Capstone: Apl Prac & Princ Ldg

1.4 Philosophy of Leadership

Getting Started

Why does someone choose to lead? There are lots of answers to that question. Some might like the status or at least the idea of the status. Some like power. Some like the perks. But leadership is not always easy. Tough decisions must be made that can impact others in both positive and negative ways. The old sayings go, “it's lonely at the top” or “heavy is the head that wears the crown.” You have probably experienced some of those moments in your own leadership roles.

As you think about your current leadership role or one that you hope to achieve, ask yourself “why?” Why do you want that position? Why do you want that opportunity? What is your philosophy of leadership? This assignment will give you the opportunity to think about and articulate such a philosophy.

Upon successful completion of this assignment, you will be able to:

· Articulate a foundational philosophy of leadership to guide leadership actions.

Background Information

Robert Greenleaf (1977) is considered the foundational thinker about servant leadership in the leadership discipline. Writing towards the end of the 1970s, he posed some important questions about leadership. He asked what is the point of leadership? What should it do for the leader? What should it do for the followers? What should it do for the organization? What should it do for society? Greenleaf believed that simply stated, the answer was to make all those better and stronger. He framed his ideas through the lens of service and serving as the key element of effective leadership.

Check out  this website (new tab)  of the Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership. The “about us” and “resources” sections have good information on Greenleaf’s biography, papers, and servant leadership.

In Greenleaf’s perspective, the true leader was one who adopted a service view. That is, the reason for leading was as an outlet or an expression of a desire to serve others. While it is possible that someone could say “I'm a leader and therefore I'm going to choose to serve,” Greenleaf thought that the preferable view was someone saying “I want to serve therefore I choose to lead.”

Either direction could represent a good servant leader, but Greenleaf was most concerned about those who disconnected service from their philosophy and practice of leadership. Without a service disposition, leadership can easily become controlling, harsh, and even abusive.

Subsequent research into servant leadership has suggested that we can think about it in two ways. One way is to think about it as an underlying philosophy that informs and shapes our leadership regardless of whatever leadership style we might say we have such as transformational leadership or authentic leadership (Keith, 2015). It is the reasons or ways that we approach those leadership activities in that style that make us a servant leader. The other way to think about it is as a set of specific behaviors that leaders do and that is what makes them a servant leader (Liden et al., 2015). It is their style. The two ways of thinking are not mutually exclusive. One's philosophy does drive one's behaviors. For this assignment, you will focus largely on the philosophical underpinnings for the ways that you will serve and lead in the future.

Instructions

1. Review all the materials assigned in Workshop One. Consider some of your assignments in past courses. Conduct any new research that might be needed to complete this assignment.

2. Write a two- to three-page reflection paper (500-750 words double-spaced in a Word document), addressing the following reflection prompts:

a. Service (about 1 to 1.5 pages in length):

i. Present at least two different definitions of service.

ii. Research some different ways that service is used (and defined) in organizations (e.g., human services, customer service, financial services, service industry). Share some insights about service from your review.

iii. Compose your own, personal definition of what it means to serve others, especially in an organizational context.

b. Leadership (about 1 to 1.5 pages in length):

i. Present at least three different definitions of leadership or organizational leadership (they are different concepts) from different sources (be sure to cite the sources of the definitions).

ii. Analyze the definitions. What is similar about them? What is different? What seems to be the key themes in the various definitions?

iii. Compose your own, personal definition of leadership based on your review and analysis of the literature-based definitions.

c. Philosophy Statement (no more than 1 paragraph or ½ page).

i. Utilizing your insights and definitions of service and leadership, articulate a personal philosophy of those components. (e.g., what do you really believe about service? Leadership? How do those beliefs translate to action or behaviors for what it means to serve and lead?)

3. Note: Do not include an introduction or conclusion for this paper. Simply provide a title page, the three sections noted above, and a references page. This assignment is part of the larger project for the course. You will compose your introduction and conclusion for the larger project in Workshop Six.

4. Inasmuch as this is a reflection paper, first-person voice is acceptable