Everyone should look at their traits and how they pertain to leadership periodically in their lives. For someone that is interested in being a good leader, it is important to determine what you need to improve on to become a great leader. According to the leadership trait questionnaire found in Northouse’s Leadership Theory and Practice book, there are fourteen classifications that a great leader should possess (Northouse, 2013, p. 38-39). Those fourteen traits are to be: articulate, perceptive, self-confident, self-assured, persistent, determined, trustworthy, dependable, friendly, outgoing, conscientious, diligent, sensitive, and empathetic. There are many different opinions on what traits a leader should possess, but this is a pretty extensive list.
As a human resources professional, I am continually striving to be a better leader. To help me examine where I stand in my current leadership abilities, I asked several of my peers to take the leadership trait questionnaire on me. For the most part, I was not surprised by the responses that I received. The highest of my scores was in diligence. I am glad that my peers, most of which are followers, look at me as being hardworking and persistent. Leaders must be willing to put the needs of others first and strive to achieve the ultimate goal. One of the words that stand out to be as being repeated in Northouse’s book is the word “drive” (2013). Drive and diligence to me go hand in hand. Drive is one’s need to achieve something. Both drive and diligence go together to determine the hard work needed to achieve the ultimate goal.
The question on the leadership questionnaire that I scored the lowest on was in regards to being outgoing. This is most certainly not a surprise to me as I am very shy. As a leader it is important to reach beyond boundaries and limitations to become a great leader. In saying that, I work really hard to overcome my shyness, though obviously I still need work. One of the factors on the five-factor personality model is extraversion (Northouse, 2013). I can think of very new great leaders that are not extraverts. But there are a few. Nelson Mandela, for example, is in my opinion not an extraverted man. He is more reserved and can be considered quiet, but he is still friendly and people respect him. I think there is a balance that needs to be reached for those leaders that are not extraverted. They don’t have to be so forward that it is insincere, but they need to be friendly and come across as warm and inviting.
Leadership is a complicated subject and reviewing the traits of leadership is just one way to examine leadership. While I am still young and have many years of leadership ahead of me, it was important for me to take part in the leadership questionnaire so that I may better gage where I am and where I need to grow as a leader. It is important to review all of the aspects of the questionnaire to better understand how complicated the leadership role can be.
Northouse, P.G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications.
Adam L Bennett says
It would be a mistake to simply rely on the questionnaire to accurately reflect your ability to lead. Beyond that fact that “Allport and Odbert identified over 18,000 traits in 1936” (Lesson 2, p.3), the true strength in traits are their ability to correlate to outcomes (Northouse 2013). So how can we determine what is and isn’t working for a leader? Perhaps 360 degree feedback as you describe, but is this the best way? And does this offer you insight into traits that actually make you a better leader?
You provided a great example in that when you took the survey, you scored low on the questionnaire. However before letting your mind wonder into if this is a bad thing, you need to figure out what sort of traits would/do human resource professionals benefit from? A simple search (URL’s below) shows that there are many different traits (amongst other knowledge and skills) all of which aren’t in parallel with each other. To me, this signals what Allport and Ogbert found almost 80 years ago, that is that leadership can be articulated in an almost uncountable amount of ways. So the question remains, how can you figure out what works for you and or your position?
The answer lies in case study, and measurement of outcomes. From a case study point of view, we can evaluate how your 360 review correlates with your perception of your traits. For example, you said that “I think there is a balance that needs to be reached for those leaders that are not extraverted,” and what I really believe you meant, is to say is that extroversion requires balance in accordance with the situation. It could be argued that Nelson Mandela was quite extroverted in his youth, and 30 years in prison lead him to use his actions more than his words, but still, he was very extroverted. Which brings me to my point. Northouse (2013) and his citations in chapter two lead you to believe that there are so many different facets to traits that it is very hard to say that one trait is more desirable over another. A questionnaire may identify a weakness or strength, but it doesn’t offer a solution. Conversely a case study may point towards a solution, but it may not be the only one, which is the point. Leadership defined through traits is a tough way to accurately explain a phenomenon, it’s only after careful consideration of the outcomes that we can be sure that the traits we identify as positive truly are.
Web search for “leadership traits in human resources”
http://humanresources.about.com/od/leadership/a/leader_success.htm
http://www.tlnt.com/2011/10/28/the-top-qualities-and-characteristics-of-great-hr-leaders/
http://www.slaytonsearch.com/2012/08/3-highly-desirable-traits-for-todays-chief-human-resources-officer/
References:
Northouse, P.G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications.
Pennsylvania State University. (2014). Leadership in Work Settings. Retrieved at: https://cms.psu.edu
Michelle Jane Chervenak says
There are a lot of traits that make a great leader but I believe that those who work on all of their traits, especially those that they do not excel in, make them successful leaders. Going through that list, I find myself wondering how my followers would rate me in the Leadership Trait Questionnaire.
I would have to admit, different people would probably give me different ratings on some of those traits. This is not because I am not respectful or friendly towards some people, but because I have different relationships with different individuals. Those people that I have personal relationships with may find me to be more friendly and outgoing. Others who I do not know as well may feel that I am more persistent and determined in reaching my goals. In your research, have you found this to be the case?