Presumably, everybody has his or her personal view of what attributes a leader should possess, due to which the concept of leadership is understandable at the intuitive level. Along with this, such a variety makes it complex and multidimensional; I would include it in the list of the sociophilosophic notions that need the most thorough investigation. Several leadership theories exist, and their amount continues to grow, as the perspective develops and changes together with the society. Therefore, it would be reasonable to analyze the necessary features of a leader through specific instances that illustrate particular theories, which allows for both conceptual and practical interpretations of the term. Having analyzed my own behavior as an example, I noticed its alignment to a range of theories in parallel; this enables assuming that hardly any of those can be universally applicable.
In whichever of the existing definitions, being a leader presupposes coordinating the actions of the others. Certain theories, in particular behavioral, insist on the need to acquire the appropriate traits and skills to do that successfully (Benmira & Agboola, 2021). My case actually illustrates this assumption; I was quite shy and reserved in school, but my strong desire to help people made me develop confidence to be influential. Currently, I am able not solely to remain enthusiastic in difficult situations, but to encourage my subordinates to follow my example, which makes me a transformational leader (Mollazadeh et al., 2018). Thus, I instruct newcomer practitioners, teaching them to stay in control when something unexpected happens since losing their temper may be fatal.
In general, ability is a critical attribute of a good leader. The so-called trait theory sees it along with physical and personal characteristics as the key features that any individual can gain and improve to lead effectively (Sivaruban, 2021). In my opinion, I actually succeeded in this, and the above example of how I overcame my shyness is not the only point to consider. I became substantially more powerful in physical sense as well, primarily, in terms of endurance.
The understanding of my mission, which I saw and continue to see in rescuing, encouraged the average schoolchild to work longer and harder, so that tiredness could not be a distraction. As a result, I have the ability to work overtime without fatigue. This is essential in a medical facility, where crises that require resolving immediately are routine. My continuous participation in managing them apparently makes me a situational leader (Islam et al., 2021). In fact, I consider this style of leadership the most reasonable, as it allows for a quick adaptation to the changing circumstances in each particular occasion.
Another integral part of effective leadership is proper social skills, not only organizational and supervisory, but also communicative. Byun & Lee (2021) label leaders at workplace “linking-pins,” whose task lies in providing connections among various units (p. 2). In my case, I am responsible for the interaction between the facility and the patients; its productivity depends directly on how attentive and careful I am. I always try to show a maximum, therefore, to prevent people from additional stress and establish relationships of trust with them. Such an approach encourages the patients to follow my prescriptions scrupulously, catalyzing their own recovery. The view of this kind is peculiar to participative leadership theories (Cherry, 2021). Notably, a patient, nurses, and I form a team, where everybody’s contribution is essential for accomplishing the common goal.
It is worth noting, actually, that the strategies that disengage from the leader-follower dichotomy are gaining popularity in modern management. Chandler (2021) unites them into the so-called critical leadership theory and gives the desire for power, which may result in abuse, as the main argument. I agree with this; my relationships with both co-workers and patients resemble guided partnerships rather than mentoring. This apparently makes me a better leader due to the lower probability of a prejudiced attitude or pursuing personal interests.
Leadership doubtlessly is one of the most flexible concepts in social disciplines because the way it is understood depends strongly on the epoch, and new interpretations appear on a regular basis, resulting from sociocultural transformations. Consequently, the theories to define and explain what type of a personality can be a good leader are quite numerous and provide various perspectives on the issue. The point where they all overlap, however, is the assumption that a leader should be a coordinator. For me, teaching myself to organize the other was critical, as I was planning to become a health care provider, who should be influential to work productively.
My other leadership skills are the ability to work long hours as well as the respectful, attentive, and careful attitude to both my subordinates and patients. The former makes me inspiring, and the latter helps me build trust-based relationships with people, which, in turn, encourages them to participate actively in treatment. In fact, I do not find it reasonable for a leader to regard the other as followers; a common purpose, in my case, recovery, calls for teamwork, whose direction depends on the circumstances. Therefore, I consider the critical theory and the situational style of leadership more relevant in comparison with their equivalents, as they involve mutual respect and flexibility.
References
Benmira, S., & Agboola, M. (2021). Evolution of leadership theory.BMJ Leader, 5, 3-5. Web.
Byun, G., & Lee, S. (2021). Social learning in empowering leadership: A moderated mediation analysis.Sustainability, 13, 10137. Web.
Chandler, J. L. S. (2021). Analyzing bad leadership through a critical leadership theory lens. In A. Örtenblad (Ed.), Debating bad leadership: Reasons and remedies (pp. 224-233). Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan.
Cherry, K. (2021). The major leadership theories.Very Well Mind. Web.
Islam, Q., Juraybi, M. H., & Alraythi, Ya. M. (2021). Effectiveness of situational leadership style in managing workplace crisis. Saudi Journal of Business and Management Studies, 6(9), 362-365. Web.
Mollazadeh, Sh., Mahmoodzadeh, A., & Yeganegi, K. (2018). A review of new leadership theories and its components. International Journal of Management Sciences and Business Research, 7(2), 223-234.
Sivaruban, S. (2021). A critical perspective of leadership theories.Business Ethics and Leadership, 5(1), 57-65. Web.