Leadership Portfolio: Reflecting on Leadership Styles and Strategies

This leadership portfolio delves into the author's personal definition of leadership, emphasizing the creation of an environment that fosters individual growth and efficient performance. The author's leadership philosophy centers on creating opportunities and nurturing individuals to achieve their best, highlighting the importance of integrity, humility, teamwork, patience, honesty, credibility, communication, and competency. The portfolio explores various leadership styles, with a preference for transformational leadership, and emphasizes the value of motivation in driving team performance and achieving organizational goals. It also draws inspiration from leaders like Oprah Winfrey, Amanda Steinberg, and Warren Buffett. The author highlights the importance of organizational skills, inclusivity, positivity, and effective communication as essential qualities of a good leader. The document underscores how motivation, communication, and teamwork enhance the overall experience of working in a group, thus improving productivity and encouraging members to achieve their personal goals.

Running Head: LEADERSHIP PORTFOLIO 1
Leadership Portfolio
Name
Institution

LEADERSHIP PORTFOLIO 2
Leadership Portfolio
Introduction
As an individual, I believe in the power of good governance and leadership. Therefore,
when given the opportunity to lead, I endeavor to perform the duty to the best of my ability.
During my high school and campus times, I have had the opportunity to be in a leadership
position. As a leader, I strive to offer the people I lead the best possible leadership by creating a
conducive and enabling environment for them to grow as individuals. Personally, I believe in the
importance and value of honesty, integrity, patience, fairness, inclusivity and credibility in
leadership. These qualities foster and cultivate trust among members of the team and therefore
increase the level of group togetherness. Above all, I value most the concept of motivation,
negotiation and teamwork as the most important qualities in leadership. As a leader, it is
important to listen to the views of others and also learn from experience. Therefore, I endeavor to
learn from the people around me. I also allow my views and opinions to be shaped and
influenced by the leadership styles and philosophies of other leaders. This way, I am able to
expand my skills by learning from the experiences of others.
Leadership Statement and Philosophy
Having reflected on my activities and accomplishments in leadership, my definition of
leadership is the ability to create the best environment for the people around me to perform their
duties and roles in the most comfortable and efficient manner. My personal philosophy in
leadership is that my title makes me a manager, but only the people I lead can decide whether or
not I am good leader. As an individual, I have come to acknowledge the fact that leadership is

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not the job of forcing greatness upon people but instead it is the recognition that greatness
already exists. Therefore, the role of the leader is to offer the grand opportunity, create an
enabling environment and nurture the individual to inspire to achieve the best of their abilities.
As a leader, there are various attributes that I have always aspired to mentor and model
among my team. Largely, I am a principle-based leader and therefore aspire to inculcate the
virtue of integrity among the people I lead. As a result, I ensure that my words and actions are in
line, and I mean what I say. In this regard, I strive to ensure that my words and actions are
synonymous. I also believe in the importance of humility in leadership. Humans have been
blessed differently and therefore, I purpose to learn from others. I also treat every success and
failure as an opportunity to learn and improve. Humility has taught me to endeavor to be a better
version of myself from one day to another. Most importantly, I strive to inspire the spirit of
teamwork among members of my team. From my point of view, a member that makes the team
greater is far much valuable than one who is a great player.
Over the time that I have been in the position of a leader, I have had the opportunity of
evolving my leadership philosophy and as a result it has changed over time. As such, I have
come to learn that great leadership calls for patience, honesty, credibility, communication and
competency. So far, I have learnt that honesty is not a judgment call or policy, rather is about
being truthful. Therefore, a leader has to be honest in everything he or she does. In the same way
is an important element in leadership and it cannot be obtained without properly earning it. I
have discovered that this value is earned by delivering on the promises one makes, achieving the
goals and objectives made without making excuses for failure. Therefore, a leader must be
transparent in his or dealings in order to earn the trust of the people that look up to them for

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leadership. Most importantly, I have come to value the importance of exceeding the expectations
of my team in terms of delivering quality and timely results for any tasks that we engage in at the
workstation. Another important philosophy I have come to develop is the skill of listening
carefully and actively to what is being shared by my superiors and juniors. This quality not only
facilitates great communication but also enhances relationships between the leadership and the
team.
Today, I admire and identify with various great leaders. Some of these leaders’ leadership
has helped shaped my mode of thinking and views on headship. One such leader is Oprah
Winfrey, the founder of the Oprah Winfrey Network. Her personal leadership statement is to
aspire to be a teacher who is recognized for inspiring the people she leads to be achieving more
than they thought they could achieve before (Vozza, 2014). It is imperative to note that her
philosophy inspires me to be a great teacher to my team by helping them develop a sense of
belief in their personal abilities and to accomplish the very best in everything they set their mind
to achieve.
Another influential leader that has shaped my perspective on leadership is Amanda
Steinberg. Steinberg is the founder of Dailyworth.com. Her personal motto is to use her
intelligence, self-optimism and charisma to cultivate the self-worth and net-worth of the people
she encounters, especially women. By and large, every time I remember her philosophy I am
challenged to inculcate a suitable environment to help elevate the self-worth of the people I work
with. I am also challenged to develop a charismatic attitude at the workplace to create a
conducive and optimistic environment for my juniors to be comfortable to achieve their potential
within the culture.

