Grace's Leadership Philosophy

When many people think of the term "leader", they think of a person of great character and poise who  has the organizational and people skills to guide a group of people towards reaching a goal. My goal as a leader is to use my problem solving and social skills as well as my values and good judgement to inspire others to be better people. My experiences in leadership roles combined with what I have learned in Management and Leadership class have formed my leadership philosophy that I read with you now.

I was given a leadership opportunity when I was asked to Co-Chair the North Suburban Prom Fashion Show, a charity event in which students from various north shore high schools walked the runway at the North Suburban YMCA to model spring's prom fashion trends and raise money for Northbrook Citizens for Drug and Alcohol Awareness (NCDAA). Red Door Spa, Men's Wearhouse and Lord and Taylor donated their hair and make up services, tuxedos, and dresses for our models. Various local business donated items to the raffle we held during the show as well as food that was served at our reception. Glenbrook North Principal, Dr. Paul Pryma, has been our Master of Ceremonies for the past two years.

My Co-Chair and I practiced many essential leadership skills during the planning and execution of this event each year. Through this class I explored new management and leadership skills that I will not only use while planning next year's prom fashion show, but for future management and leadership opportunities as well.

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens- Here are three that I applied.

1) Be Proactive
My Co-Chair and I ran in to many obstacles, such as models dropping their commitment to our show at the last minute, food for our reception running late, hair and make up appointments with Red Door Spa running late, and models not showing up to their dress or tuxedo fitting appointments. We had to problem solve proactively, not reactively. If we attempted to solve our problems reactively, nothing would get done efficiently. For next year's show, I will keep in mind that problem solving proactively in times of crises is much more efficient than problem solving reactively.

2) Begin With the End in Mind
Our first meeting will be in October, even though our show isn't until the Spring. Keeping the end in mind, it's important to begin our planning early so we aren't scrambling towards the end. At our first meeting we will create a mental vision of what our show will look like. From this, we learned what goals need to be set and what we need to do in order to achieve them.

6) Synergize
My Co-Chair and I must establish synergy in order to reach success. I have been working with the same Co-Chair for the past two years, however, next year she will be going off to college! Working with a new Co-Chair may be a challenge, but if we learn to make compromises in order to have synergy we will still reach success.

Management- The process of accomplishing the goals of an organization through the effective use of people, financial and material resources.

1) Planning
We learned in class that to plan successfully, you must have a systematic process of developing an outline for the accomplishment of goals. This provides direction and common sense of purpose. Before our first meeting, I will prepare a general outline of everything that has to get done before the day of the show, and how to go about getting them done. I'll keep in mind that these plans should be compatible and flexible, and not go too far into detail because plans can change.

2) Organizing
Our committee isn't organized in a particular way, for the most part our meetings are democratic. I think this is a good structure for our committee because it's flexibility has allowed everyone to contribute as much as they want.

Leadership- The process of influencing a group or individual to set or achieve a goal
1)  Components of leadership

• The Leader
• Philosophy, values, needs, and leadership style are the qualities that make up a leader. The leadership situation changes based upon these qualities. In future leadership opportunities, I will organize these qualities to determine what leadership style is needed for the situation I'm in. It's important a leader claims where they stand in these four qualities so they can be a consistent leader.
• I have a more democratic style of leadership because of my listening skills. While keeping the group inline and organizing a plan of attack, I feel it's important to hear what the people who are working with you have to say. Otherwise, there is no use in hiring them in the first place. My needs would be minimal, however employee cooperation and focus would be appreciated. I am a very empathetic and realistic leader. I would connect with the employee and make a personal bond with them. Since I'm realistic, I'm not afraid to address a problem, and expect my employees to obtain this value as well.
• The Led
• Their needs and abilities influence the leader's leadership style. A good leader should be able to adapt to their follower's needs and interests.
• I think adaptability is one of the most important values for a leader to have. I admit I have a hard time adapting to certain personality types. If a follower shows they are uninterested in the task at hand and acts out or clearly shows their disinterest, I find it hard to re-engage them. I will make it my goal to become a more adaptable leader.
• The Environment
• The environment an employee works in is key to their level of comfort and happiness with their job. In a future leadership position, I would want the environment of my workplace to be positive and inviting. Not only will this attract employees, but customers as well.

2) Task or Employee Motivation

I would choose to motivate through Employee Motivation.  It's common for a Democratic leader like me to use employee motivation to motivate their workforce because of it's focus on the individual employee rather than the task at hand. Task Motivation emphasizes getting the job done through better methods and equipment, focusing less on employees and more on the task. A leader with an Autocratic leadership style often uses this form of motivation because employee voices aren't always heard. I would incorporate both forms of motivation while leading. I think both are necessary if I want to reach a goal successfully and with satisfaction. 

