the ability to command and influence others through giving directives. As people tasked with directing and controlling specific aspects of the society, they need to have enough knowledge that can not only be applied in solving problems but also developing achievable strategies. Through this, leaders can develop visions that provide a sense of direction to the community.
Notably, an intelligent leader demonstrates mental agility that is primarily having a flexible mind and the ability to adapt to changing environmental situations. This enables leaders to develop mechanism or strategies that are in line with the needs of their subjects. Additionally, sound judgment also plays an important part in enhancing intelligence (Choudhary, 2016). It consists of the skills to form rational opinions, sensible decisions and reliable estimates that are essential in proper decision making and conflict resolution. Having these abilities require an individual to have enough experience and does not in any way depend on nature. One has to have enough knowledge of the various situations and how they can be managed.
Leader Intellect can also be achieved from innovation which is the ability to find new techniques of handling some of the challenges that may be limiting the productivity of subordinates and preventing complacency. Innovativeness is also an aspect that is not naturally developed but depends on the level of exposure to different factors affecting the environment (Khade, 2015). Equally, interpersonal tact that encompasses respect to others also plays an essential role in enhancing a leader's intelligence.
Considering the different pillars of leadership discussed such as character, presence, and intellect, it is evident that a leader is made and not born. Notably, all these aspects depend on how an individual interacts with the environment which is also a factor that aid in personality development. Moreover, skills such as technical, problem-solving, experience and training are essential in boosting the ability of a leader to perform their tasks effectively. According to the study by the American psychological association (APA) found that the complex and dynamic social environments that leaders operate in require them to have certain adaptive and perspective capabilities (Choudhary, 2016). These aspects, however, vary with the social position, beliefs, and cultures of the community. Equally, acting with authenticity is a difficult technique to master, and once an individual understands the different challenges in life and identify what they want to become, they start aligning and practicing specific values both in words and actions.
Most leaders have peers and mentors that play a crucial role in shaping their skills to become better individuals. Both social interactions and creating networks are essential methods of nurturing abilities and learning new ideas in society. Once they have perfected these skills, most of these individuals then develop the courage to face and provide solutions facing their communities. Although most leaders are molded in different cultures and beliefs, they have almost the same traits that can be used to identify them quickly. Equally, the urge to learn more and to develop new ideas is a way of proving that human beings feel incomplete if they don't develop themselves and grow their knowledge. As such, this depicts that leaders are not born but made across different traditions.
References
Choudhary, K. (2016). Leadership is not just about intellect and vision but also about getting results. Retrieved November 26, 2018, from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/leadership-just-intellect-vision-also-getting-results-choudhary
Evans, L. S., Hicks, C. C., Cohen, P. J., Case, P., Prideaux, M., & Mills, D. J. (2015). Understanding leadership in the environmental sciences. Ecology and Society, 20(1).
Forbes Leadership Forum. (2016). Leaders Are Made, Not Born -- Here's How To Make Them (Like Fine Wine!). Retrieved November 26, 2018, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesleadershipforum/2016/11/03/leaders-are-made-not-born-heres-how-to-make-them-like-fine-wine/#6ad22c137dab
Ford, J., Harding, N. H., Gilmore, S., & Richardson, S. (2017). Becoming the leader: Leadership as material presence. Organization Studies, 38(11).
Khade, S. (2015). Leaders are made, Not born!!!!. Journal of Education Technology in Health Sciences, 2(2).
Madrid, H. P., Totterdell, P., Niven, K., & Barros, E. (2016). Leader affective presence and innovation in teams. Journal of Applied Psychology, 101(5).
National Society of Leadership and Success. (2017). Leaders are Made, Not Born––Starting in School. Retrieved November 26, 2018, from https://nslsfacts.org/2017/07/28/leaders-are-made-not-born-starting-in-school/
Pandya, T., Dirks, R., & Kwok, A. (2017). Leaders are Made, Not Born: A Leadership Development Curriculum for General Surgery Residents. Journal of the American College of Surgeons, 225(4), e154-e155.
Seijts, G., Gandz, J., Crossan, M., & Reno, M. (2015). Character matters: Character dimensions’ impact on leader performance and outcomes. Organizational Dynamics, 44(1).
Sosik, J. J., Chun, J. U., Ete, Z., Arenas, F. J., & Scherer, J. (2018). Examining How Leader Character Strengths And Ethical Leadership Relate To Leader Outcomes. In Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2018, No. 1). Briarcliff Manor, NY 10510: Academy of Management.
Spector, B. A. (2016). Carlyle, Freud, and the great man theory more fully considered. Leadership, 12(2).
