Leadership Philosophy
Leadership Philosophy: Live, Learn, Grow - Diligence, Consistency, Detailed, Principled, Honest
What is most important to me as a leader is being a model to others. Inspiring those who have a fervor to grow and learn. This means providing truthful, valuable, detailed guidance to those I lead. I will do this through diligence, consistency, being detailed, maintaining and upholding my principles, and telling the truth tactfully with compassion and care.
To be diligent is to dig in and go.
I have been told in the past that I lead by showing my diligence in a way that generally awes people. When situations are insurmountable, frustrating, and cumbersome that is usually when I thrive. I tend to look at adversity as a challenge to make me better. I take example from Condoleezza Rice, in that, leading when times are hard and people are difficult, I dig in and take the hard tasks (Rice, 2011). I accept challenges and demonstrate going after the hard prize. This is most rewarding. There were times in my past when I was working with customers who were difficult. I chose to take the angriest ones as a challenge. I met that challenge by not only killing them with kindness, but by also slaughtering them with compassion and giving the maximum of my effort in that moment. I adopted this mindset as a part of my philosophy to motivate others to accept fearful situations, face them head on, with kindness and determination.
Steady the course with consistency.
My ability to lead and bring others together to have harmony and a flow, is a part of my leadership philosophy. With this strength I give focus to fairness and am solid in my work. This goes back to the mindset of leading by example. By showing how to stay a steady course and to trust the process to reach our goal, this structure provides comfort to those who need a leader who is well balanced and knows how to mitigate chaos (ISTE 3.5.d., 2018). Sorek et al. (2017), details that consistent leaders provide confidence in their followers and in the decisions they make for situations. These types of leaders often receive greater approval from their followers over those who are not able to make decisions or who flip flop between decisions (Sorek et al., 2017). Having worked for both consistent and inconsistent leaders, I can attest that being without chaos and confusion is easier to work with and promotes excellence in the work requested. This is why consistency is a leadership trait I embody and incorporate into my philosophy.
Know as much as you can and share those details.
The discipline I learned in past experiences educated me on the value of structure, intricacies, and specifics. I was taught to be aware of the minutiae because knowing that could spring me forward and help others. From that point on I would read every manual, pamphlet, and brochure, and jot down notes to have for future meetings and questions. I never had the intention to keep this information to myself. It was to be a communication piece to assist myself and others (ISTE 2.4.a., 2017). I have never been a person embarrassed to ask questions and many times, in a classroom setting I was told by classmates they were so thankful I asked a question and they never would have thought about the concept in that way. I lived through this important discovery of the fine details of situations. I learned how to incorporate this skill in my work and everyday life and now I am growing to teach and lead others to understanding the value of this skill. Being detail-oriented encourages professionalism through communication.
Do not compromise my values or integrity. Remain principled.
My principles and values drive who I am as a person. These have matured as I have grown into adulthood and have consistently updated through life experiences. This, I believe, is a top feature of a leader who desires trust from followers. Having righteous values that speak to the good intentions for others is a part of my leadership goals and philosophy. The same mindset was upheld by the late Colin Powell. In his book, Powell (2014), detailed how staying strong in his values and character allowed him to command his soldiers with a healthy conscience. How I connect Live, Learn, Grow to being a principled leader is staying true to myself while still listening to the ideas of others and being open to aligning and allying as long as I do not compromise my integrity and values.
Be virtuous, honorable, and honest to gain trust from others.
Lastly, I chose honesty as a personal trait to round out my leadership philosophy. Leading people by being transparent, sincere, frank, and free from deceit is a vivacious and impactful way to motivate and gain the trust and excellent work ethic from followers. The integrity and honor of a leader will often determine the quality of expected work from followers. Enthusiastic collaboration is also fostered when open communication is encouraged (ISTE 3.2.e., 2018). I have been to meetings where certain people would not speak, having fear of being dismissed or discounted. Unfortunately, the important information they have is only shared with trusted co-workers in the infamous “unofficial meeting after the meeting”. Dissension and confusion ensue as a result of poor leadership. Honesty is paramount in my leadership style because I know and understand the value of trust. Kirkpatrick and Locke (1991), stated even when followers are not always pleased with the decisions made by their leaders, if they have been honest about the decisions it allows for understanding of the different perspectives and the trust remains strong.
My leadership philosophy of live, learn, and grow embodies the five beliefs I listed above because they shape how I know I can be as an honest, principled, detailed, consistent, diligent leader. I know this mantra is ever-changing and developing to be in the strongest capacity and the most effective in a given situation. I am open and excited to see where and how it grows from this point.
References
International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE. (2018). ISTE standards: Education Leaders.
https://www.iste.org/standards/iste-standards-for-education-leaders
International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). (2017). ISTE standards: Educators. https://www.iste.org/standards/iste-
standards-for-teachers
Kirkpatick, S. A., & Locke, E. A. (1991). Leadership: Do traits matter? Academy of Management Perspectives, 5(2), 48–60.
https://doi.org/10.5465/ame.1991.4274679
Powell, C. (2014). It worked for me: In life and leadership (Reprint ed.). Harper Perennial.
Rice, C. (2011). Extraordinary, ordinary people: A memoir of family. Crown.
Sorek, A. Y., Haglin, K., & Geva, N. (2017). In capable hands: An experimental study of the effects of competence and consistency on
leadership approval. Political Behavior, 40(3), 659–679. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11109-017-9417-5