3) The Six Pitfalls of Leadership

• Not asking for employees for help and advice
• Since I have a democratic leadership style, asking for employee help and advice is important. 
• Emphasizing rules rather than employee skills
• This would be motivation by task, not employee. My interest in employee contributions shows why I would emphasize people skills rather than just task skills. 
• Not keeping employee feedback constructive 
• Criticism should be constructive so employees can learn from their mistakes and improve their performance. Criticism that will only bring them down can negatively impact their performance and bring the whole team down. I will interview each employee periodically through out the year to tell them what they have done well and what they can improve on, by giving them constructive criticism.
• Ignoring employee complaints
• Listening to feedback from employees is one of the best ways to be constantly improving your business. Not only will the business be happy, but those working for the business will be working in an environment they like. Happy employees will be willing to work harder than those who are unhappy. I will be an open leader who will listen to all employee complaints.
• Keeping employees uninformed
• Without keeping employees informed, it is impossible for employees to give proper feedack, and harder for them to complete their own tasks.
• Attacking your competition
• It has always been important to me to focus on why my own party is strong, not why the other party is weak. I will never try to attack the competition. Instead, I will use factual arguments to explain to a customer why they should come to my business instead of another.

4) Communication

• Types of Communication
•  Impersonal communication is important to get a message out to the general public; advertising by memos, letters, or bulletin boards. 
• Interpersonal communication is important in reaching the individual; connecting to a  customer either face-to-face or on the phone.
• Communication has been a major asset to our success with the prom fashion show. If our committee members don't communicate well, or if we don't communicate with the businesses we are working with well, success will be hard to reach. For our next show I will continue to be consistent with my communication.

Co-Chairing the North Suburban Prom Fashion Show has been great preparation for when I enter the business world some day. After taking this class, I have realized there are many management and leadership skills I have already used and some were new to me. I will apply both established and new management and leadership skills to next year's North Suburban Prom Fashion Show and future leadership opportunities.

Holly's Leadership Philosophy

Not everyone is born a great leader, but anyone can become a great leader if they have the right tools and mindset.  Taking Management and Leadership helped me to develop a leadership style that I can take with me wherever I go in life.  The following, are the main points that make up my leadership philosophy and the goals that I wish to achieve as a leader.

1. Communication 
Good communication skills are key to becoming an influential leader.  Without communicating properly, your words might get misunderstood and a conflict could arise.  In the book, 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens, Sean Covey says "When we listen with the intent to understand others, rather than with the intent to reply, we begin true communication and relationship building."  I want to be able to understand a person before I give them a response.  Antoine de Saint-Exupery says in his book, the Little Prince, "Miscommunication is the origin of misunderstanding", and misunderstanding can lead to all sorts of problems, like not hearing about an important meeting.  One of the most important tips for improving communication, learned in this class, is to "be conscious of your body language."  In any important event, you want to come across as confident enough, and the right body language can help you get there.  Leaning forward a bit when you talk can make you seem in control and confident.  Communication is important to not only becoming a good leader, but also a good listener.

http://www.lingholic.com/be-more-confident-speaking-foreign-language/

2.  Plan First, Then Do
Making a plan to accomplish a goal or complete a task, can provide order and a sense of purpose.  The plan sets the stage for what will come next and provides the direction the program will take.  If a plan is not put in place before setting out to achieve a goal, the situation could become chaotic.  Creating a set schedule is also key to becoming an organized leader, who can handle time and crises efficiently and effectively.  The planning techniques I took away from this class were that plans should be specific and meaningful, achievable, but a stretch, and clearly communicated.

http://thefarqway.com/?p=28

3.  Collaboration
Collaboration is all about combining different points of views or, perspectives, to better achieve a goal or solve a problem.  Great leaders know that they can't do everything themselves, and it is okay to ask for help when it's needed.  To me, being a great leader means being able to unify a group of people to better accomplish a goal.  If you aren't willing to collaborate with others, then there won't be anyone to unify and not as many minds as could have been used to achieve the goal.


https://www.pinterest.com/explore/quotes-about-teamwork/

     In conclusion, I believe that having good communication skills, planning before doing, and collaborating with others can make a great leader.  A leader with all these qualities, however, is not a leader if they don't have the drive to succeed.  Without having passion for what you do and the willingness to work hard, your work will mean nothing to you.  Therefore, is meaningless to you, you won't have the work ethic it takes to become a great leader.

Kunal’s Leadership Philosophy

Throughout this semester I have learnt a lot of different life skills and tricks on being a successful leader. I have improved my listening skills and my verbal communication skills and many more. My opinion of a leader is not the smartest one in the group or the best looking one in the group, its the one who can keep the group together and get stuff done as one. A successful  leader is not out to prove his dominance against his team, he is there to listen to everybody and then take the final call. I am a leader and this class has helped me brush up and define those skills and traits that will help in future decisions and making a path to a successful  leader. Management and Leadership, even though it goes hand in hand it’s still not the same thing. The manager focuses on systems and structure whereas the leader focuses on people.

The number one key to being a successful  leader is the way you execute yourself in front of others.

1. Confidence

As a leader you have followers looking at every action you take, judging every shot you call but not breaking under that pressure is being confident. If you are confident about what you are doing than your team will trust you and follow you. In a company, a leader’s job is not to sit behind a desk and have stacks of paperwork to go through. A leader represents the company, him going up there in a board meeting or a press conference represents him, his team and his company. Confidence is one of the major qualities required to be a successful leader. Confidence is a charm and everybody loves someone who is charming. During that team building obstacle course we were all confident about our spotters being there because we know each other, we have interacted with each other, we are all comfortable with each other therefore we can be who we are whereas if it was with another class it would not have been the same. A successful leader is one whose team is confident with him and he is confident outside with everybody else.

