Leadership Self-Assessment
Part 1: Leadership Interest
Currently, I am a group leader in a team I work with in a certain company. My ambition in the future is to become an overall leader in the company. This means I would like to become a general manager of the company. However, I do not have to become the general manager of the company I am currently working with but I can become one in another company. As a group leader in the company, I have to accomplish several goals/objectives. These goals are there to help me to become a good leader who guides his group to produce good results (Lussier & Achua, 2009).
One of the goals is that I am expected to be a person of high integrity. In order to become a leader, a person must be of high integrity. This is because the people you are guiding will have respect for you but if you do no have integrity, it means that the people will not respect you as a leader. Another goal is that I am expected to be a motivating person. In order for the company to meet the different company targets, I have to motivate my team into meeting the different targets. Lastly, I need to work with deadlines. This means that with a certain amount of time, I must meet a certain objective. With such goals in my mind, I will be able to lead my team to meet the company targets.
I believe I am a leader because since I was a child, I have had different leadership roles. Additionally, people say I am very authoritative in every activity we do and I always assume the roles of a leader. However, this is independent from the traditional leadership position in general. On the other hand, my career is dependent of the traditional leadership position because my ambitions are to become a general manager. In order for me to become a leader, I must have certain skills, which will help me to lead a company into success. One of them is I must have the correct knowledge that will guide me into leading my troops. Additionally, I must be creative; this means somebody who can be able to come out of the worst situation. Lastly, I must be a good listener. This is where I have to listen to the problems, suggestions or needs of the people that I am leading without prejudice.
Part II
After completing the test, the results I had were an average in both people leadership and task leadership. It is because of this that I think I have balanced both the skills. Therefore, I can say I have the democratic kind of leadership style. This is because I believe in every job we have to do we, need to work as a team in order to achieve the targeted objectives (LeadershipExpert, 2011). Additionally, I find myself respecting the decisions and suggestions of everybody but also I am a bit authoritative where I expect everybody to finish the task he or she has (Lussier & Achua, 2009).
In accordance with the test I have just concluded, I have seen there are certain skills that have made me to have the democratic kind of leadership style. One of the skills I have found out about in the test is that I tend to delegate some of the duties to the subordinates. In this case, I let them to be there own leaders (Lussier & Achua, 2009). Therefore, I do not put too much pressure on them. Additionally, I tend to consult with the subordinates very much in every decision I am about to make. This is because I always want to hear what they are saying before I impose a rule on them. This usually helps me to reduce resistance in every decision I have made (LeadershipExpert, 2011). It is due to this that I have found myself to be average in people leadership skills.
On the other hand, I find it compromising to keep the subordinates in all the decisions I make. This is because they might develop a culture of refusing every decision made without their presence. In order to kill this culture, I always assert my authority when making these decisions. Additionally, I like meeting my targets and the main objectives of the company. It is because of such reasons that I expect the subordinates to finish their tasks before deadlines. In addition to this, I like to use motivational skills to motivate the team members in finishing their different tasks.
Part III
The different goals I have been setting for myself need to be planned accurately so that they can be achievable. In order to do this, I need to create smart goals that will help me in achieving them. Using the smart goals, the first step is to make sure that my goals are specific. This means that the objectives of meeting the targets have to be specific. In order to make my team finish their objectives in time, I have to be specific on the duties I am offering them. This means that I have to assign each member his or her own duties since generalizing of duties will not get the work done (Haughey, 2011).
The next step is to know whether the goal is measurable. Since I want the targets to be completed in time, I must ensure that the job is attainable and when it will be completed. When I have known this, I will be able to know whether to set the targeted time for the different objectives. Additionally, I will be able to know the appropriate time in which the goal will be completed (Lussier & Achua, 2009). The other step is to ensure all the stakeholders who are involved in the objectives of meeting the targets have agreed upon a common goal. If all the stakeholders have agreed upon these decisions most likely, the targets will be met (Haughey, 2011).
The next step is I have to ensure that the different goals are realistic based on the set targets and the resources available. This means the time given and the duties specified to the different members of the team must be realistic. This is where the different duties are attainable with the given resources (Haughey, 2011). The last step is that the goals must be time based. This means the time set for the goals to be completed must be reasonable. For instance, the time the targets should be completed should not be too long because it can affect the project performance. Additionally, the time should not be too short because it can in turn affect the quality of the project. With the smart goals, the achievement of the different goals will be effective (Haughey, 2011).
Part IV
Tell me about a time you had to take on an unexpected leadership role
Before I became a team leader in the company that I was working for, the person who was leading us resigned because of the stress and hardships that he found in the job. After resigning, the management needed to replace him with immediate effect since the position required somebody full time. It is at this point that the managers decided that I was the best person suited to take the role of leading the group. I was so surprised because I never expected anybody to notice my leadership qualities. From this point onwards, I noticed that I had good leadership qualities and skills.
Describe your leadership style
I have a very simple leadership style where I believe that teamwork is the key ingredient to success. In this style at first, I expect every team player to play his or her role to finish the different targets. Additionally, I expect people to cooperate with one another since we are there with the same reason. Additionally, I believe that everybody must be involved in the decision making process. This means that in my kind of leadership style, the different subordinates can make suggestions that will help both the company and them in general. I believe in this because it reduces resistance from the employees and it promotes good relationships between the management and the different employees. Lastly, in my leadership style, I believe that people have to be task-oriented. This is where the different people have to finish their tasks in time and in the best quality possible.
References
Haughey, D. (2011). Smart Goals. Projectsmart.co.uk. Retrieved from http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/smart-goals.html
LeadershipExpert, (2011). Leadership Styles. LeadershipExpert. Retrieved from http://www.leadership-expert.co.uk/leadership-styles/
Lussier, R. N & Achua, C. H. (2009). Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development. New York, NY: Cengage Learning.
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