Leadership: Course Reflection, Skill Development, and Future Plans

This report delves into the multifaceted concept of leadership, drawing upon insights gained from a leadership course. It begins with a definition of leadership and explores the various skills, such as focus, decisiveness, and inspiration, that contribute to effective leadership. The report then reflects on the importance of leadership for personal and organizational success, highlighting how leaders set examples, motivate employees, and foster a productive work environment. The implications of leadership studies for the author's future career are discussed, including the application of different leadership styles and the ability to analyze organizational contexts. The report also identifies areas for further learning, such as practical application of leadership styles and understanding human behavior. It outlines various methods for developing leadership skills, including self-assessment, effective communication, and professional development opportunities. The report concludes with a plan for improvement, emphasizing the importance of communication skills, building trust, and addressing weaknesses to achieve both personal and professional goals.

Leadership
Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK...............................................................................................................................................1
Definition of leadership...............................................................................................................1
What you have learned about leadership?...................................................................................1
Implications of leadership for me in future.................................................................................2
What more needs to learn?..........................................................................................................2
How leadership skills and knowledge can be developed?...........................................................3
Development opportunities..........................................................................................................4
How will I improve where improvement is needed?...................................................................5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................6

INTRODUCTION
Leadership is an action which is performed by an individual in order to motivating some
people by providing the guidance so that they will be able to achieve their goals. An effective
leadership practice is based on the ideas and skills but it won’t be successful until it is
communicated to the people (Selznick, 2011). The present essay is based on leadership courses
which are studied during the semester exams. In this context, it explains the concept of concept
and how this will provide benefits to an individual and organization. Along with this, how skills
and knowledge related to leadership can be developed in an effective manner is also explained in
detail.
TASK
Definition of leadership
After identifying many different aspects of leadership, I learned that it is a kind of action
that can be used in order to influence or leading some people in an organization. Each and every
leader has their own style which can help them in performing tasks effectively and their styles
can be changed as per the different situations which occur at the workplace. Some skills have
possessed within the leader like focus, decisiveness, awareness, confidence, inspiration and so on
(Goleman, Boyatzis and McKee, 2013). By adopting these, a person will be able to lead an
industry towards success which can help them in achieving targets or specified goals.
Leaders are the one who can provide some direction or guidance to the employees of
business organization so that they can headed towards the goals which can help them in leading
towards competitiveness (What Is Leadership?, 2017.).
What you have learned about leadership?
After getting the knowledge regarding to leadership, I came to know about its importance
that how this play an important role for the career of an individual or an organization. Leaders
are the strong character of firm which can set an example for their subordinates that how they
have to perform work in an efficient manner. These people are the one who sets a vision and
along with this motivates and encourage all employees so that their productivity can be enhanced
in an effective manner. This kind of leadership attitude is beneficial for me if I will work
anywhere in future and for the organization as this can help them in leading than other
competitors.
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On the basis of leadership, a leader will also be able to attain some advantages which will
help them in developing their career. They can identify the requirements of workers and on the
basis of that their conflicts can also be resolved which can build trust among people. Along with
this, it is also beneficial for the industry as through this they will be leading towards success.
Leader has some ability to create a peaceful environment at the workplace so that staff members
can perform all tasks in an appropriate manner (Raelin, 2011). An effective relationship can get
established among the people which can help them in performing all team task appropriately. So,
in this way the firm will be able to attain goals and at the end success can be achieved.
Implications of leadership for me in future
The leadership studies are related to academic field of study which focuses on the concept of
leadership within the firm. After completing this course, I will be able to know about its
importance and benefits that how this can help an individual in achieving the success at work
environment. On the basis of this, human behaviour can be analysed along with their
professional work that needs to be performed. I can apply all these concepts of this in my future
work so that I will be able to apply leadership styles as per the given situation or challenges.
Through the particular course, I will be able to know about the variety of organizational
backgrounds or culture and what kind of strategies can be applied in such environment. So, this
will help me a lot in creating a vision for the organizational context so that direction can be set
for the other staff members. I also learned some tactics through which employee’s relations can
become stronger as this can be helpful in improving the productivity. Some leadership styles are
there like autocratic, democratic, strategic, transformational, transactional, cross-cultural and
laissez-faire (Fairhurst and Connaughton, 2014). Out of these, some styles can be adopted by a
leader which will be beneficial for both individual as well as organization.
So, it become easy for the leaders to implied theoretical concepts into the practical reality so
that overall operations can be performed in a better way. Through this, benefits and limitations of
every style can be analysed and after this I will be able to know that which style will be suitable
for the specified situation. However, by adopting this organizational success can be attained
which will be beneficial in achieving the targets.
What more needs to learn?
On the basis of leadership field of studies, I came to know about various aspects that how an
individual can perform well at the workplace. Along with this, different styles are also analysed
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along with their appropriateness that which approach is more suitable for the specific situation.
These all are the theoretical concepts which seems to be easy to learn but very difficult to apply
into practical one. So, for this I need to learn some practical approaches that how different
leadership styles can be applied in different context. For this, I need to learn different approaches
and their significance level. Along with this, I have to ensure that correct styles are applied
which can be analysed on the basis of human behaviour.
I have to learn more about the different needs and expectations of people who are working
in a group or team. When this will be evaluated then it became easy for a leader to apply