2. Ability to Inspire / Passion

A successful  leader has the ability to inspire his team whether its by more money, a vacation or even a motivating talk. A successful  leader should be able to adjust with different types of audience too because not everybody is inspired or reached out to the same way. A leader who is passionate about what he is doing and is able to inspire his team to help follow that passion will be one of the most successful leaders. A leader’s job is not to boss his team around but to make them feel welcome and to stay humble but still let no who’s in charge. As a leader, doing something passionate is where a leader can use his leadership skills to the max because he wants to do that. Everybody has a drive. A drive is something that wakes you up in the morning excited to go start working on it, something you enjoy/look forward too. Having the ability to inspire people is one of the best gifts ever. Inspiring someone is the same as being a salesman, instead you are selling what you love to do and not a product. Communication is the single key in inspiring people. They way you execute yourself is what it’s all about.

3. Have a goal:

A successful  leader keeps his eye on the prize. A successful leader is one who sees how far he is from his goal and doesn't turn around to see how much more further his opponent is. A successful  leader has a goal to achieve for him and for his team. Having a goal is what keeps the leader motivated too!

Why have a goal?

As a leader if you are asked what your team should do, you will need to give them a goal to achieve. Your job is to give them goals to achieve, if they are making their own goals then you will never be a successful leader. And if they achieve their goals then you achieve yours. A leader is one who listens to everybody but is still the final decision maker and as long that boundary is there between a leader and a follower than that relationship will be successful. Some of the smartest people are not good leaders because they focus too much on other people’s jobs.

Major things I learnt:

1. Be yourself is not they way to go in business, to be a successful leader you need to be able to be compatible because sadly with a 318.9 million population in The United States there is no way you can please everybody.
2. Being a leader might seem easy but it is a risky job, you can take huge amounts of credit for your team’s work but you could also get a lot of hate for your team’s work, either way as a leader you represent the team so its mainly your reputation.

Danny Fusco's Leadership Philosophy

              A leader is someone that consciously or unconsciously demands respect from their peers.  Leaders  come in many different forms and in my many different situations but the common variable among all leaders are the core values which they base their behavior off of and their values.  In this blog I will elaborate on the key ideals and beliefs that make a true leader.

Honesty/Trust

              Honesty is a prerequisite of respect and vital to the loyalty of your followers.  I believe to be a successful and well liked leader you must form a bond with your group.  This bond starts the first day with being honest.  Good ways to gain trust right off the bat is being very clear with your policies, strengths and weaknesses, and what your goal is for the team is which relates to what we learned in class regarding policies and goals.  As a leader you are constantly forced to make tough decisions that have your group split in two but if you form a bond of trust with your employees or peers they will trust you to make the best possible choice to further advance the the group with the team's best interest in mind.

Respect

              Respect towards others and yourself is vital to becoming an effective leader.  You cannot lead a group that doesn't respect you as a leader, they will not take you seriously and be more prone to disobey and engage in their own plans or ideas.  An effective way to gain respect is to act in a proactive manner in all aspects of life, if people see the way you always keep a level head and problem solve efficiently without dragging down others in the process, they will regard you as a good person to model behavior after and follow in your footsteps.  This is a good way to lead with action, this does not require elaborate speeches or fantastic management tactics, only good morals, positive behavior and quick problem solving.  Then others will follow and model themselves after you without having to take charge and verbally declare leadership.

Confidence            

              To be followed you must exude confidence, you will get a much better response out of people if you do everything with no doubt.  Confidence has been found in many studies to be a key contributor to  how you perceive someone and if they seem confident with everything they do you will interpret them as more trustworthy.  As a leader you will run into times of crisis and in those times you must take assertive action and lead the group out of the situation with good crisis management tactics, however, you are less likely to be respected and followed if you are unsure about your actions.  You must be unwavering in making decisions and never hesitate, second guessing yourself only fills yourself with doubt and distracts you from the task at hand.

Positive Attitude

              Attitude is contagious, that is why it is crucial to project the best possible image and be a figure that you want people to look up to and model their behavior after.  Smiles are the same as yawns in terms of contagiousness, when in a formal setting it is very common for people, especially the more timid, to match the intensity of the leader.  Bringing a positive, upbeat attitude into your workplace everyday is an effective way to quickly boost morale and increase worker satisfaction.  A good way to think about keeping things light and positive is always looking for a win-win and trying to make the most out of everything.

              To conclude, the aspects that I believe are key core values that must be possessed in order to be a successful and respected leader are: honesty and trust, respect, confidence and a positive attitude.  These traits can help you be the best leader you can be on almost any team, workplace or situation.

