Leadership

PSYCH 485 blog

Authentic leadership development

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A leader who is authentic is one believed to be genuine and self-aware (Northouse, 2016). You might be able to think of a few bosses you’ve had that you believed were genuine and authentic in their dealings with you. But how can you be a more authentic leader? How is authenticity developed? Just as different people may view how authenticity is expressed differently, researchers also define authentic leadership differently. The idea of authentic leadership is relatively new and became more important after many of the corporate scandals in the early 2000s, like Enron (Northouse, 2016). People wanted leaders they could trust. As such, the idea of authentic leadership is still being explored, but there are practical applications that can guide you to being a better leader.

One way to look at authentic leadership is understanding who you are (Northouse, 2016). There are certain dimensions that make up authentic leadership: purpose, values, relationships, self-discipline and heart (George, 2003, as cited in Northouse, 2016). In a nutshell, you need to understand your purpose, have strong values of the right thing to do, establish trusting relationships, demonstrate self-discipline and be passionate about your mission (George, 2003, as cited in Northouse, 2016).  You have different levels of these characteristics, and you have an opportunity to develop them to be an authentic leader.

As a leader, you need to understand your purpose (Northouse, 2016), which might be the most important characteristic in authentic leadership (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). Understanding your purpose is understanding what you are about and where you are going (Northouse, 2016). But you also have to be passionate about what you do, and be inspired by your goals (Northouse, 2016). Personally, I know there’s a good chance I will not be in a senior leadership position in my organization, but I know I can have a positive effect on our organization at a mid-management level. My goals are to continue to deliver results to my section of the organization and to develop and invest in my followers. I’m passionate about what I do and enjoy achieving results that are seen through positive exposure for the people I serve. I embrace my purpose.

You also need to understand your values and treat others based on those values (Northouse, 2016). Authentic leaders do the right thing during tough times and do not compromise who they are (Northouse, 2016). An authentic leader will come out of a tough situation with stronger values, not compromised ones, as we often unfortunately see in the news headlines (Northouse, 2016). If you’re not strongly committed to your values, you are more likely to abandon them during times of stress. If your values are not strong, it’s easier to get yourself into gray areas or crossing lines that you know shouldn’t be crossed. One line leads to another, and then another, and before you know it, you turn around and you’re in a place you never expected to be as a leader. But if you know your values, those decisions are more focused and consistent. No, you shouldn’t fudge the sales numbers this month because they won’t be caught until you can make it up some other way. No, you shouldn’t keep information from the board that you know you need to tell them. No, you shouldn’t make your followers work late hours to get the report done because you want to get to the gym instead. Your values should guide you to do the right thing, and your actions should outwardly validate those values. As I wrote in a post about servant leadership, my values are tied to my Christian faith. Growing in my faith should grow my leadership and vice versa. If I’m behaving as a leader in a way that goes against my values, it hurts my faith walk. To do the right thing, we must be careful with our actions and we must know what our values are to act our best.

Connectedness through strong relationships is also important. You need to be available as a leader and you need to be transparent (Northouse, 2016). Followers want to trust their leaders (Northouse, 2016), and developing trust requires building a relationship. Communication is way to do this. High quality communication and interactions with all followers will develop relationship. This is related to a leadership theory called leader-member exchange. In this theory, leadership is more effective by having high quality exchanges with all members of your team, leading to trust, respect and a feeling of obligation (Northouse, 2016). It all leads to high productivity (Northouse, 2016). To be an authentic leader, you need to connect with your followers.

