What Type Of Leader Am I And How Could I Improve?

This reflective essay elaborates on describing what type of leader the author thinks he is, shedding light on different evidences to support his answer. With the same, the author also discusses on different ways by means of which he can improve his leadership skills for future improvement and success.

Running head: WHAT TYPE OF LEADER AM I AND HOW COULD I IMPROVE?
What Type Of Leader Am I And How Could I Improve?
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author note:

1WHAT TYPE OF LEADER AM I AND HOW COULD I IMPROVE?
The concept of leadership is focused on the capability or potential of an individual. It
is the function of knowing oneself, having a clear vision that is well-communicated, having
the potential to build trust and taking necessary yet effective actions for realising one’s own
leadership potential (Sotarauta 2016). Leadership is required in each and every aspects of life,
be it in personal or professional life. In this reflective essay, I shall be elaborating on
describing what type of leader I think I am, shedding light on different evidences to support
my answer. With the same, I shall also be discussing on different ways by means of which I
can improve my leadership skills for future improvement and success.
The type of leader I am- As per my results and certain feedbacks, I think the
leadership style that I possess is that of participative. This means that I have the potential of
working with my group members who understand the aims and objectives as well as are fully
aware of their roles and responsibilities in the task. One of my biggest strength I think is that
I am hard working. Many of my professors have praised me for this in the last few months as
well. I share a sense of punctuality, honestly, time management, and responsibility as well as
the ability of meeting the set deadlines. Furthermore, I am a very trustworthy person who
have the potential to give his best as a team player as well as an individual. This quality of
mine is something that helps me to survive under several different forms of environments.
Moreover, as per my past experiences, many of my supervisor have come over and praised
me for my honest, punctuality and most importantly, my hard work. I give my best in every
task I do as I take the full responsibility to do it. With the same, within last four weeks, my
supervisor have also informed me that he would offer me the role of team leader once we
finish with our course. However, as far as my weaknesses are concerned, the only weakness
that affects me a lot is that I get hurt very quickly when someone do not regard or disregard
my honest and sincere efforts. I also get demotivated when someone accuse me for something
that I never did in the first place and this ultimately hamper my overall performance. With the

2WHAT TYPE OF LEADER AM I AND HOW COULD I IMPROVE?
same, the other weakness include- I am very emotional person. I get emotional very quickly.
Also, earlier I used to have the tendency to get nervous in little things. However, I no longer
have the same as I overcome this weakness of mine by practicing a lot. Hence, the two
weaknesses of mine is getting emotional and easily getting hurt when someone disregard my
efforts and accuse me for something I never did. These are my biggest strengths and
weaknesses and I need to improve in this area a lot.
The different leadership theories- Leadership is regarded to be the way of leading
other people in order to get a desired outcome or to achieve a common goal (Misati and
Walumbwa 2018). There are number of leadership theories that are presented by various
different authors and now, I am going to discuss about some of the important ones that I have
learnt in my course. The very first is that of the situational leadership theory. It is to note that
the situational leadership theory is developed by Ken Blanchard and Paul Hersey in the year
1969 (Thompson and Glaso 2015). This theory is based on the notion that the leaders are
required to alter their behaviours on the basis of a major situational factor and that is, the
readiness of his or her followers. Furthermore, situational theory is focused on two different
behaviours and they are- relationship behaviour and task behaviour (Meier 2016). The task
behaviour refers to the tendency of the leader to spell out the responsibilities and duties of the
entire group. On the other hand, the relationship behaviour refers to the tendency of the
leader to make use of two way or multi way communication with his or her followers. In
order to determine the combination of the behaviour that is the most appropriate one for a
given situation, a leader need to get access to the follower readiness. It is to note that the
follower readiness means the willingness and the ability of the followers to attain a particular
task (Lynch et al. 2018). Participating, delegating, selling and telling are some of the
leadership style that might be used. The next is the transactional leadership theory. It is to
note that the transactional leadership is the style of leadership that is focused on group

