2eclipse | thoughts on leadership

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i have been doing a lot of thinking about this subject lately. So i'm wondering...

Do you see yourself as a leader in your workplace, social group, family or community?
What are the leadership skills you value most in yourself? in others?
Do you like leading or do you prefer to follow?
Do you think the same things make for a good leader of a small group and a large group?
What makes for a bad leader?

Current Mood: contemplative
Current Location: work
Current Music: eva cassidy - blues in the night

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

karpouzian.livejournal.com

And it isn't really a Meme, so here goes! :)

>Do you see yourself as a leader in your workplace, social group, family or >community?

Yes. I am a teacher (besides my other job) and frankly, if you are a teacher and not a leader, than all you are doing is filling up college student's schedule with 3 hours a week of class time, and six hours a week of homework. You are a time waster... I lead my students to understanding, to clarity in argument, and maybe to just more critical thinkers in general. In my other job, I am paid to be a drone, but I still come out as a leader. There are a lot of things at a job to do besides work... There are projects you can head up, there are volunteer (GASP) things you can do, etc. You can also be a passive leader and lead by example without ever giving an 'order'.

"What are the leadership skills you value most in yourself? in others?"

I believe that the most effective leader is a servant. A leader isn't just someone who leads a group to do a task, he or she is someone who has given himself or herself to that particular group to get a task accomplished. We have amazing examples of this in Jesus Christ, in Ghandhi, in Paul, and in many others. To be an effective leader, you need to give yourself wholeheartedly to your task, and you become a servant (WITH NO NEGATIVE CONNOTATIONS) to the people you are leading.

"Do you like leading or do you prefer to follow?"

It depends on the situation. I think sometimes I SHOULD submit more, and be a follower, but unfortunately my personality tells me otherwise.

"Do you think the same things make for a good leader of a small group and a large group?"

There are some overlapping skills that are required such as transparancy, honesty, LOVE, and most importantly PATIENCE. Again, for both, you need to be a Servant first (can you tell this is one of my soapbox issues?). For large groups, however, you need to be a good speaker, you need to be able to make yourself understood to a wide variety of people all with different backgrounds, and you need to frankly be entertaining. For a small group, the emphasis is removed from your "public speaking" classes, and comes closer to "Psychology" classes. Things like small group dynamics, and learning to moderate discussions, learning to build trust and relationships within your small group. So the answe you are seeking is... "Yes."

"What makes for a bad leader?"

Bad followers? ;) Just kidding... I don't know, I think someone hit the spot when they said someone who doesn't listen (or 'pick up' hints) to the people they are leading/serving.

From:

2eclipse.livejournal.com

this is a very thought-out response.
do you believe one can be an effective leader even without caring about the project?
that's my problem at work right now. i don't give two hoots about what i do except that it pays. i know, it's lousy. i'm looking for something better.
i agree with a lot of what you said about giving yourself to a cause/the people...but i don't think that means letting them dictate what you do or how. it means listening and sometimes being willing to tell people they are wrong and why.

From:

karpouzian.livejournal.com

Of course it doesn't mean that they tell you what to do. If they did that all the time, -they- would be the leader. Yes, you do have to tell people they are wrong some times... AND if you DON'T tell them WHY they are wrong, you are being a bad leader... Being a servant doesn't mean being a pushover... :)

And I think you can be an =effective= leader if you don't care about the project, but you wont be a =good= leader, or even a =long term= leader.