Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Goleman quote reflection

“No creature can fly with just one wing. Gifted leadership occurs where heart and head – feeling and thought – meet. These are the two wings that allow a leader to soar.”

I believe what Goleman is saying to be very true. He is saying that a leader must be very diverse in his leadership style. A leader cannot just be smart and have the "do's and don'ts" of leadership. He cannot just lead others with his head. A leader must also lead with his heart as Goleman has stated. A leadeder must be able to identify a negative situation such as a person breaking the rules and deal with it according to facts and known rules but also other significant emotional factors such as: is the the first offense? what is this persons character? How significant is the offense relative to other things I must deal with as a leader? Etc. A situation that is relatable to our age group is if a person on a sports team were to do something wrong during practice or during a game the captain of the team must deal with that person according to team and/or school rules but also take in personal matters such as the persons normal character and past offenses to the team/school etc.

Monday, January 23, 2012

MB reflection

journey? Post: Post a reflection on the experience you have had using the M-B. What surprised you about your results? What did you know about yourselfB that the tool helped confirm? How do you see the results of the tool assisting you on your leadership.


I sincerely believe that the myers Briggs is a very useful test and I enjoyed finding out my type. I actually wasn't really that surprised about any of the results I got. I have taken personality tests like this one before and they came out with pretty much the same results. It was interesting to see that normal things I do everyday are part of my "type" or personality. I don't even think about the way I see things or if it's different than the way other people see things but this definitely opened my eyes and I have started noticing subtle things now. This will help me with my leadership because I will now see how I am most likely perceived by others and will be more aware to how I'm leading others and what I can do to be more effective.

Sunday, January 8, 2012

The me I want to be

After reading this prompt I was forced to look at myself and think about how not only I perceive myself but how others perceive me. Like anyone, when thinking about myself I automatically go to the negative side. I think about all the little things that I'm not pleased with. I think about the times that I've fallen short of my own goals or perspectives and the times that I've been disappointed with myself. I feel like everything I do could be done one hundred times better and that whatever I do other people would do it a different and more effective way. But also like most people when I went asking others how they see me I was pleasantly surprised. Others have told me that I'm funny, easygoing, loyal, caring, considerate, personable, and vivacious. It's hard to think of how you would like others to see you and what kind of legacy you want to leave but these are some of the traits that I would like to be perceived as. If I were to die tomorrow I would want people to remember me as caring, compassionate, loyal, funny, easy to talk to, determined, and fun loving. I would like my friends to say that I was always there for them no matter what and I would like my family to be able to say that I put nothing before them and that family was the most important thing to me and that I was a truly family oriented person. I would like my teachers/instructors/bosses to say that I was dedicated to my work and that I was willing to be taught and worked hard to achieve all my goals.

How has my view of leadership changed?

In these last few weeks we have learned about and assessed numerous details of effective leadership. My views and opinions on leadership have dramatically changed in these few weeks. For one, I now have a completely new respect for not only the important leaders of my life but also for all leaders,b big or small. I have discovered that it takes a certain skill, mindset, and tenacity to effectively lead others. I have especially gained respect for those who have worked their way up the leadership chain and have adapted to the different types of leadership. For instance, those who have come from only managing themselves to managing a large corporation have most certainly gone through major changes in leadership style. We learned in class that One of the hardest parts of climbing up the management chain is changing your management style. To go from managing only yourself or a small group of people to managing an entire branch or even an entire company requires a complete change in management style. After learning so much about leadership I have changed the way I look at myself also. I've always thought that no matter what I do in life I would end up being in some kind of leadership position with ease. I now have realized that good leadership takes a lot more than just the desire to boss others around. It takes a certain skill, strategy, and mindset that is developed through observing others and learning from your mistakes.

Thursday, December 15, 2011

My Three Leaders

One leader in my life is my dad. He's probably the most influential leader that I have. He always has a direction that he is trying to go. Whether it's making an important decision at work or just leading us at home he always strives to be the best leader he can be. When he's leading someone he always clearly communicates what he wants done to the person. He then always meets the person halfway and I have never seen him not follow through on a promise he makes while meeting a person halfway.

Another influencial leader in my life is Coach Nady, my highschool football coach. He is possibly the best influencial speaker I've ever met in my life. He gets people motivated to do something good with their life by leading them in a good direction. He inspires people to work together in the same direction. And finally he is the most selfless person I know because he is always willing to help anybody out when they need it.

The last leader in my life is my bigger brother Jonathan. He has persevered through a lot of stuff and he still came out on top. When he was in highschool he had a lot of trouble with school and he wasn't the best student. Also he made some bad decisions and ended up having to pay for his second year at colloege by himself. He set a direction in which he knew would not be easy and he communicated with people that he needed help from. He has inspired me to become a better person and to work hard at everything I do. He was so commited to getting out of the hole he had dug himself into and he fought through everything and it finally paid off in the end

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Leadership Interview questions

1. What made you want to have a leadership role in education?

2. What steps did you take to become so successful?

3. What advice would you give to those who are seeking to become leaders in their community?

4. Who influenced you on your way to this leadership possition?

Are leaders born or made?

"Leadership is an observable, learnable set of practices.  Leadership is not something mystical and ethereal that cannot be understood by ordinary people.  Given the opportunity for feedback and practice, those with the desire and persistence to lead – to make a difference – can substantially improve their abilities to do so."
-Kouzes and Posner, The leadership challenge

I believe this quote to be very accurate. It embodies the ideals of our class. Throughout our class we have talked about numerous ways in which any individual can become a leader. "given the opportunity for feedback and practice, those with the desire and persistence to lead - to make a difference - can substantially improve their abilities to do so." In other words anyone with the desire to be a leader can observe other leaders and take from their successes and failures as a leader. From the assistant manager of Applebee's to The President of the United States, people all over America and all over the world once started as an ordinary person taking orders from their leaders while observing what they do at the same time. If a person has the desire to become a leader all he/she must do is be willing to be taught and make mistakes to learn from.