Being consistent with self-discipline is also important because it helps you keep focus and determination (Northouse, 2016). Self-discipline helps you reach your goals and keep your followers accountable (Northouse, 2016). It’s also related to your values, because it helps you do your work in a way that aligns with them (Northouse, 2016). If you’re not self-disciplined, you may more easily bend the rules and go against your values. It allows you to be consistent, even in times of crisis or stress (Northouse, 2016). Your followers will see a leader who is predictable (Northouse, 2016). They will know how you will act in situations and what to expect from you (Northouse, 2016). Something small, but important, for me is answering my follower’s emails. This is important because I can’t help them achieve our goals if they’re waiting on me to answer them with information they may need. That requires self-discipline. It would certainly be easier to ignore my email some days, but then I wouldn’t be consistent for my followers. I have my email set up to flag any email from a follower into a special folder. I then check that folder twice a day and answer all emails in it. My followers are not intimidated to ask me for things because of this small gesture. It also sets a level of accountability for others on the team. If I’m answering emails, others feel a need to not ignore email either.

Lastly, having compassion and heart are important for authentic leadership. As a compassionate leader, you must be in tune with what others are going through and offer help. As a leader, you need to listen to your followers and learn who they are and learn their life stories (Northouse, 2016). Listening is an important aspect of learning to show heart. When listening, make eye contact and be fully engaged, don’t interrupt others (Gamble & Gamble, 2013). Give your attention to only one thing, the person; be attentive and relaxed so that you can organize what you are hearing; relate to what you are hearing through your own life experience; and then appropriately respond (Gamble & Gamble, 2013). Response could be something as simple as a verbal cue to reinforce that you are listening; or it could be a paraphrase of what you just hear, for example (Gamble & Gamble, 2013). These steps are related to the stages of perception, and they can help you have meaningful communication with your followers. Sometimes, just knowing another person understands can help and show compassion. Just from my own experience, I have seen how compassion makes a leader relatable. One time, I needed surgery and had to take extended time off from work. The leader came to me and offered to donate me some of his time off to me. That small gesture changed my perception of him and made me see him as more authentic and caring for his employees. I didn’t ask for help, but he knew enough about my situation that he acted on his own.

Being an authentic leader means doing the right thing, being honest with yourself and others and working for a common good (Northouse, 2016). You can’t go wrong with developing the characteristics we’ve discussed to be more authentic to your followers.

 

References:

Gamble, T. K., & Gamble, M. W. (2013). Leading with communication: A practical approach to leadership communication.Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications, Inc.

Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and practice (7thed.).Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.

Pennsylvania State University. (2018). Authentic leadership approaches.Work attitudes and job motivation  — PSYCH 484. Online course lesson, Penn State World Campus. Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1942231/modules/items/25010904

Being a servant leader

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When it comes to leadership, the classic image of a cantankerous boss barking orders and flaunting his or her power might come to mind. Leadership is a “process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal” (Northouse, 2016, p. 6).  Influence is simply how the leader affects you as a follower (Northouse, 2016). The cranky boss is influencing you through intimidation by making demands, but there are other ways to do so.   The definition of leadership frames it as a process, built by the interactions of a leader and his or her followers (Northouse, 2016). This means that there are different ways to interact and influence your followers. You don’t have to be the cranky boss who rules by fear.

As I’ve advanced in my career and have been studying different leadership styles, aligning my own style with my Christian faith has been important. There are many examples in the news of leaders whose actions were harmful to employees, organizations or to their customers. It is important to me that my actions in my career are not kept separate from what I strive to be through my faith. But, I was not sure how to best do that.

And then, I learned about servant leadership. This is a way to lead that is a natural fit to the service nature of the church I attend. A basic teaching of the Christian church is to treat others as you would like to be treated, to serve others and to love them, sometimes to the detriment of yourself.  Servant leaders act similarly by putting their followers first, nurturing them and empathizing with them (Northouse, 2016).

Greenleaf (1970) states that servant leadership “begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead” (as cited in Northouse, 2016, p. 226). This seems contrary to the traditional view of leadership, but a servant leader is still using institutional power and control that come with his or her position, however he or she is “shifting authority” (Northouse, 2016, p. 227) to followers and working to develop them into servants leaders as well (Greenleaf, 1970, as cited in Northouse, 2016).

