Professional Leadership: Definitions, Origins, and Practical Insights

This assignment explores the multifaceted concept of leadership through definitions, historical origins, and practical applications. It begins by providing academic and non-academic definitions of leadership, emphasizing the recognition of strengths, weaknesses, and personality understanding. The assignment traces the etymological roots of 'leadership' to the West and North Germanic term 'laithjan,' meaning journey or way. It further examines the practical aspects of leading, focusing on the identification of areas for improvement within teams and organizations, and the role of followers in adhering to strategies implemented by leaders. Reflecting on a video by Brigid Carroll, the assignment highlights the importance of communication in leadership and the need for leaders to effectively identify and guide their followers. The included references provide a comprehensive overview of leadership learning and development.

Running head: LEADERSHIP
LEADERSHIP
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1LEADERSHIP
Table of Contents
Question 1............................................................................................................................2
Question 2............................................................................................................................2
Question 3............................................................................................................................2
Question 4............................................................................................................................2
Question 5............................................................................................................................2
References............................................................................................................................2

2LEADERSHIP
Question 1
According to Carroll (2015), leadership refers to the activity of recognition of the various
strengths, weaknesses, and the understanding of the personality of the concerned person. The
leadership might also refer to the identification of the various areas that might help the person to
deal with the various other people and thus bring about an overall improvement within the
concerned team or organization (Silva, 2016).
Question 2
The term leadership might have originated from the base word of lead. The word ‘lead’ is
known to have originated from the prehistoric term used in the West and North Germanic
language, “laithjan” which had further been derived from ‘laitho’. This word meant journey or
way (Mascia, Sartori & Dal Pubel, 2013).
Question 3
The activity of leading within an organization might refer to the activities of recognition
of the various strengths, weaknesses, and the understanding of the personality of the concerned
person and identification of the various areas that might help other people to bring about an
overall improvement within the concerned team or organization.
Question 4
The activity of following within the organization refers to the activities of abiding by the
various techniques and the strategies that have been implemented by the concerned leaders
within the organization. The followers within the concerned organization might be expected to
have been abiding by the various strategies in order to bring about an overall improvement
within the concerned team or organization.

3LEADERSHIP
Question 5
In the video, Carroll puts forth the fact that the concerned leaders of the organization
should implement various ways and manners of communication in order to deal with the various
matters that pertain to the leadership within the concerned organization (Carroll, 2018). The
author opines that the leaders should identify the traits of the concerned followers in an effective
way in order to lead them well.

4LEADERSHIP
References
Carroll, B. (2015). Leadership learning and development. Leadership: Contemporary critical
perspectives.
Carroll, B. (2018). Brigid Carroll. Retrieved 5 August 2018 from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEPyUiY9wGU
Mascia, A., Sartori, M., & Dal Pubel, L. (2013). A vision of effective leadership: An Italian
perspective. In Collective Efficacy: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on International
Leadership (pp. 215-228). Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
Silva, A. (2016). What is Leadership? - ProQuest. Retrieved 5 August 2018 from
https://search.proquest.com/openview/da932f3ddd496ce36e7f30f9e133b141/1?pq-
origsite=gscholar&cbl=1056382