Nate's Leadership Philosophy

This semester we learned about many different types of leadership. Some leaders are more involved in the decision process, others leave it up to the people they are in charge of, and certain leaders do a combination. But at the end of the day, a leader is the "point person" in which a lot of responsibilities land on. While there are many different ways to be a leader, there are some traits every leader must possess regardless of the job they are in. A movie I recently watched really showed me what these qualities were. They were embodied in a character named Lieutenant Colonel Hal Moore played by Mel Gibson in the Vietnam war movie We Were Soldiers. I believe his leadership can be summed up by this one quote from the movie as Moore is addressing his troops before they depart to fight:

"Look around you. In the 7th cavalry, we've got a captain from the Ukraine; another from Puerto Rico. We've got Japanese, Chinese, Blacks, Hispanics, Cherokee Indians. Jews and Gentiles. All Americans. Now here in the states, some of you in this unit may have experienced discrimination because of race or creed. But for you and me now, all that is gone. We're moving into the valley of the shadow of death, where you will watch the back of the man next to you, as he will watch yours. And you won't care what color he is, or by what name he calls God... Now let us understand the situation. We are going into battle against a tough and determined enemy.

"I can't promise you that I will bring you all home alive. But this I swear, before you and before Almighty God, that when we go into battle, I will be the first to set foot on the field, and I will be the last to step off, and I will leave no one behind. Dead or alive, we will all come home together. So help me, God."

Ability to bring unlike people together to accomplish a task: We've got Japanese, Chinese, Blacks, Hispanics, Cherokee Indians. Jews and Gentiles. All Americans. Now here in the states, some of you in this unit may have experienced discrimination because of race or creed. But for you and me now, all that is gone... you won't care what color he is, or by what name he calls God.

I like this quote a lot mainly for the first two sentences. Moore acknowledges the barriers between the soldiers immediately by showing all the nationalities, but he brings everyone together by stating they are all Americans. In a workplace, no matter where anyone comes from, they are all employees. They were all chosen to do a specific task. Leaders ought to tap into this realization to prompt collaboration rather than rivalry and individuality. This ties into the 6th habit presented in Seth Conroy's book 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens. It suggests to synergize which means bringing people together to achieve more.

Making a clear goal that everyone can rally behind: Dead or alive, we will all come home together. So help me, God."

While this goal may be a little extreme and not applicable to the workplace, the idea this presents around goals is. Leaders typically the ones to make goals or finalize ones that are suggested. As long as everyone is on the same page, effectiveness within a company should increase. The second Habit from Conroy's book says to begin with the end in mind. In the movie, thinking with the end in mind means coming to terms that some people will live while some will die, but in the end the mission is to bring everyone home. Everyone in the movie wants that because they want to keep their lives. People in the workplace want goals along the lines of making more profit because their salaries might go up.

Being specific on how this goal will be accomplished: We're moving into the valley of the shadow of death, where you will watch the back of the man next to you, as he will watch yours.

This part is similar to the previous point but different in the way that it suggests ways to accomplish a goal. This has to do with being proactive, Conroy's first habit. In war, people stay alive by having someone watch their back. This helps accomplish the goal of keeping as many people alive. In the workplace, this means having a professional attitude, getting things done on time, communicating effectively with everyone on the team, and overall getting the job done. Leaders set the goals, but they are not always the ones who say how the goal will be accomplished. Talking to my mom, a leader in her job, she likes to give people below her goals (i.e set up a development day and bring in speakers to talk about such and such) and give them the freedom to accomplish that goal as they wish. As long as the goal is accomplished and no harm is done to the company, she will be happy. Another style of leadership is telling someone to accomplish a goal in a very specific manner (i.e set up a development day on this Friday with this speaker and talk about such and such) and expect that to be done in that way. This depends on the competency of the employees, the goal that needs to be accomplished, and the situation surrounding a desired goal.   

Being honest with employees about the difficulties that might arise: We're moving into the valley of the shadow of death... I can't promise you that I will bring you all home alive.

Honesty is very important to leadership. Having the trust of your employees and all that are under you will serve you better in the long run. People will want to work for you more if your word is golden. Being honest is not only with what you say but also how you listen to others. Habit 5 says to listen to people sincerely. No one wants to hear that they are going into the "valley of the shadow of death" or that the company had a 10% drop in profit over the course of a year, but if it happens it needs to be said so everyone is on the same page. If people aren't informed, I believe it will only go down a bad path.  

Being the one to initiate and own the process: I will be the first to set foot on the field, and I will be the last to step off, and I will leave no one behind.

This final quote is one that stuck out to me. I would guess that many leaders don't think that they should be the ones to be first to start initiate something all the time. I think this idea is what makes this whole quote from the movie unique: the leader is the one on the front line. They take responsibility and ownership for the company and other employees. This partially has to do with the first habit but also  the third habit which means to put first things first. A leader is the point guy and should be the one to start everything. 

Overall, a leader should be the one to lead by example. While there is many types of leadership, I believe this are core ideas that each true leader should posses.

Quentin's Leadership philosophy

Quentin Bobart
1). Leadership style: What kind of leader am I?
             I am a very laidback and easy going person so I would definitely be a free-rein leader. Not everyone can work successfully when there is a strict way of doing the task at hand. However, everyone can be successful if they can choose how they work at the task that I have given to them. From personal experience I know that I have trouble following strict instructions. However, when I am told to complete a task and they don't care how it gets done, I really enjoy doing the task much more. This causes me to work better and then eventually finish the task better than I would have with strict instruction. One example of this was a paper that I wrote my sophomore year. My teacher made it so everything had to be a specific way. After grading that paper she asked if I would meet her outside of class to talk about the paper  that I had written. I failed the paper and I did not know why. She could see my confusion and thought of a possible solution. She requested that I rewrite my paper, but this time I could do whatever I wanted. When I came back to the same teacher to discuss my new paper she told me that it was one of the best papers I had ever written. Letting me take control of how I wanted to do the paper not only resulted in me finishing it but actually improving my final score from a F to an A. To me this really showed how important personal preference is when completing a task that is given to you. That is why I am a free-rein leader.