A servant leader has several characteristics including being a good listener, empathetic, a healer, aware, persuasive, conceptual, predictive (having foresight), a steward, committed to the growth of people, and a community builder (Spears, 2002, as cited in Northouse, 2016).

A leader who listens is one who hears what followers say and is receptive to it; listening acknowledges the followers’ viewpoints (Northouse, 2016). A leader needs to hear the facts, called comprehensive listening (Gamble & Gamble, 2013), and he or she need to listen to know what to accept and reject, known as critical listening (Gamble & Gamble, 2013). But if a leader is putting the follower first, then empathic listening is key. Empathic listening is about understanding feelings of the person and involves trying to feel what the speaker is saying and tapping into their emotions, using an appropriate emotional response (Gamble & Gamble, 2013). Empathic listeners pay attention to nonverbal cues and do not interrupt the speaker (Gamble & Gamble, 2013). A leaders who listens is one who can be empathetic and understand what a follower is thinking and feeling (Northouse, 2016).

Being a healer means that a leader has concern for the well-being of followers and helps them overcome personal problems and become whole (Northouse, 2016). This means being aware of what your followers are dealing with. To help with healing, a leader is available to followers, stands with them and supports them (Liden, Wayne, et. al., 2008, as cited in Northouse, 2016).

Being aware means understanding what effect you have on others and in the situation (Northouse, 2016). It can mean not letting your ego get in the way and stepping aside if it’s in the best interest of the team.

Persuasion is “clear and persistent communication that convinces others to change” (Northouse, 2016, p. 228). Being persuasive means using gentle nudges and being nonjudgmental (Northouse, 2016). I remember one time, when I was new to leadership and in my early 20s, I wasn’t happy with the skills of one of my employees. Instead of gently nudging this employee to approach her work differently, I distinctly remember saying “this looks like garbage” and throwing the newspaper she worked on across the room. Needless to say, it didn’t help our relationship nor did she have any incentive to change. If I could find that employee and apologize to her, I would. That was not putting her first. There was a better way to nudge her into a direction I wanted.

Being conceptual is clearly communicating goals and your vision of how to get there (Northouse, 2016). A servant leader shows conceptualizing by having a full understanding of the organization. (Liden, Wayne, et. al., 2008, as cited in Northouse, 2016). As a servant leader, I need to understand the mission of the organization and convey to my staff how our department contributes to that mission.

Foresight is the ability to “predict what is coming based on what is occurring in the present and what has happened in the past” (Northouse, 2016, p. 228). For example, if I’ve seen a certain approach fail in the past or see senior leadership not be receptive to it, I can predict that a similar approach suggested by a different employee will yield a similar result. As such, I need to advise the employee to not use that approach, thus helping improve the odds of success for that employee.

Stewardship is understanding the leadership responsibility a person has been given over others in the organization (Northouse, 2016). Being a leader is a big responsibility and it must be treated as such.

Commitment to the growth of people is meant both personally and professionally (Northouse, 2016). Career development, skills development, listening to the followers’ ideas and involving followers in decisions are all ways to promote growth (Spears, 2002, as cited in Northouse, 2016). It also means mentoring your followers and helping them reach their full potential (Liden, Wayne, et. al., 2008, as cited in Northouse, 2016). For example, I worked for a leader who understood that my college courses were important for my growth. She made school a priority for me by protecting some of my time so that I could work on lessons at the office.

Building community is promoting a sense of unity and belonging; identifying with “something greater” (Northouse, 2016, p. 229). Community means that follower feel safe and connected, but can still be themselves as individuals (Northouse, 2016).

A servant leader puts his or her followers first and demonstrates through his or her actions and words (Liden, Wayne, et. al., 2008, as cited in Northouse, 2016). You can do this is many ways like stopping what you are doing to address a need of a follower (Northouse, 2016). I want to be the type of leader who is always considering the needs of my followers and what I can do to meet those needs. It could be something as simple as always making sure to recognize my team member’s contributions to senior leadership to help build respect for them in the organization and support their career advancement. I’ve worked for leaders who took credit for work their team members did – and that’s not the type of leader I want to be.