3WHAT TYPE OF LEADER AM I AND HOW COULD I IMPROVE?
activities, establishing a clear chain of command as well as on the implementation of a carrot-
and-stick approach to the other management activities. The transactional leaders are the ones
who believe in motivating their subordinates for performing at the expected rates by means of
helping them in process of recognising the responsibilities of the task as well as to identify
their goals and acquiring enough confidence in order to meet the desired level of performance
(Ghasabeh, Soosay and Reaiche 2015). With the same, these leaders understand the way their
needs and reward that they hope for are linked with their achievement of goals.
Furthermore, the transformational leaders are the ones who motivate other people in
order to ensure that they perform beyond their normal expectation by means of inspiring them
to stay focused on broader missions, transcending their own self-interest and for
concentrating on the intrinsic higher level of goals instead of the extrinsic lower level goals.
With the same, they also motivate their subordinates to have enough confidence in their
potential and abilities for achieving the extraordinary missions that are articulated by the
leaders. In one of the studies conducted by Petrides et al. (2018), the qualities like
adaptability, assertiveness, conscientiousness and intelligences are claimed to be the most
important skills of leaderships. The research has very clearly demonstrated that
transformational leaders- the ones who are positive, have the power to motivate others and
are inspiring are better than the other leaders. As per Hu and Judge (2017), the
transformational leaders are much more valued by their followers and have comparatively
higher performing teams.
The other theory that I learnt about in my course is that of the Path-goal theory. As
per Phillips and Philips (2016), this theory explains how the behaviour and treatment of the
leaders could both positively and negatively influence their subordinates. The positive
behaviour of the leaders have the potential to motivate his or her subordinates. It is very
closely related with the expectancy theory as well and at the same time, it is also focused on

4WHAT TYPE OF LEADER AM I AND HOW COULD I IMPROVE?
the different ways in which the leaders could influence the perception or view-point of their
subordinated regarding the work goals and the ways for achieving the personal and work
related goals. As per Hirt (2016), this theory argues that the point of view of the subordinates
is influenced by following the behaviours of their leaders.
Some of these behaviour include- a) directive leader behaviour, b) supportive leader
behaviour, c) participative leader behaviour, d) achievement oriented leader behaviour, and,
participative leader behaviour. It is to note that the directive leader behaviour is behaviour of
the leaders that let their subordinated to know and understand what is expected from them.
Leaders who use this style provide proper guidance to their subordinates regarding the
methods of work, developing a work schedule as well as identifying the standards for work
evaluation. This in turn indicates the basis for rewards and outcomes. Furthermore, the
supportive leader behaviour is the behaviour that entails showing concern for the wellbeing,
status and the needs and requirements of the subordinated and methods of doing small things
in big ways as well as for encourage and promote them for being approachable and friendly.
Next comes the participative leader behaviour, which I think that I too, possess. This
behaviour is characterised by the consultation process with the subordinated and encouraging
their decisions and suggestions and then, very carefully, considering their perception and
ideas while making the ultimate decisions. Lastly, the achievement oriented behaviour is the
style of leadership behaviour that involve setting some really challenging goals and expecting
the subordinates to perform at their best level and conveying high level of confidence among
the subordinates.
However, I think, leaders should also consider two more situational factors as well in
this regard and that are to be of- the subordinate and the context characteristics. Moreover,
one of the models that I have learnt in the course is that of the Normative leadership model
that is developed by Yetton and Vroom (Luhrs et al. 2018. This model helps the leaders to

5WHAT TYPE OF LEADER AM I AND HOW COULD I IMPROVE?
assess their situational factors by affecting the extent to which they need to involve their
subordinated in a specific decision making process. It is to note that in this model, the
decisions are basically made by the managers in regard to the problems of the group that are
identified as belonging to one of five basic principle- a) the leaders makes the decision by
making use of available information, b) leader gains the required information from their
subordinates and then make their decisions, c) the leader shares the problem with all the
relevant subordinates individually and then make the final decision, d) they obtain the details
and information and generate an idea of the subordinates in the group meetings and then
make the necessary decision, e) leaders share their problem with the groups or subordinated
as well as encourage their efforts for devising a proper solution. However, it is also to
mention that this model comprise of a long array of questions that the managers can ask
regarding the problem or the decision that might help him or her for deciding the type of
methods that are most appropriate for the solution.
Ways to improve my leadership skills- Although I am not working at present, still, I
am consciously aware of this fact that on some or the other level, I continuously lead myself
as well as my peers. I do not necessarily have to have a very big team that are reporting to me
in order to be considered as a leader as well as to need an effective leadership skills.
However, as per as my strengths and weaknesses that I have already mentioned earlier, I need
to improve my leadership skills. In one of the studies conducted by Sims (2017), the qualities
like adaptability, assertiveness, conscientiousness and intelligences are claimed to be the
most important skills of leaderships. I need to work on these fields a lot. I already make sure
that before going to start a task, I am having a clear vision by means of which I could set
forth. However, may of the times, I fail to effectively communicate regarding that with my
peers. Hence, from now on, I would take time to share my vision, mission and gaols with my
peers. I would provide them a clear path that they can follow. Moreover, I would utilise my