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Also, I am fascinated by the leadership techniques and philosophy of Warren Buffet, a
famous investor. By and large, Buffett leads with the philosophy that patience pays. As a result, e
makes his investment decisions based on the people running an organization (Vozza, 2014).
Largely, I identify with his methods because I believe in the importance of exercising patience in
everything. I believe that it is crucial for one to remain calm and wait for the right opportunities
in order to achieve the best outcomes when guiding a team of individuals towards achieving a
given goal or objective.
As an individual there are various qualities that I believe a good leader should possess.
Firstly, the leader must be very organized and a clear perspective of the goals and objectives of
the group. The leader should stay on top of the matter at all times and have the details about the
progress of the group towards the achievement of these goals. Secondly, the leader should be
able to inculcate an inclusive culture and be able to involve everyone in the group in the
activities of the team. He or she should also be able to help the members of the team to feel
ownership of the goals. Notably, this helps the members to reinforce their effort towards the
achievement of the specified goals. An excellent leadership should also strive to be positive,
charismatic, and encouraging to create enthusiasm among members of the team.
Leadership Style and Strategies
My leadership style is fairly simple. I always strive to lead through vision and work with
the members of the team towards the achievement of the vision of the group. As such, I purpose
to set objectives and goals together with the members of the team and develop a strategy that can
help in achieving the goals effectively. In addition, I endeavor to motivate the members of my
team and encourage them to increase their efficiency and enhance their level of productivity.

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Additionally, I ensure to include everyone in group atmosphere so that those who would like to
contribute have the chance to make a meaningful contribution to the group. This way, the team is
able to feel that their opinions count. In turn, this comes in handy as the group members can
contribute to proposed changes and accepts them more easily than when the changes are
communicated without soliciting the views and opinions of the team. In my leadership, I always
ensure to communicate effectively with the members of the team in order to meet the goals of the
team more effectively. Therefore, having taken into consideration the characteristics of my
leadership style, I am inclined to believe that I exercise transformational leadership (Maurer,
n.d.).
The value of motivation to my leadership
It is imperative to point out the fact that I value the quality of motivation in my
leadership. Basically, motivation is what drives individuals to work towards the achievement of
specified goals. Personally, I believe that it is my duty as a team leader to motivate the members
of my team to work towards the achievement of the goals and objectives of the team. Although
very challenging, leaders should be held accountable to encourage their team. In the time that I
have been a leader, I have come to recognize that many times leaders focus on the extrinsic
motivation. As a result, the members of the team also on the external incentives associated with
motivation. Consequently, this makes such motivation techniques to be short-lived as the
members of the team are not interested in the task unless the extrinsic motivation. Thus, over
time, I have learnt that when motivating individuals, it is better to use techniques that will
contribute to intrinsic motivation. In this case, people become motivated to work towards a
certain goal because they believe that it is personally rewarding (Why Employee Motivation,

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n.d.). As a result, people engage in the activity for its own sake and not for the external rewards
that they may obtain as a result. Therefore, I strive to create a mind shift among the members of
my team by creating an environment that is both intrinsically and extrinsically motivating in
order to achieve long term motivation among members of the team.
In addition, motivation is also important in my leadership because it allows the team and
I to meet and exceed the organizational goals. In my experience I have recognized the fact that a
team that lacks adequate motivation gives rise to poor and unproductive results for the
organization (Craig, 2018). An individual who is not motivated to work is most likely to waste a
lot of time and resources. On the other hand, there are numerous advantages associated with
having a highly motivated team. As such, a team made up of motivated individuals can result in
an increase in productivity and allow the institution affiliated to it to achieve higher level of
output.
From experience, I have ascertained that a highly motivated team is able to increase its
level of commitment. Particularly, when members are motivated to work, they are generally
enticed to out their best effort in the tasks that they have been assigned (Craig, 2017).
Additionally, their level of satisfaction is enhanced and therefore can work towards the
achievement of the goals of the team. What is more, a highly motivated workforce can helped the
level of development as members are encouraged to work hard and attain their personal goals
(Margol, 2015). Once a member of the team accomplishes some of their initial goals, they realize
that there is a positive relationship between the effort put into work and the results obtained. IN
turn, this further encourages them to continue working harder.

