This time I have been thinking about leadership styles. The flow of my thoughts was stimulated by a situation I have observed recently. Thus, I became a happenstance witness to a conversation between two friends during their lunch at a café where I usually come. They were discussing their bosses, and while one of them claimed that a good boss is a leader first of all and is able to guide the company and its employees, the second participant of this conversation insisted on the necessity of a firm and fair leader who has a potential to lead the team to success. I have started thinking about what style of leadership I should adopt to become an effective leader and use my potential as well as skills, and knowledge at their best.
Leadership Styles
Of all leadership styles, I have always thought that democratic and coaching ones were the most beneficial. However, having faced the opinion about the efficiency of the authoritative style, I have started analyzing my knowledge about this problem. I should say that I enjoy reading works on leadership and compare the concepts of different authors, evaluate them, and deduct my own opinion.
Thus, I support the idea that leaders can be trained and developed depending on the needs of the company they work for (Storey, 2016). Certainly, the choice of the leadership style is conditioned by the personality of a potential leader, his or her values, and opportunities to develop them. Therefore, the authoritative style can be effective in case change is implemented, while the affiliative will suit the company that values emotional bonds. In the same way, the democratic leadership style provides good motivation for team workers, and the coaching style will suit those leaders who want to improve the effectiveness of their employees.
What Do I Need to Become a Leader?
I suppose there are more leadership styles because a short classification cannot contain all the opportunities. In fact, I believe I can develop a new flexible leadership style that will differ from the classical ones. I think that an effective leadership style should be flexible and adapt according to the needs of a person and an organization. I think that the nature of leadership should be mentioned as well.
Thus, according to Meyer and Meijers (2018), a leader should not be treated like a boss, hero, guru, or idol. To my mind, a leader is not a person on a pedestal but a member of a team who knows how to guide others and how to make them more effective. I believe I have the necessary qualities to become a leader. I am on my way to continuous development, both personally and academically. Also, I am good at decision-making but also eager to allow the employees to make decisions.
Conclusion
On the whole, I believe I have the potential to become an effective leader with my personal style. I think I can blend the existing styles and extract their best ideas to contribute to the success of a new style. My leadership style will consider the situation it is applied to, the number of group members and their experiences, the environment, and the expected result. Such an approach will allow addressing the most important spheres without disturbing the others and thus contribute to overall success. Moreover, this style can be changed at any time it is necessary.
References
Meyer, R., & Meijers, R. (2017). Leadership agility: Developing your repertoire of leadership styles. New York, NY: Routledge.
Storey, J. (Ed.). (2016). Leadership in organizations: Current issues and key trends (3rd ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.