2).Be specific and concise
             As a leader I know that I need to be very specific and concise with whomever I am giving a task to do. One of the worst things that could happen as a leader is giving someone a task to complete and finding out that the outcome of the task is not matching to the task given. I know that as a leader to effectively create progress I will need to be specific with all of the people that I am leading. When a person who is working to complete a task fails to complete the task it not only hurts the group but also it hurts the individual. Keeping members of the group positive is crucial to a business or organization of all types. When a group member messes up or does not effectively complete a task it makes that person feel bad that they failed the task. This causes them to perform even worse. I will always be specific to group member so that as a group we can minimize failed tasks causing the group members to stay positive witch turns into better work.

3).How would I motivate?
             I believe motivation is a big part of being a leader. Regardless of whether or not you like what you are doing, you will always improve if you are working toward something you want. Many companies offer people raises for achieving a certain goal. However, some people don't find certain things motivating. As a leader, I would havea individual conversation with each of my group members and discuss what they are looking for as motivation. Once we come to a agreement to what their motivation is I know that they will be motivated the best way they can be. I know this because they decided what they want so they will work hard to achieve that reward. Motivation is crucial because without it the group would be doing the minimum work to complete a task. However, when they are motivated they will work hard causing a better outcome of the task given to them.

Brendan Blankfield Leadership Philosophy

Communicate: Communication is critical because even if you have great ideas, but are unable to convey their importance or effectiveness to others, then they are meaningless. Good leaders are able to effectively communicate their ideas and orders to their team members in a way that their teammates can understand. Using humor and personal stories can help to reinforce key messages. By doing so, people are more likely to remember what you said because they can relate to it.  

Listen: As a leader, being able to listen is just as important as being able to communicate. But the best leaders in addition to being able to lead others, also listen to other’s ideas. Listening is a critical skill to have because if you are unwilling to hear someone out, you may not hear a revolutionary idea, a brilliant solution, or even make someone feel  like what they say matters. When a leader is close-minded and doesn't listen to others, they are not properly utilizing the resources available to them, and it can cause communication problems. 

Be Proactive: To be a leader, you must be proactive. Unless you take initiative, work hard, and be willing to put in the time and commitment to achieve your goals, you will not reap the rewards. As said in 7 Habits, proactive people are the drivers of their lives, not the passengers. Although there are many things such as external factors, employee behavior, or employee production that you cannot control, you can always control your reactions to situations. Being proactive will allow you to get things done and continue towards your goal. A leader is not an effective leader if they're reactive, otherwise they become a follower. A good leader is and will always be proactive because if they truly want something they will go and get it. There is a broad difference between the reactive and the proactive leader. Reactive leaders are often in a frantic state of constant activity striving to achieve company goals to the best of their abilities. However, proactive leaders tend to champion company missions and achieve goals more often and with greater ease. Where reactive leaders deal with events as they come, proactive leaders anticipate events and plan accordingly. Being proactive exemplifies leadership, increases positive results and encourages a more joyful workplace.

Adaptability: At some point in time during your time in a leadership position, you are bound to be faced with many different challenges, every one of them with a  different solution. A good leader is one that can think on their feet effectively and efficiently to help overcome adversity. I feel a leader is able to get themselves and their team members through times of adversity. A leader must be able to change their leadership style to adapt to certain situations. In a leadership position, you can be faced with all different types of challenges.  

Democratic:  Out of the three leadership styles, autocratic, democratic, and laissez-faire, I feel the best leader is one that is democratic. Democratic leaders are ones who have the last word (make the final decision) but they include their team members in the decision making process. A democratic leader is one that tends to analyze all of the given information and ideas before making an informed decision. Democratic leadership is very effective, especially if you have talented team members around you. By being a democratic leader, you are able to capitalize on your team members’ skills and talents by letting them share their views, rather than simply expecting them to conform. Democratic leaders are ones who encourage creativity and seek feedback and input on things that they do. As a result, employees tend to have higher job satisfaction and productivity because  they feel like what they say will be heard by others, what they do will have a meaningful impact on results, and that they have a vested stake in the outcome.

Dan's Leadership Philosophy

Leadership Philosophy

I used to think being a leader meant you talk and people listen because you are the leader. I learned that you have to be a leader you are not just a leader because that's what your title says. I learned that I am a passive leader. I like to let people do their job and help them when they get off track or can't figure something out. Throughout this class and in most situations where I am a follower I disliked an overbearing leader and felt restricted. I believe that people must be allowed some space or they will not be able to reach their full potential. A situation of equal opinion but not equal power.

A very important part of being a leader is understanding your employees. You must understand them and they must understand you. This is one of the most important parts of being a leader because you must know your employees abilities, thought processes, and faults or you will never have an efficient and successful staff. Knowing these things gives you the ability to chose the right person for each job. Understanding your employees is the general formula to success.

