Respond to at least (2) two of your colleagues' postings

Respond to at least (2) two of your colleagues' postings “See below” that contain a perspective other than yours: Please ensure your response to your colleagues addresses concerns listed below:

· Share an insight about what you learned from having read your colleagues’ postings and

· Discuss how and why your colleague’s posting resonated with you professionally and personally. (Note: This may be a great opportunity to help you think about passions you share with your colleagues who could become part of your Walden network.)

· Offer an example from your experience or observation that validates what your colleague discussed.

· Offer specific suggestions that will help your colleague build upon his or her perceptions as a leader.

· Offer further assessment from having read your colleague’s post that could impact a leader’s effectiveness.

· Share how something your colleague discussed changed the way you consider your own leadership qualities.

· No plagiarism

· APA citing

1st Colleague - Natasha Mills 

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LPI 360 Results for Practice 1 and Practice 2

My perspective on model the way and inspire a shared vision concepts is that the former acts as a precursor to the latter. In simple terms, the core tenets of modelling the way as a leader, which include clarifying values and setting an example, form the foundation of a leader’s ability to inspire a shared vision (Kouzes & Posner, 2017). For instance, the model the way leadership behavior that requires following through on commitments and promises that a leader makes can possibly be linked to the leadership behavior of talking with others about a vision of how things could be better. This is because the first leadership behavior makes a leader believable when applying the second leadership behavior.

Compared to the rest of the other practices of LPI 360, I recorded the least score on the leadership practices of modelling the way, where I had a score of 27, and a score of 24 in inspiring a shared vision. The results on modelling the way leadership practice stemmed from least scores in three of the measured leadership behaviors. They include seeking to understand how my actions affect the performance of other people’s performance, making sure that people support the values that have been agreed upon, and talking about the principle and values that guide my actions. On the other hand, my results on inspiring a shared vision were the most worrying. I recorded the least scores in the leadership behavior of looking ahead and communicating about what I believe will affect us in the future, as well as the behavior of talking with others about the vision of how things could be better in the future.

The above results highlight my shortcomings in modelling the way and inspiring a shared vision, which are all fundamental practices that create an effective leader. The specific leadership behaviors where I recorded the least scores in both practices are also crucial to effective leadership, and lead to the overall results of the two practices. Therefore, I need to improve my leadership behavior in relation to these two leadership practices.

Transformational Leadership

The main characteristics of a transformational leader revolve around his/her abilities to motivate and inspire followers towards the creation of change, as well as innovation. It is also important to acknowledge that transformational leaders avoid the use of a micromanaging approach on their followers. Instead, they encourage independence and a sense of responsibility among employees (Abelha et al., 2019). These features lead to the association of transformational leaders with trust, integrity, empowerment, and collaboration, among other traits.

The characteristics of transformational leaders, particularly those involving their encouragement of independence and a sense of responsibility, have significantly influenced my decisions and actions in finding my inner leader. For instance, the element of independence requires me to be able to make my own choices, while that of responsibility makes me accountable to those choices. To effectively achieve these two aspects, therefore, it is necessary for me to self-reflect and determine my strengths and weaknesses when it comes to being accountable and independent. This self-reflection influences my decisions and actions in finding my inner leader because leaders also need to be accountable and independent in meeting some of their leadership goals.

Transformational leaders have been associated with the ability to model the way, as well as inspire a shared vision. This is mostly due to their need to foster innovation and to create change. Hence, given my LPI 360 results, I can confidently say that I am a transformational leader. However, I will need to improve certain areas of my leadership behaviors, especially where I registered the lowest scores. This is because these areas pose as weaknesses that need to be addressed for me to become a more effective transformational leader. Some of them include talking with my followers about a vision of how things could be better and making sure that my followers support the agreed upon values.

References

Abelha, D. M., Carneiro, P. C. D. C., & Cavazotte, F. D. S. C. N. (2018). Transformational leadership and job satisfaction: Assessing the influence of organizational contextual factors and individual characteristics. Revista Brasileira de Gestão de Negócios, 20(4), 516-532.

Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2017). The leadership challenge: How to make extraordinary things happen in organizations. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley & Sons.

