This article explores an individual's personal skills and characteristics and how they can be utilized in a management position. It covers topics such as personality, communication, persuasion, and conflict resolution, and how they can be leveraged to foster strong bonds between employees.
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Running head: HOW TO GET THE BEST OUT OF ME AS AN EMPLOYEE1 How to Get the Best Out of Me as an Employee Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation
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HOW TO GET THE BEST OUT OF ME AS AN EMPLOYEE2 How to Get the Best Out of Me as an Employee Background The human resource is among the widely-acknowledged fundamental determinants of organizational success. Employees are inseparable from various business aspects including production, branding, and customer relations. According to the human relations theory, firms should invest heavily the employees since success is marked by effectual collaboration within the human resource (Huzynski, Buchanan, & Huzynski, 2013). This process often involves nurturing each employee’s unique skills and attributes by aligning them with those of their colleagues to foster a collaborative workforce (Cavazotte, Moreno, & Hickmann, 2012). As an individual aspiring to join the corporate world, such a clear perspective enhances my understanding of the value I must add to my future employers once I enter the labor market. This present paper explores my personal skills and characteristics, and how I might utilize them in a management position. Personality On the surface, I am a mildly talkative and outgoing individual who sparks interest in most if not all of the people with whom I get to interact. I recently learnt that this kind of reaction from people often results from a strong ‘aura’: Of course, the validity of this modern paranormal concept is largely debatable. Therefore, one would be justified to claim that such experiences affirm my sociable nature. My personality transcends to a different level of unique when perceived below the surface. I am a confident, focused, and strong-willed visionary who believes that the world is characterized by multiple possibilities; hence, nothing can hinder anything that has been perceived from being conceived. I seek such an inspiration from the remarkable civilization strides human beings have always made since time immemorial (Hogan,
HOW TO GET THE BEST OUT OF ME AS AN EMPLOYEE3 Curphy, & Hogan, 1994). In an attempt to further understand myself, I completed a personality test which categorized me as a protagonist (Extroverted, Intuitive, Empathetic/Feeling, and Judgmental - ENFJ). I possess various protagonist features including leadership, charisma, passion, and authenticity. Anyone who knows me on a personal level can confidently agree with this claim. Communication Communication is by far, the most basic human skill. Its significance extends beyond the personal level since organizations depend on effective communication: employee-client and employee-employee. When reflecting on this skill, it should be understood that it involves sending clear messages, listening, feedback (giving and getting), and emotional interactions. Unfortunately, I am yet to attain the desired level of proficiency inasmuch as I performed commendably in the Interpersonal Communication Skills Inventory. It is worth noting that communication plays a pivotal role in the formation of interpersonal bonds. I intend to focus on building the emotional aspects of my communication skill so as to enhance my ability to foster strong workplace relationships. This approach will be in line with the human relations theory’s view of sustainable performance. According to the theorist, organizational outcomes are often enhanced when the organization pays attention to its employees (Gilley, Gilley, & McMillan, 2009; Belasen & Frank, 2008)). I believe that I will also expect the same from my superiors in future. Persuasion By now, it is clear that I possess some leadership skills. However, management is both conceptually and practically broad. I might have a leader’s personality but still lack some essential skills such as persuasion. This skill usually emerges once an individual attains
HOW TO GET THE BEST OUT OF ME AS AN EMPLOYEE4 proficiency in communication, and it involves influencing peoples’ decisions and actions (Walumbwa & Schaubroeck, 2009). A good leader knows how to sway employees’ attitudes and actions towards the organizational goal. Personally, I am a talented persuader. This sentiment is supported by the fact that I scored 112 in the Persuasion Self-Assessment test. As my audience, you might also agree that you are already convinced that I can make an exceptional organizational leader. However, persuasion goes beyond story telling. It is an art that requires the persuader to engage his audience in a thought process so as to learn how to align their beliefs with his/her (Hackman & Johnson, 2013). Such a process calls for in-depth exploration of what the audience values, and how they can be leveraged to foster support. For this reason, persuasion relies heavily on interpersonal connections. As far as my employee value is concerned, I can influence teams into action through fostering strong bonds to increase their trust and cooperation in the implementation of my decisions as a democratic leader. Conflict Resolution At this juncture, the reader should know that leadership and communication efforts are not always fruitful since people have varying opinions regarding certain subject matters. What happens when a leader has failed to persuade his subordinates? Such a scenario calls for the utilization of a vital leadership skill ‘conflict resolution’ (Northhouse, 2018). People have different ways of dealing with conflict including competition, collaboration, accommodation, compromise, and avoidance (Purvanova & Bono 2009). Among the mentioned, collaboration and compromise are the most praised since they display not only assertiveness but also cooperation. I believe that I prefer a collaborative approach to conflict management. However, my performance on Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Style questionnaire defined my approach to the same as accommodating. This implies that I am more likely to be persuaded by others during such
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HOW TO GET THE BEST OUT OF ME AS AN EMPLOYEE5 scenarios. While I disagree with the finding, I must explore collaborative approaches to conflict management since I prefer democratic leadership. Concluding Remarks Personally, I find responsibility quite enriching and humbling at the same time. I enjoy being in charge of positive transformations and growth regardless of the level (individual, social, or organizational). Perhaps, this tendency explains why I am a leader. As a leader, I understand that people play an instrumental role in success. Such a realization inspires me to utilize my socialization moments to build strong interpersonal relationships. As mentioned earlier, the human relations management theory assumes that success is attributed to productive employee relationships. I find this notion quite relevant to my future in the corporate world. I will capitalize on my personality, communications, conflict resolution, and persuasion skills to foster strong bonds between me and my colleagues. Such an approach will also be in line with my democratic leadership style.
HOW TO GET THE BEST OUT OF ME AS AN EMPLOYEE6 References Belasen, A., & Frank, N. (2008). Competing values leadership: Quadrant roles and personality traits.Leadership & Organization Development Journal,29(2), 127-143. Cavazotte, F., Moreno, V., & Hickmann, M. (2012). Effects of leader intelligence, personality and emotional intelligence on transformational leadership and managerial performance. The Leadership Quarterly,23(3), 443-455. Gilley, A., Gilley, J. W., & McMillan, H. S. (2009). Organizational change: Motivation, communication, and leadership effectiveness.Performance improvement quarterly, 21(4), 75-94. Hackman, M. Z., & Johnson, C. E. (2013).Leadership: A communication perspective. Mississippi, U.S.A: Waveland Press. Hogan, R., Curphy, G. J., & Hogan, J. (1994). What we know about leadership: Effectiveness and personality.American psychologist,49(6), 493. Huczynski, A., Buchanan, D. A., & Huczynski, A. A. (2013).Organizational behaviour(p. 82). London, UK: Pearson. Northouse, P. G. (2018).Leadership: Theory and practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage publications. Purvanova, R. K., & Bono, J. E. (2009). Transformational leadership in context: Face-to-face and virtual teams.The Leadership Quarterly,20(3), 343-357. Walumbwa, F. O., & Schaubroeck, J. (2009). Leader personality traits and employee voice behavior: mediating roles of ethical leadership and work group psychological safety. Journal of Applied psychology,94(5), 1275.