Servant leaders also behave ethically (Liden, Wayne, et. al., 2008, as cited in Northouse, 2016). Too often, leaders are caught cutting corners to cover up mistakes or make performance goals. A leader needs to do the right thing and be open, honest and fair (Northouse, 2016). My faith is important for this because it helps define what is ethical.

A servant leader needs to empower his or her employees to be independent and make decisions (Liden, Wayne, et. al., 2008, as cited in Northouse, 2016). Doing so will give followers confidence because they have the freedom to succeed or fail (Liden, Wayne, et. al., 2008, as cited in Northouse, 2016). This is something that parents can relate to, especially parents of teenagers. As our children mature, we empower them with more and more decisions that give them invaluable experience and confidence in their abilities to handle what life throws at them. Sometimes that means that mistake are made or that failure happens. As a leader, I want to empower my employees to make decisions and have the safety net to fail and learn. There are consequences of failure, of course, but I don’t want a fear of failure to cripple followers from making decisions.

A servant leader should also give back to the community (Liden, Wayne, et. al., 2008, as cited in Northouse, 2016).  A way to do this is to find a way to link the goals of the organization with those of the community (Northouse, 2016). In my last job, the office volunteered once or twice a year at a food bank. At another job, the office collected Christmas gifts for a family in need.

Through servant leadership, your followers’ performance can improve and they can grow into servant leaders themselves. It can also improve team effectiveness, organizational performance and create a positive societal impact (Northouse, 2016). Being a servant leader can benefit your organization. It is, however, not for everyone. Some followers do not respond to servant leadership and do not like that style of leadership (Northouse, 2016). With these type of followers, you may need to make some adjustments, serving them in ways that they are comfortable with.

Servant leadership may seem contradictory, but treating people right and with respect and putting them first is a powerful way to wield influence. It is how I plan to lead in my next leadership opportunity. It relates to who I am working to be on a personal level, and being a servant leader will help me grow personally while helping my followers.

 

References:

Gamble, T. K., & Gamble, M. W. (2013). Leading with communication: A practical approach to leadership communication.Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications, Inc.

Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and practice (7thed.).Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.

 

‘I have the power’

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In the old 1980’s cartoon He-Man, the lead character would lift his sword above his head and command the powers of Grayskull, proclaiming “I have the power!” Children of the 80s – or anyone else for that matter – can’t summon power like that out of thin air when it comes to leadership. A leader’s power develops and is exhibited in several different ways.

What is power? Power is “the potential to influence others” (Bass, 1990, as cited in Pennsylvania State University, 2018, para. 1). Influence, in this case, is degree of change in attitude, behavior, beliefs or values that the leader causes in another person (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). Influence is measured by the follower’s behaviors (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). Sometimes, a leader doesn’t even have to show their power to influence – just having the ability to exercise it is enough to influence others (Hughes, Ginnett, & Curphy,1993).

But where does this power come from? In many ways, power is about perception. A person dressing in a suit or business attire, choosing the chair at the head of a rectangle-shaped table, displaying degrees and awards, and seating another person in their office in a way that is intimidating are all ways perception can be influenced to imply power (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). Another situation that can change perception and allow influence is a crisis situation (Hughes et. al., 1993). In an emergency, a leader is more likely to use power that he or she may not typically (Hughes et. al., 1993). These are all attempts to give the perception that a person has power and, in turn, influence others.