Another very important quality is communication. Communication is a key part of understanding your employees. For almost a year and a half I worked for Mariano's in Northfield. Throughout that time I noticed that their communication between management and its employees definitely needed improvement. Schedules would overlap or there would be gaps where no one was scheduled to work in a department and it would get kind of chaotic. Management's inability to communicate caused many employees to get frustrated and quit, As an employee there my responsibility was to maintain popular items and keep the shelves organized. There were three managers who tell me what needed to be done. One would give me a job and another would tell me to stop and do something else halfway through and that would go on throughout my shift. Nothing got done and it just was not efficient. If the managers communicated better I would have been able to do more for them.

Organization is a key factor of being a good leader as well. Without organization communication would have no structure. If you asked me what my greatest weakness is I would most likely say organization. However, through the Leadership Impact Project I learned that without organization you will not have a backup plan, or you won't know what your responsibility is or when it needs to be done. Organization is something that is hard to maintain but if you do you will have a better product. Organization is the groundwork of a solid professional relationship and help you and your employees to synergize.

Organization is key in having good communication in order to understand your employees. These things all build off of each other. If you are missing one of them you do not have any of them. These are the building blocks to a successful business. Throughout this class I have learned the importance of these things and I will try to incorporate these aspects in my future endeavors.    

Toby's Leadership Philosophy

Be CONFIDENT: By displaying confidence you will show passion in your work which provides a sense of trust in the workplace. In class we learned that being confident allows others to see that you care about your work and you want the organization to succeed. A leader with confidence has more than a positive attitude, as he or she is perceived to be trustworthy and reliable. I believe that all good leaders have confidence within themselves and their employees which contributes greatly to successful outcomes. 

Be Proactive: While reading the book Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens, the author discusses how leaders should not be passive and reactive, just waiting for things to happen. A successful leader must be proactive and make things happen. For a leader to be proactive, he or she must think ahead and anticipate issues that could arise in the future. Problems are inevitable for leaders, but the best way to handle them is to plan ahead and take action to preventing them from ever occurring again. Leaders must be proactive and deal with adversity in the most efficient, well thought out way possible. 

Think Win-Win: Having a win win attitude is a character based code that gives you and me an outcome that leaves us both pleased. This attitude seeks mutual benefits and it is important that a leader can obtain this mindset. Less negative competition in a company can increase the productivity and quality of work. Thinking win-win will will boost the morale of employees and allows everyone to feel satisfied.  

Be Positive: A leader should demonstrate a positive attitude at all times. Having a positive attitude is key in being a good leader. Being able to deal with stress and difficult issues and keep a positive attitude can result in a much greater success. This attitude is tough to maintain at all times considering problems will occur, but it defines the leader's character by how he or she handles the situation. Will they break under pressure or stay positive and find a way? This question is crucial for a leader to remember to stay positive and turn difficult situations into positive outcomes.

Ethan's Leadership Philosophy

To successfully lead people in a group, class or team, one must implement their leadership philosophy. Throughout this semester I have learned the necessary skills of leading a group and how every aspect of a group must be addressed for it to run smoothly. The philosophy that I have become accustomed to using requires positivity, listening, planning, team building, and self-knowledge.

1. Positive Enforcement

During my freshman year, I was on the volleyball team. There was an A and B team and the coaching styles between the two coaches had an enormous difference. My coach had a calm attitude and was patient while we adapted to new forms and positions. The other coach had an incredibly reactive attitude, and instead of having a fear of losing, the players developed a fear of messing up and facing the coach's wrath. GBN lost a match after winning the first game because they completely fell apart. The coach's anger was expressed by breaking a clipboard and screaming at all of the players. My team played directly after the loss and we rolled to an easy victory because our coach continued to encourage us throughout the game. My coach had a proactive attitude: he corrected our mistakes instead of yelling at us, supported us when we were losing, and had fun coaching. I have adopted this aspect of leadership from my coach and continued to hone it in my Management and Leadership class. I learned that negativity does not help the outcome. Through positive reinforcement, the people will want to perform as best they can. This style of leadership works even as a follower, and I have vowed never to lose my temper when my group members are not performing to a certain standard.

2. Listen thoroughly

Being a good listener is crucial to becoming a good leader. Without proper listening, relationships can never be established and people will have a low desire to work for a certain leader. This semester we did a bird house building activity. I observed this process and watched the results unfold in front of me. Initially the leader did not pay much attention or listen to what the workers were doing and they went off on their own course. Once the leader began to pay attention, they were upset that the bird house had been built in a way that they did not approve of. When good listening skills are used, many problems can be avoided. I have learned to always communicate with my group members. When I have listened well and can keep all of the members on the same page, operations run much smoother and all of the problems in this sector are eliminated.

3. Create a team

Have a common goal in mind so everyone is motivated to complete the task. When we went to the team challenge course and had to complete the obstacle course, we failed quickly. People acted as individuals and left the rest of the group to suffer alone. When the group crossed the bridge, it was imperative that the group worked together so no one fell off. Also, when we planned ahead we were able to complete the course in a lesser amount of time.