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Therefore, taking the factors into consideration, motivation of team members is a very
critical part of leadership. Overall, a leader can increase the level of motivation among members
of the team through effective communication and valuing individual contributions. Additionally,
fostering collaboration among the team can go a long way in enhancing the degree of motivation
of the team. As a leader, therefore, I have come to appreciate the importance of motivation in the
team as it improves the overall experience of working with a group of people. It is therefore,
better for one to invest in boosting the morale and motivation of the team and achieve great
results than ignore its importance and bring about a decrease in the level of team productivity.
Leadership Competencies
In the period that I have been a team leader, I have developed a numerous number of
competencies. Firstly, leadership has allowed me to develop great interpersonal skills such as
active listening, speaking skills and networking (Leadership Competencies, 2018). In addition, I
am also able to solve problems and make informed decisions as regards to important matters
affecting the team. In addition, am capable of managing the team politics and influence members
to work towards a specified goal of the business (Riggio, 2014). Additionally, I have developed
the skill to take risks and innovate things while setting achievable visions and strategies for the
team. Also, I have the skill of negotiating.
Value of negotiation skills in my leadership
As noted earlier, team leadership has significantly enhanced my leadership competencies.
Today, one of the most valued competencies I possess is the skill of negotiation. This
competency comes in handy especially during time of crisis or conflicts in the team in order to

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come to a peaceful agreement (Jensen, 2012). Furthermore, the art of negotiation plays an
important role in creating good relationships and building the reputation of a leader as a
reasonable individual who can make calm and informed decisions even when there are various
viewpoints that differ from their own (Pace, 2010). What is more, the great negotiation skills
come in handy when introducing new policies and changes to the team as I am able to convince
them on the advantages of the proposed changes and their importance to the organization as a
whole.
Leadership Experiences
It is worth noting that I have gathered some degree of leadership experiences over the
past few years. My leadership experiences are as explained below.
Team cluster projects
Date: (Insert appropriate date).
Description: During group projects, I lead my team through the assignment by assuming the role
of the person in charge and ensuring the tasks of the assignment are done promptly. Acting as the
person in charge of group work offered me the opportunity to help everyone become confident
and thorough in their ideas. I was able to foster the spirit of teamwork by ensuring that every
member has an equal chance to contribute to matters pertaining to group assignments.

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Intramural Sports
Date: (Insert suitable date)
Description: I have also played the role of a team captain in multiple sports that I have taken part
in. I have been a team leader in a volleyball, basketball and broomball. During these assignments
I was able to lead by example. I always ensured to include everyone in the teams to play.
Therefore, this offered me an opportunity to enhance teamwork competencies as well as the skill
of decision making.
Working With and Leading Teams
As noted earlier, I have had n opportunity to work with a number of people in terms of
class group work and even a sport team. As a leader, working in a team allows one to interact
with different types of people from different backgrounds. As a result, one is bale to learn from

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the members of the tea. Also, teams are great for collaborating and combining effort to achieve
the specific goals of the team.
Value of teamwork to my leadership
As a leader, I recognize the importance of building the spirit of teamwork. It is worth
pointing out the fact that people can be members to a team, but lack the aspect of teamwork.
Teamwork refers to the sense of unity, togetherness and enthusiasm for achieving common goals
or objectives. Thus as a leader, I have come to value the spirit of teamwork among members of
my team as it creates synergy, and members are able to combine their efforts to achieve the
specified goals of the group. Additionally, the spirit of teamwork supports a more empowered
way of working and removes the constraints that may prevent a member of the team from
performing their task well. Most importantly, it fosters flexibility and responsiveness. This is
especially so as it helps the team to respond to changes more positively, unlike in cases where
there is lack of teamwork. I have also come to realize that when a team is managed well,

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teamwork becomes a great and a fun way for people to combine their efforts and work together
as one.
Leadership Development
Leadership development is important as it helps a leader to improve his or her skills and
competencies. For this reason, I intend to ensure the development of my skills through both
formal and informal learning. Firstly, I intend to enroll in a mentorship program whereby I can
work with leaders and learn from them directly through observation and practice. I also plan to
take up a leadership course that will help me gain a better understanding of the concept of
leadership and how to be a good leader. By doing so, I will be able to sharpen my leadership
skills, develop and grow as a leader.
Self assessment tool
Self assessment statements Rating (1, 2, 3)
In a discussion, I can see areas of agreement
among differing opinions
3
Lead by example, not just by words. 3
Notice good work and I give staff positive
feedback.
I am comfortable telling others when I don’t
know the answer to a particular question.
2
I make sure people know that it is safe to share
their opinions and to say what they really think
3