More formally, there are five identified sources of power that can influence people: expert power, referent power, legitimate power, reward power and coercive power (French & Raven, 1959, as cited in Pennsylvania State University, 2018). Expert power is knowledge relative to the other members of the group (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). Those who know more have power. This means that expert power can be held by people not in formal leadership roles (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). I once worked with a man name Jim. Jim wasn’t a manager and didn’t hold any type of leadership position, but Jim knew much more than anyone else about printing plate production. As such, when Jim told you to do something, you did it. This is because Jim had expert power; he was more knowledgeable than everyone else, including the manager of the office. As Jim shows, followers can have more expert power than the actual leader. This may happen if you are in a situation as a new manager in an organization; your followers know a lot more than you do so they have expert power (Hughes et. al., 1993). Close the knowledge gap in this situation by asking questions and looking for opportunities for more training (Hughes et. al., 1993).

Referent power comes from followers viewing the leader as a role model and the leader and followers having a strong relationship. (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). Many years ago I had a boss named Kris. Over time, our work relationship strengthened and a friendship developed. Because of this development of respect, Kris had a lot of influence and I recognized her power.

Legitimate power comes from a formal title within an organization structure (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). If the CEO tells you to do something, you will do it because he or she has legitimate power over you because of their job description and title. If a random person who works in the mailroom tells you to do something, you might laugh at them and say a few choice words because they lack the legitimate power to give you an order.

Reward power comes from a person’s control of wanted resources, like bonuses or a promotion (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). The important aspect here is that the reward has to be something of value to the other person (Hughes et. al., 1993). In an office I worked in, one of the rewards that the managers handed out was an employee recognition in the form of a statue. Personally, I thought the idea was silly, so potentially being given this statue didn’t have any influence over me; reward power was ineffective.

Coercive power comes from control through fear of punishment (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). I once had a manager who was all about coercive power. He ruled by fear and his staff did what they were told out of fear of his wrath – usually shown through expletive-laden vocal outbursts – or threats of being fired.

So if power is the ability to influence, how can you influence others?

As a leader, you have several influence tactics that you can use with your followers. Influence tactics are “behaviors designed to change another person’s attitudes, beliefs, values, or behaviors” (Hughes et. al., 1993, p. 108). The more power you hold, the more options you probably have with your followers (Hughes et. al., 1993). The more referent power you have, the more options you probably have as well (Pennsylvania State University, 2018).

What are some of these tactics? You probably use several of these without realizing it.

  • Using facts and logical arguments is called rational persuasion (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). An example of this is explaining to your staff that you all must stay late and put in extra hours because the CEO demands an important report to make a recommendation to the board by the next morning.
  • Making a proposal that plays on emotions or encourages enthusiasm is called an inspirational appeal (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). An example of this is asking your staff to stay late to make sure the report is as good as possible so that everyone looks good to the CEO. This builds on referent power.
  • Asking others to help plan is called consultation (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). An example of this is asking your staff how to best get the report done for the CEO on time.
  • Trying to get the other person in a good mood before asking for something is called ingratiation (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). An example is praising your team’s dedication and high quality work before asking them to stay late to write the report.
  • Asking someone to do something out of friendship is a personal appeal (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). An example is playing up your personal relationship with team members to get them to agree to writing the report. This taps into referent power.
  • Exchanging favors is called an exchange (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). An example is reminding your team about that time you stayed late to help them finish an important proposal to influence them to agree to stay late for the report.
  • Recruiting others to help influence a person or people you want to influence is called coalition tactics (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). An example is getting a peer to help convince the employees that the report needs to be written.
  • Use of threats is pressure tactics (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). An example is threatening to fire the team if they don’t stay late for the report. This tactic is coercive power.
  • Asking someone to do something because of your position are legitimizing tactics (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). An example is simply asking your team to stay late to write the report because you are their direct supervisor and have a title of leadership. This tactic taps into legitimate power.

These influencing tactics can be used in combinations but what is appropriate will depend on the situation and the type of power the leader has. As mentioned above, those with referent power usually have more options. Why? One reason may be because the followers like the leader. But the right tactic has to be used for the correct situation. You wouldn’t use coercive power for a mundane request because it is not proportionate. You might use coercive power in a high stakes situation with significant consequences. You also wouldn’t use a personal appeal on a new employee you just met last week. The tactic has no ability to influence because there is no history or personal bonds formed.