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2nd Colleagues - Ryan Sharratt 

LPI 360 Results for Practice 1 and Practice 2

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Many people struggle with being honest with themselves. I know that in my own experiences, before my crucible, I would blame others for my failures. I would not own the situation; I would fall short in my leadership style by blame-shifting and finding faults that were seemingly not related—the epitome of an evil military leader. My leadership (or lack thereof) carried over to my self-employment until I started needing employees. This need shaped the management and leadership that have shaped me into a genuine leader and helped prompted me toward this degree program.

Before I was able to commit to the changes, I had to want the change. I needed to embrace it. As Kouzes (2014) states, "When leaders passionately express commitment to quality, innovation, service, or some other core value, they are not just saying "I believe in this." They're also committing on behalf of an organization" (Kouzes et al., 2014 p.49). This moment is truly a crucible knowing that you either adapt and display agility, or you, as a self-employed entrepreneur, will fail, and your family will go hungry. All at once, you are checking your ego, swallowing your pride, making needed changes, and help you identify in finding your purpose. The purpose of providing and being an inspirational role model to your kids, a great husband for your wife, and equally important, finding your voice.

"To find your voice, you have to discover what you care about, what defines you, and what makes you who you are" (Kouzes et al., 2014 p.50). In my opinion, finding who you by reflection and deep analysis will genuinely set the tempo for future growth, both personally and professionally. It will also help define your purpose, values, and principles, which will help shape your life. Growing your inner voice that says, "this doesn't align with whom you are," preventing you from selling your soul to the highest bidder and helping protect your integrity. I remember early on in my career, and my boss told me to "fake it until you make it"; however that was the worst advice a mentor could ever give someone. That single line forced me to sell my integrity and ethics for a paycheck. One of the top three mistakes I wish I could take back. Finding your inner voice to help define your "why" should be an educational opportunity taught in schools.

Once my first employee joined the ranks, it was up to me to protect their integrity and ethics in a way that was not modeled for me. In sharing my story, I helped illustrate my own shared vision for building a company built upon purpose, values, and principles.

My results in the Student Leadership Practices Inventory ® 360 were in line with how I view myself. My lowest score was "encourage the heart," with a 22/30, seemingly because I often pass on my appreciation and encouragement for my team. I find myself having a close enough relationship that my casual conversations usually take the place of public recognition, or I take my relationship with them for granted. I believe that my results align with the learning resources and emphasize that I am making the right approach. My "inspire a shared vision" was a perfect 30/30 as I firmly believe that "commanders' intent" is a critical component of a successful mission.

The characteristics of a transformation leader are pretty like a narcissistic leader, as highlighted in an article written by Charles O'Reilly and Jennifer Chatman (2020) where a dramatic comparison is highlighted between a transformational leader and a narcissistic leader by definition of the American Psychiatric Association with grandiose, entitled, self-confident, risk-taking and manipulative traits appearing in both leadership styles (O'Reilly et al., 2020). In my own opinion, the difference between a transformational leader and a narcissistic leader is the malicious intent, the respect afforded to your followers, and the values and principles that are not only spoken but also displayed.

I find that risk-seeking is the most applicable trait that I can quickly identify within a transformational leader's characteristics. As a self-employed business owner, you are a champion risk-taker. You leave the comfort of a stable job someplace (that someone else created) to venture out on your own, and that takes a risk. While venturing out, you have grand visions of success and only occasionally glance at failure because the laws of attraction are more appealing than the rules of our legal system. As an entrepreneur, you must have self-confidence and many other traits that may be shared with a narcissist; however, the intent still defines my authenticity to be a truly transformational leader. My characteristics of preserving other ethics, integrity, and values speak volumes in words and inactions.

 

References

Birk S. (2010). The 10 most common myths about leadership. Healthcare Executive, 25(6), 30–38.

Knight-Wallace, C. (2014, October). Inspire teams with why. The Journal for Quality and Participation. (37)3, 39–40.

O’Reilly, C. A., & Chatman, J. A. (2020). Transformational Leader or Narcissist? How Grandiose Narcissists Can Create and Destroy Organizations and Institutions. California Management Review, 62(3), 5–27. https://doi-org.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/10.1177/0008125620914989

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