We hear the word “leadership” we hear it all the time in the workplace, at school, even just in everyday life. But what is leadership? If you google leadership, the definition that comes up is “the action of leading a group of people or an organization.” (Google 2019) However, when you ask someone what their definition of leadership is, they most likely will give you a different definition. Every person has their own idea of leadership, so let us dive into what dose leadership means.
You might wonder, why do people have definitions of leadership that are so vastly different? Is it their experiences, the situation, or just the people that they have interacted with? I believe the answer is all of the above. People’s perception of leadership is based on prior experience or interactions that involved a leader. Whether the experience with the leader is good or bad, a perception of leadership is still created.
I interviewed a few of my friends about what leadership meant to them. Each of their responses were quite different from one another. Marisa Chetsko gave a more straight forward answer of what leadership meant to her by starting leadership is “Constructing, delegating tasks, and following through” (Marisa Chetsko). When Cody was asked what leadership meant to him, he responded with, “One that has been trusted from followers” (Cody Hutter). I thought his response was interesting because few people involve the follower in their response of what is leadership. The last response included the leader as well as the followers. The last idea of leadership I got was, “Someone who can take charge, give good details and not hurt others while doing it” (Aaron Wilson). His definition embodies part of the leader as well as the followers. Even though they all had different responses, each of their responses related to some core idea from google definition.
However, with leadership there is still the idea that even though someone is in a leadership position, it does not make them a good or proper leader. This is a valid point that many bring up. While many people are put in leadership positions, not all are deserving or capable of handling such an intense task. To be a good leader most can agree that one needs to influence others in a positive and motivating way.
Everyone has their own idea and definition of leadership, but to me leadership is an honor that many have the opportunity to have. Every situation needs some kind of leader, whether it is solving a problem, giving a group motivation, or just supporting others. To me leadership is the ability to achieve and complete a goal that a group shares as well as influence those people in the group in a positive way. So, what does leadership mean to you?
References:
Google definition 2019
Interviews from other people Marisa Chetsko, Cody Hutter, and Aaron Wilson