While simply holding a sword above one’s head and commanding power would certainly be easier, a leader needs to be mindful of what kind of power he or she holds in the situation and what kind of influence tactic will get the result they seek.

References:

Hughes, R. G., & Ginnett, R. C. R. and Curphy, G.(1993). Leadership: Enhancing the lessons of experience. Richard D. Irwin, Inc., Burridge, IL.Retrieved from http://reserve.libraries.psu.edu.ezaccess.libraries.psu.edu/psych/485/48501.pdf

Pennsylvania State University. (2018). Introduction to power and influence. Leadership in work  — PSYCH 485. Online course lesson, Penn State World Campus. Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1942231/modules/items/25010842

The situation matters

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It is frustrating to be a leader and feel like you’re not being effective with your team. You start a project and let your team take control, only to see the project languish in execution or miss the goals completely. What could you have done differently? Was it a problem with you, your team members, or both?

The reality is, nobody is probably “at fault” in the situation. As a leader, you may have just not assessed the situation fully. Different situations may require different kinds of leadership (Northouse, 2016) and your current situation may just need a new approach. There are many approaches to understanding leadership. For example, there is the idea that leaders are born and have certain characteristics that make them successful, known as the trait approach (Northouse, 2016). There is another approach that looks at the behaviors of the leader and how their actions positively or negatively affected the situation, called the behavioral approach (Northouse, 2016). And then there is the situational approach, which is a way to understand why the same leadership approach may work sometimes with your team and others it does not. By understanding this approach, leaders may be able to make adjustments that lead to teams delivering better results.

The situational approach is based on the idea that different situations require different leadership styles (Northouse, 2016). It was described by researchers Hersey and Blanchard in 1969 and was further refined over the years by additional researchers, leading to a model called Situational Leadership II, developed by Blanchard and other researchers (Northouse, 2016).  One of the reasons the situational approach can be helpful is that it considers your followers and takes into account their competence and commitment, which can have an effect on your own leadership effectiveness (Northouse, 2016).

Other theories on leadership help describe why leaders are successful. One difference with the situational approach is that it can help give you a roadmap to be a better leader (Northouse, 2016). If you understand how the situational approach works, you can make adjustments to get a better result from your team.

How does it do this? It starts by identifying four types of leadership styles and four levels of follower development (Northouse, 2016).  The four leadership styles describe the levels of directive and supportive behaviors (Northouse, 2016). Directive behaviors are those related to giving direction and achieving goals (Northouse, 2016). Supportive behaviors are relational type of behaviors that involve social and emotional support (Northouse, 2016). It is helpful to picture these styles as being four quadrants, with supportive behaviors being on one axis and directive on the other. Leaders can then place themselves into one of four quadrants: low directive-low supportive; low directive-high supportive; high directive-high supportive; or high directive-low supportive.

High directive-low supportive is known as S1 or the directing style. In this style, the leader focuses on the goal and not supportive behaviors (Northouse, 2016). High directive-high supportive is known as S2 or the coaching approach. In this style, the leader focuses on both meeting goals and providing for the emotional needs of followers. High supportive-low directive is known as S3 or the supporting approach. In this style, the leader focuses on providing relational support to encourage the team members to use their skills to meet the goal. The low supportive-low directive is known as S4 or the delegating approach. In this style, the leader gives the followers control of how to meet the goal and is more hands off.

Before taking the followers into account, you can probably see the thinking behind this approach. There are times as leader that you might need to be more hands-on than other times. You wouldn’t use a delegating approach for a big initiative, like a company expansion, for example. Nor would you want to be fully directing on small matters like a new internal office process. Using the same approach to each situation would lead to ineffectiveness and inefficiency.