different styles or strategies. Through this, my learning abilities can be enhanced which will help
me in accomplishing the objectives and goals (Clarke, 2013). Along with this, I need to learn
about the human behaviour and their attitude towards the organization so that being a leader at
industry I will be able to get success.
How leadership skills and knowledge can be developed?
A leader should have some knowledge and skills so that he can provide effective guidance to
the group of people. Through this, they can help the firm in achieving success and at the end
competitive advantage can be gained. I can have developed my leadership competencies on my
own or by working with other experts. For the first, I have to follow a systematic process which
includes some steps which are explained below:
Firstly, I have to analyse myself that what characteristics are there which can help me in
leading others at workplace.
After this, I have to analyse some areas where some improvements are needed. When I will
be able to identify my own weaknesses and strengths then now I have to adopt some strategies
which will help me in developing my competencies. The leader has to communicate effectively
with their subordinates so that a bond can be established. When a two-way communication can
be established then through this issues which are faced by staff members can be analysed. Along
with this, a leader should build a sense of belongingness with their employees so they get
encouraged and their performance can be improved (Du and et. al., 2013). The person should
analyse the activities of employees that whatever they are doing should be related to the goals
and their performance should be continuously monitored so that effective strategies can be
formulated for them.
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The leader has to treat every member as an individual so that other people will not feel like
biasness or partiality. Along with this, responsibility should be taken by the leader for the task or
take the initiative in order to complete the work. Further, problems or issues should be resolved
of all employees if they faced any while performing their operations.
By following this, an individual will be able to develop some skills on their own. There are
some other approaches through which I can upgrade my skills and some of these are as follows:
Coaching: This is a structured approach where an expert gives the training to people so that
their learning can be enhanced within a specified time period (Acar, 2012). This is useful for the
business purpose as through this being an individual I will be able to enhance my skills.
Mentoring: In this approach, one to one relations can be established with the person and
knowledge is shared. This is the best cost-effective method which is very helpful for the business
organization.
Workshops and training: Some workshops and training sessions are there which can help
the people in enhancing the core competencies within a leader (De Vries, 2012). Through which
they will be able to provide the guidance to their employees in an effective manner.
Development opportunities
Professional development is necessary for an individual as through this they will be able to
maintain their career credentials. When their professional work is get managed then this will give
them opportunities that they can perform their operations in an effective manner. For this, an
individual has to grab some opportunities which will help them in performing better at work
environment as compare to any other individual (Lee, Son and Lee, 2011). I have to select my
own development opportunity at the workplace which can help me in performing better. Some of
these may also find out at the market area through which I can gained more knowledge related to
leadership as compare to any other person.
At the workplace I can join some sessions, training programs, workshops so that I can
learned about the different practices which are performed at the workplace. On the other hand, I
can have joined some leadership programs which are conducted by the universities. Through
this, some new concepts can be developed related to the leadership which can be applied in the
organizational context. On the basis of these I will be able to identify some opportunities which
will be beneficial for my career and growth. These all play an important role in improving the
personal and professional development (Cemaloğlu, 2011). So, in this way I will be able to lead
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all the team members towards success by guiding them that what should they have to do in
achieving the targets.
How will I improve where improvement is needed?
I have to improve such areas where I will not be able to work efficiently. For this, I need to
identify my weaknesses which affect my overall growth and development. For this, I need to
conduct self-analysis so that I will be able to know about my own characteristics. If people are
not aware about their lack points, then they will never achieve their short term as well as long
term objectives. There are many strategies which I need to follow in order to attain goals. I have
to enhance my communications skills so that I can communicate effectively with my
subordinates. If a leader communicates appropriately with their group members then through this
a positive work environment can be created which will help them in performing better. There are
various other areas like I have to deal with every member in an appropriate way so that trust can
be built with them. Through this, an effective relation can be established among all people so that
they will be able to perform well which can lead them towards success.
CONCLUSION
From the above carried out analysis, it can be concluded that a leader is the one who can
lead an enterprise towards success. Some skills and characteristics should be possessing within
an individual so that they will be able to perform their operations in an effective manner. They
are the one who create a vision so that some direction and guidance can be set for the people who
are doing the task. In order to develop some skills and knowledge, a person can attend some
workshops and training sessions so that operations can be completed within a given time period.
Further, weaknesses can also be removed to some extent by attending some training programs.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journal
Acar, A. Z., 2012. Organizational culture, leadership styles and organizational commitment in
Turkish logistics industry. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences. 58. pp.217-226.
Cemaloğlu, N., 2011. Primary principals' leadership styles, school organizational health and
workplace bullying. Journal of Educational Administration. 49(5). pp.495-512.
Clarke, S., 2013. Safety leadership: A meta‐analytic review of transformational and transactional
leadership styles as antecedents of safety behaviours. Journal of Occupational and
Organizational Psychology. 86(1). pp.22-49.
De Vries, R. E., 2012. Personality predictors of leadership styles and the self–other agreement
problem. The Leadership Quarterly. 23(5). pp.809-821.
Du, S. and et. al., 2013. The roles of leadership styles in corporate social responsibility. Journal
of business ethics. 114(1). pp.155-169.
Fairhurst, G. T. and Connaughton, S. L., 2014. Leadership: A communicative perspective.
Leadership. 10(1). pp.7-35.
Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R.E. and McKee, A., 2013. Primal leadership: Unleashing the power of
emotional intelligence. Harvard Business Press.
Lee, Y. K., Son, M. H. and Lee, D. J., 2011. Do emotions play a mediating role in the
relationship between owner leadership styles and manager customer orientation, and
performance in service environment?. International Journal of Hospitality
Management. 30(4). pp.942-952.
Raelin, J., 2011. From leadership-as-practice to leaderful practice. Leadership. 7(2). pp.195-211.
Selznick, P., 2011. Leadership in administration: A sociological interpretation. Quid Pro Books.
Online
What Is Leadership?. 2017. [Online]. Available through:
<https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevinkruse/2013/04/09/what-is-leadership/
#6d0583465b90>. [Accessed on 2nd October 2017].
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