6WHAT TYPE OF LEADER AM I AND HOW COULD I IMPROVE?
strengths as well in order become a formidable leader. As I already mentioned that I am very
hardworking. Hence, I will present my cases in front my peers as some set of examples in
order to motivate them. Furthermore, I would ensure to become passionate. This is the most
important leadership skills that I believe that very leaders should possess. As per Sosik and
Jung (2018), “Great leaders are not just focused on getting group members to finish tasks;
they have a genuine passion and enthusiasm for the projects they work on”. Hence, I would
ensure that I too possess this passion for the tasks in which I would be working on. I wold
start by thinking about different ways which can express my zeal. Also, according to
Greenbaum, Mawritz and Piccolo (2015), “best leaders walk the walk and talk the talk”. This
in turn ensures that the group members admire these leader and work for emulating these
behaviours. In order to become better leader, I would make sure that I am working on
modelling my qualities which I would like to see within my team members.

7WHAT TYPE OF LEADER AM I AND HOW COULD I IMPROVE?
References:
Ghasabeh, M.S., Soosay, C. and Reaiche, C., 2015. The emerging role of transformational
leadership. The Journal of Developing Areas, 49(6), pp.459-467.
Greenbaum, R.L., Mawritz, M.B. and Piccolo, R.F., 2015. When leaders fail to “walk the
talk” supervisor undermining and perceptions of leader hypocrisy. Journal of
Management, 41(3), pp.929-956.
Hirt, M.J.K., 2016. Path-Goal Theory of Leadership: Leadership and Public
Management. Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and
Governance, pp.1-6.
Hu, J. and Judge, T.A., 2017. Leader–team complementarity: Exploring the interactive effects
of leader personality traits and team power distance values on team processes and
performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 102(6), p.935.
Lührs, N., Jager, N.W., Challies, E. and Newig, J., 2018. How Participatory Should
Environmental Governance Be? Testing the Applicability of the Vroom-Yetton-Jago Model
in Public Environmental Decision-Making. Environmental management, 61(2), pp.249-262.
Lynch, B.M., McCance, T., McCormack, B. and Brown, D., 2018. The development of the
Person‐centred Situational Leadership Framework: Revealing the being of person‐
centredness in nursing homes. Journal of clinical nursing, 27(1-2), pp.427-440.

8WHAT TYPE OF LEADER AM I AND HOW COULD I IMPROVE?
Meier, D., 2016. Situational Leadership Theory as a Foundation for a Blended Learning
Framework. Journal of Education and Practice, 7(10), pp.25-30.
Misati, E. and Walumbwa, F.O., 2018. Authentic leaders as change agents. In Routledge
Handbook of Organizational Change in Africa (pp. 138-154). Routledge.
Petrides, K.V., Sanchez-Ruiz, M.J., Siegling, A.B., Saklofske, D.H. and Mavroveli, S., 2018.
Emotional Intelligence as Personality: Measurement and Role of Trait Emotional Intelligence
in Educational Contexts. In Emotional Intelligence in Education (pp. 49-81). Springer, Cham.
Phillips, A.S. and Phillips, C.R., 2016. Behavioral styles of path-goal theory: An exercise for
developing leadership skills. Management Teaching Review, 1(3), pp.148-154.
Sosik, J.J. and Jung, D., 2018. Full range leadership development: Pathways for people,
profit, and planet. Routledge.
Sotarauta, M., 2016. Shared leadership and dynamic capabilities in regional development.
In Regionalism Contested (pp. 63-82). Routledge.
Thompson, G. and Glasø, L., 2015. Situational leadership theory: a test from three
perspectives. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 36(5), pp.527-544.