But as stated above, the situational approach also considers your followers and their levels of development. Four levels of competence and commitment are identified and are somewhat obvious: low competence-high commitment (D1); some competence-low commitment (D2); moderate-to-high competence-variable commitment (D3); and high competence-high commitment (D4) (Northouse, 2016).

If your team members are lacking the competence to meet your goal, using a delegating approach will be ineffective. Likewise, if your team members are lacking commitment, the coaching style will not necessarily get the results you expect because your team is not engaged. The situational approach, then, works to align your leadership style with the development level of your followers. A team that is lacking in commitment will need more supportive behaviors while one that is lacking in competency will need more directive behaviors. If a leader understands what development level his or her followers are at, the leader can adjust his or her leadership style to be more effective (Northouse, 2016).

What this means for you as a leader is that you have to assess your team and adjust your style in response. While the actual Situational Leadership II program includes a formal program with standard questionnaires, the overall principles can be applied in your leadership.

Here’s an illustration. Early in my career, I became the editor of a newspaper. Walking into the office, I wanted to make a good impression on the staff, so my style was very much the supporting approach. I concentrated on the relational aspects of the job and tried to encourage the changes I wanted to make with, essentially, pep talks to the staff. While I had a good relationship with my new staff, the newspaper was not moving in the direction that I expected and wanted. The staff was, of course, knowledgeable and bright, but I forgot one important piece: they worked under another editor and had expectations set through that editor. What I thought the staff should know was different than what they did know; they didn’t have the competence I expected. The situation dictated that my leadership style change. For the staff to meet the goals I set for the newspaper, I had to take on a more directing style and give very specific direction while sharing a very developed goal. This meant giving very direct instruction of how a story should be written and how to best cover a story. Overtime, the staff learned how I wanted stories written to improve the quality of the newspaper overall. But this process did have an effect on their commitment – several staff members became frustrated as I had to micromanage to a certain extent. At this point, with those staff members I had to move into a more coaching style so that relational behaviors helped address their frustration. In time, the staff became more in tune with my goals and delivered what was expected of them – but it was a long process that included regularly assessing the development level of the team members and adjusting my leadership style as we progressed.

As you assess your situation, some questions you can ask yourself are: What goal do I want I want my team to achieve? Is this goal complex? Does my team have the skills needed to achieve this goal? Does my team want to finish this job? (Northouse, 2016). Your team will not stay at the same development level; the answers to these questions may change over time. Only by understanding the development level of the team members can adjustments in leadership be made.

Reference:

Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and practice (7th ed.).Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.

Traits and insight into leadership

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As you think about the managers and bosses you’ve had over the years, you might mentally sort them into categories of “good” and “bad,” placing them on a spectrum of ability. Some leaders rise to the top and an even smaller subset standout as being exceptional – the type of manager or leader that affected our lives for the better. Some leaders sink to the bottom, with one or two who may have been so poor at their jobs that the thought of them years later still brings feelings of anxiety and dread. While there are probably actions of these leaders that help you mentally sort them, the trait approach to leadership may give you some further insight.

The trait approach looks at characteristics that proven leaders have that can then be used to predict who might be a successful and effective leader (Northouse, 2016). There are many studies over the years that present a large number of traits associated with successful leadership, with varying degrees of emphasis and interaction between these traits (Northouse, 2016).

Think of a leader who you appreciated and was exceptional and think of what impression this leader left with you. For me, it was a manager I will call Jenny. Jenny took a chance on me to help me change careers. She was the type of boss who I could always depend on. When I needed her help, she was there. When I needed her input to move a project forward, she always made sure I had it. She supported me as I adjusted to a new career path and always made time to talk one-on-one on a personal level. Once, we were involved in a high-profile event that she asked me to help with. During the presentation – in front of senior leadership – the presentation stopped working. While I didn’t know audio-visual equipment, I tried to help the multimedia staff fix the problem and was promptly blamed for the issue by senior leadership. Jenny remained cool and calm through the ordeal and then shielded me from further embarrassment and reprimand, sticking up for me. In addition, she was very outgoing and decisive. She made decisions quickly and stood by them and never backed down from advocating for what she thought was right, despite often being outnumbered.