4. Understand leadership

Sean Covey, the writer of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens, explains how leadership style can affect the group outcome. In business, if members are not happy with the rules that the leader puts in place, the company can suffer. People often act negatively in these situations by not performing up to their best ability. This lowers the production of a company and everyone suffers. When people are happy with their leader they are more inclined to work hard. Thus, production will increase and the company will benefit. Also, never overstep your bounds as a leader; followers deserve a level of autonomy to keep them happy. Allow people to provided for the cause. An example of this is a participative leader, they make the big decisions but give their followers a voice and a certain amount of freedom. A leader must understand how to lead and who they are leading in order to effectively lead.

All of these skills are crucial for a leader to run a successful group. Leaders must be open to criticisms to improve their skills and have an open mind to adapt to the needs of the followers. No leader can be perfect, but gaining new values will create success in any situation.

Jason's Leadership Philosophy

The act of leadership revolves around three P’s: Passion, Purpose, People. Over the past semester in Management and Leadership and throughout my high school career, I have learned that this is what sets apart “leaders” from “managers” and other people in supervising positions. To be a powerful and effective leader one must posses passion for something, have a purpose in mind, and inspire people to follow and acquire the same passion and purpose that the leader has.

Passion is what motivates people to wake up earlier, work harder, and love what they do each day. Whether a person is passionate for personal, social, political, or economic reasons, it is what drives them to persevere through difficulties and strive to achieve their own definition of success. Without passion, a person has no reason to lead and there is no reason for anyone to be inspired. But when a leader demonstrates a strong passion and commitment to something, then people can become inspired and when people are inspired they will usually work harder to achieve the goals set out by the leader. This passion that the leader demonstrates will then lead to a purpose.

Purpose is what guides a leader, it is the reason why the leader is doing something. A big aspect of leadership that I learned this semester is that it is always important to ask yourself “why” you are doing something before you know “how” or maybe even “what” you are doing. Without knowing that “why”, or the purpose, of what you are doing, you have no backbone or guidance to fall back on along the journey of achieving your set goals; you can easily get lost in what you are doing and not be able to succeed because you don’t know why you are doing something. This is why having a purpose is important to being a successful leader. Also, having a purpose will bring together people that share the same reasons or values as you for doing something. A good example is Apple; in a TED talk, Simon Sinek explains how Apple is different from other companies because in their commercials they tell you why they are doing something which then inspires people to follow that same passion and wait in line for 24 hours to buy a new iPhone. In doing so, apple is able to inspire change based on their purpose for doing what they do. But nothing would be achieved by the leader if it wasn't for the people that follow.

People that share the passion, purpose, and vision of the leader are just as important as the leader. No leader can successfully be recognized as a leader if it wasn’t for the support and action of the people following. The job of the leader, though, is to inspire the people to share the same vision, purpose, and goals in order to achieve their desired success. A manager will tell a group of employees what to do and scold them when they are doing it wrong but a leader will inspire the employees to want to take action and work to achieve success. Aculture should be created by the leader and embraced by the people which makes the leader effective and successful.

A leader must trusts his passions which shape a purpose that brings people together in order to achieve great things. A leader without the three P’s is simply a follower so take the risk, pursue your passions, and inspire change by being a successful leader.

Emily's Leadership Philosophy

What is a leader? Before taking this class I didn't have background information to help me answer this question. 6 months ago I probably would have said that a leader was somebody who could lead a group of people to success. But now I understand that leaders are all different types of people and exist in every environment. Being on the GBN Varsity Swim Team, the leaders on our team are the captains. The captains on my team have such a big impact on everyone and are involved in every aspect of what a team is. Planning team bonding activities, choosing team suits, helping teammates through hard times, making rosters, being mediators, and communicating needs between the team and coach plus many more are all things that captains do. Captains are such good leaders because they do all of this without anybody really even noticing that all of this is going on. I believe in order to be a good leader on a team you need to be able to be proactive and understand that becoming a captain you are putting the team before yourself now. This can be hard for some people making it very hard to find a good enough leader to take on the role of a captain of a team.

Captains need to be proactive because nobody is ever 100% sure how things are going to end. During the fall, I had 21 girls on my team and it felt that somebody was always going through something whether it be bad grades or family problems. Captains have to be able to communicate with our coach to tell him what is going on and what needs to happen in order to make the best out of a situation. Because they know that anything can happen, they must prepare for future problems. Captains are great leaders because they need to synergize with each other and our coach to do something that will be the best for the majority of the team. This can be very hard to do because captains are typically seniors and they are still pretty young and end up making big decisions that will affect everyone. Effective leaders provide the vision and motivation to the team so everybody can work together toward the same goals.

To be a good leader you need to have self awareness and work with your other captains which can be hard for some people. It is critical for the captains to be on the same page because they are leading everyone. Captains have to be good at understanding their weaknesses and trying to improve them. For example one captain may be better at communicating with the team while the other captain may be better at communicating with our coach. These captains need to have self awareness to understand what they are good at individually to then work together to create a strong communication team.

