Deliverable 1 - The Effectiveness of Personal Leadership Competencies

Professional Effectiveness

Leadership can be defined in various ways. As a selection, one definition of leadership is the process of influencing the activities of an organized group toward a goal or achievement. Another definition stands as the ability of an individual to influence, motivate, and enable others to contribute toward the effectiveness and success of the organization. No matter which definition is applied, leadership is a needed representation in the workplace. comes with individual strengths and weaknesses. And in leadership, there is the need to identify your strengths and weaknesses to maximize your professional effectiveness.

To be an effective leader an individual can divide their view into three categories to help create a balance of understanding their position and purpose as a leader. Category number one can be labeled as Self-focus, category number two can be labeled as Focus of Others, and category number three can be labeled as Focus on the Environment. The use of these categories can be essential to a leader and help to shed light on his or her skills. Taking the initiative to understand self, others, and the environment from a wider view improves the ability and opportunity to strategize, create, and manage. Cultivating a triad of focus and awareness can also strengthen the ability to balance influence, motivate, and lead others.

Self-Focus

Self-focus is having the ability to identify your inner voice and getting in touch with yourself. This is a great method to strengthen your self-awareness under the umbrella of emotional intelligence. This skill set helps to make better decisions and present an authentic representation of self. Self- awareness allows you to collect your internal thoughts, be consistent with practices and behaviors, be and be authentic. An authentic person or leader has the same behaviors, practices, and beliefs towards others that you have for yourself. Leaders that are accustomed and focused on contributing knowledge, direction, and input are more effective and successful.

Focus of Others

Focusing on others is paying attention and having consistent behavior. This practice builds a foundation of empathy and helps to strengthen relationships. Focusing on others can also help to build a strong positive leadership presence. An example of a focus characteristic is having empathy. Empathy is a natural characteristic that can be delivered in any environment, it is a natural behavior. Empathy is a leadership strength that collaborates cognitive empathy or the ability to receive and understand the perspectives of others; emotional empathy or having the capability to share feelings as someone else; and empathetic concern or the ability to recognize the needs of others. Social sensitivity or building relationships is guided by cognitive empathy and no matter the situation, the same etiquette, practices, and behaviors are followed.

Focus on the Environment

Another strength of a leader is having the ability to have a strong outward focus as a visionary. A visionary with a long-term casting that can see the present but also can determine how the decisions made today will affect the future. The question now is "how can you make a decision now for the future"? This is done by focusing on a strategy to recognize new opportunities and possibilities, along with the ability to gain and retain information. The strategy is a gem for leaders, supporting critical thinking techniques, decision-making techniques and strengthening creativity.