What made Jenny a good leader? Jenny had four of the five personality dimensions that make a good leader, called the Five Factor Model of Personality (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). In particular, she showed aptitude in conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism and extraversion. She was conscientious by following through with help and input. She was agreeable by being empathetic to my needs as a person and making time to talk personally. Neuroticism means emotional stability (Pennsylvania State University, 2018) and she showed it through the example of the presentation disaster by remaining calm and then working through the difficult follow up in a way that protected me. She showed extraversion by having an effect on the office through her decision-making and fighting for what she thought was right, exhibiting self-confidence. These four traits combined to make a strong leader that had a strong positive effect.  There is a fifth dimension as well: openness to experience. This dimension means being broad-minded and curious and seeking out new experiences (Pennsylvania State University, 2018.)

How did your leader’s actions align with these traits? While we are born with certain traits, a good leader can evaluate how he or she fits into the Five Factor Model and will then modify their behaviors to address weaknesses (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). A good leader has self-awareness.

Now think of the worst leader you’ve known. Just as the Five Factor Models gives a roadmap towards successful leadership, the six Dark-Side Personality Traits are a good indicator of poor leadership ability. These six traits are: being argumentative, having interpersonal insensitivity, narcissism, fear of failure, perfectionism and impulsivity (Pennsylvania State University, 2018).

In my experience, I had a manager I’ll call Jonathan. Jonathan was the type of manager who caused me to expend a lot of energy and effort to deal with and had a habit of sewing discord in the office. Based on the six Dark-side Personality Traits, Jonathan was argumentative because he was always very sensitive when criticized and was suspicious of others and their intentions (Pennsylvania State University, 2018), especially with peers. He was interpersonally insensitive because he wasn’t aware of how he came across to others and couldn’t put himself in other people’s shoes (Pennsylvania State University, 2018). One could say he was tone-deaf and oblivious to what those around him were dealing with. He was also very self-centered to the point he overestimated his own abilities, often giving direction that didn’t make sense or was overly optimistic. Jonathan had a fear of failure too, to the point of being paralyzed of making big decisions, which affected the office efficiency and effectiveness greatly. Often, decisions were made to just keep things as they were instead of implementing a new process (Pennsylvania State University, 2018) that could have addressed a failure in the system. There was also perfectionism, with Jonathan so focused on every minor detail that projects quickly languished and missed due dates by months. Priorities were rarely set and maintained (Pennsylvania State University, 2018), and even if they were, often weren’t kept. Jonathan even had impulsivity, where he ignored the feelings of his followers and never kept promises and commitments (Pennsylvania State University, 2018), even something as small as “I’ll get that input on your project to you by end of day.” He never considered the consequences of his actions on others (Pennsylvania State University, 2018), like failing to respond to an email question or ignoring voicemails when a person needed more input to do their own job.

Jonathan had all six of the Dark-Side Personality Traits. Can you imagine how difficult and exhausting it was to work for Jonathan? Much of my energy was spent either trying to get the resources I needed to complete my job or picking up the pieces of Jonathan’s own ineptness. How many of the six Dark-Side Personality Traits did your worst leader have?

Understanding these traits has helped me not only better understand the leaders I have worked under, but self-reflect on what traits I have and what behaviors I need to change to be a stronger leader myself. By considering the success and disasters of leaders we have worked with and what traits they have, we can better understand our own leadership journey.

 

References:

Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and practice (7thed.).Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.

Pennsylvania State University. (2018). Lesson 2: Trait approach.  Leadership in work — PSYCH 485. Online course lesson, Penn State World Campus. Retrieved August 28, 2018 from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1942231/modules/items/25010751

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