The captains need to carry the vision out of the team. Everybody has different goals and different meets they would be swimming at for their final meet of the season like JV conference, Varsity conference, Sectionals, and State. Although it is very important for the entire team to have a great final meet regardless what meet it is, the most important meet is State. The captains have a hard job of creating an atmosphere to show to everyone that they are important and their final meet is also but, they also have to put the message out there about State and how GBN should be represented. This is a reason why it is important to have a captain that will be going to State so they understand what is also best for the most elite group of people on the team because ultimately they are who people see at State. This can be hard when a captain is not going to state because then they have to make decisions that is putting other people in front of yourself. Since many people who are captains do not go to state it is very important for these people to have the ability to put other people in front of themselves without it affecting them too much.

Lastly the captains are kind of like the middle men of the team between our coach and the rest of us they have more power than just a regular member of the team but they don’t have as much power as our coach. To be a good captain they need to know the difference between power and authority. Many times our coach gives the captain's power to make decisions and speak for him but the captains cannot abuse this and turn it into authority. Power is coming from the person who has authority and is respected from that and a captain needs to know the difference between these and to not cross the line and become to authoritative. A captain at most has a 4 year age gap between the youngest person on the team and if a captain became more of an authority, it would defeat the purpose of having a coach and captain separate.

To be a captain you have to be good at so many things and have very few weaknesses. Captains cannot be shy and are going to have to put the team before themselves. Many people are not capable to be a captain because of the dedication the role takes. It is very hard to find a good captain that is good for the entire team and enjoys doing what they do. I believe that captains need to be dedicated, willing to put the team in front of themselves and be able to communicate extremely well to be a good leader.

John's Leadership Philosophy

Leadership is something more complicated than it seems, and it comes in different forms. It's not just telling other people to do what you want; leadership is more of a complex trait that requires multiple parts to work at once. There are many leadership styles and philosophy, but my philosophy is that there is always room for improvement. Maybe it's from the way I was taught growing up, but I think there's always something to tweak for a better result in the future. This means that some things must be constant, but at the same time things must be innovated as well.

1. Lead yourself before you can lead others

http://compumatrice.com/leaders-inspire/

One of the things that leaders must evaluate is themselves. They need to know if they are capable of leading other people. Sean Covey, the author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens said, "We must fix ourselves before we can fix others." If the leader is going to be the one that brings changes, they should change themselves first. There is a sad story about an Anglican bishop who wanted to change the world. However, he realized that the task was difficult because no one wanted to listen to him, even his family. All his life he wanted to change this, but he just couldn't find the way. On his deathbed, he finally realized that if he changed himself, others could have followed him and potentially the world could have changed. No leader ever wants to be that bishop, regretting what he did not do to live his dream.

2. Have a vision in mind

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Tony Robbins, a motivational speaker, once said, "Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible." That is something that leaders should do. A leader must know what he or she is doing; they can't just improvise as they go. Leaders and teams with goals in mind know what they are striving for, and they can reflect on the their performance so they can improve in the future. Without a strong goal and a vision in mind, the team as a whole has no direction to go to. A stuck team that is confused can get frustrated as well, which can potentially jeopardize the team. In the leadership impact project, the Burger Day Group had a vision; we had a set goal in mind and we were working to achieve it. With this goal in our minds, we were able to accomplish our goal.

3. Be Communicative

http://effectivecommunicationadvice.
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Good leaders must have strong communication skills. They must be able to talk to the team so everyone is on board. Leaders should not be hesitant with what they are going to say. The team must know what is on the leader's mind. Otherwise, if the leader won't share, then the team won't know what to do. The followers must also know what their role is so they can be an effective team as an unit. Employees who are comfortable in the environment tend to be more productive. Another skill the leaders should have is that they must also be good listeners. They can't be a brick wall and block everything when fellow employees or fellow leaders are talking to them. Likewise, they can't be a tube and let the noise enter in one ear and leave the other. They should instead be like a sponge; soak in what they are listening to and think of how they can improve, which could be feedbacks or suggestions. In class, the class conducted interviews to applicants, and this forced everyone to use their communication skills effectively, including the use of body language and listening carefully.

4. Be proactive

http://perryloop.com/2014/
07/11/you-want-more/

Everyone knows nothing is perfect; there is always something that can be improved. Leaders should be aware of this, and should constantly improve. With this in mind, they should still be happy with what they have. If a leader is constantly unhappy with the current production, the team morale is going to plummet. In order to keep the morale high, leaders should congratulate and reflect on the current success, but should always strive for more. This parallels my overall philosophy. This also comes from the lesson of being proactive. Leaders should not be reactive and wait for things to happen; they need to go out and make decisions. Leaders who are more proactive and more aggressive gets better results.

5. Be passionate

http://www.christophgrizzard.eu/
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Good leaders love what they do, and they use this passion to motivate the team. He alone cannot be a productive team, and, likewise, a group cannot be a productive team if they are not motivated. A leader with a driving passion brings energy to the team, and this energy can increase productivity or performance.  This goes with the positive/negative motivation lesson that we learned in class. I think positive motivation, like energetic leaders and rewards, are more effective than negative motivation, like threats. A team full of highly motivated, energized workers in a happy mood makes the team full of creativity and potential.

Throughout the year, I learned many things about leadership that can be used in the near future. Like I said before, there are many philosophies in leadership. They come in different forms and different point of views. However, no matter how different they may be from each other, leadership separates the leaders from the led.