A good leader is a good Teammate and well trusted Friend

Remember the difference between a boss and a leader; a boss says "Go!" - a leader says "Let's go!"  ~E.M. Kelly

My leadership philosophy by Clark Caron 

As I leader I have always been laid back and gone with the flow. Its not out of laziness, it is because I have a belief that if someone is given the opportunity to do something truly exceptional (wether or not they believe they can) they will own up to the challenge. I also believe that if you cannot do the work yourself you can't expect others to do it. Its with these ideals that I am a free rein leader, letting my employees manage themselves, allowing me to be more hands on and part of the group. But with free rein you run the risk of getting off track, so when I notice that I suggest another idea to get the team back on track and for that brief moment I am  an autocratic leader. This method makes sure the work gets done right, and the employees are happier because they are given space to work without me breathing down their necks. This is my leadership style, but there is more that goes into my leadership philosophy than the style that I built upon to best fit me. There are 4 core qualities and skills that I believe can make a great leader an exceptional one and are what I think truly defines me as a leader. 

1. Communication. Communication is important because it makes sure nothing is forgotten and that nothing is accidentally done twice. Great communication makes everything run smoother. The key to great communication is making sure everyone can communicate using the same means of communication such as Email, texting, Facebook or google+. In our modern world with all the instant ways to connect with technology there is no reason to be out of the loop. 

2.  Beginning with the end in mind. This is important because it is very easy to get off track when you don't know where you are going to end. When making a plan or outline I like to start with what I would like to do then move onto what is possible. Also make sure everything has deadlines and that everyone has roles so you stay on track and on time. It also makes everyone (including yourself) accountable for their own work. 

3. Motivation, positive or negative. A good employee needs to be acknowledged for their good work. Getting told that you are doing a great job by your leader is a great thing so you keep up the good work to keep them proud of you. Another good way to motivate workers is an incentive program where good work awards you prizes. Bad work and major mistakes need to be noted too, and as a leader you have to talk to that employee about it. An employee who knows they let you down will not only feel shameful, but driven to make up for their mistake and to get back into your good graces. 

4. Being fair, understanding and respected. Being fair and understanding is as important as being respected. Being a fair leader makes your employees trust you more and they feel more comfortable. This allows them to focus more on their work and not on other things. Being understanding is also important because if an employee has a problem thats affecting their work they have to trust that you will being understanding enough to cut them some slack. If they don't they will keep this problem to themselves and continue to work. Then they could very easily make a mistake, big or small, which makes them a liability. Also others may be dependent on that one workers work so they could be dragging down others with them. Being respected is just as important because your employees have to know you've proved that you earned your position and you deserve to be a leader. If an employee does not respect you they will constantly second guess and undermine everything you say. 

These four qualities, skills and ideals are a product of my experiences out of school at work or playing on a team and what I've learned in school thanks to classes like Management and leadership. These qualities are something I keep in mind to be the best leader I can be on a daily basis, and are something I work on as I strive to be the best leader I can be and reach my full potential. 

Henry "Leadership Philosophy" Fairbanks

My Leadership Philosophy

"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader."

-John Quincy Adams

Leading By Example:

Leading by example sets a trend for others to follow. As discussed in 7 Habits, Being productive and beginning tasks with the end in mind can have an effect on the outcome of any particular experience. Setting an example of being productive shows others how to become successful in terms of business, and to be able to take on more opportunities in a shorter amount of time. If you take the idea of beginning with an end result in mind,then you can really take time to set goals and manage time with better effectiveness. Setting these stepping stones to followers will help to set guidelines for them to follow, and remain a valuable asset to a well organized team.

The Passion:

Being a strong leader would not be possible in any field without a passionate background for what a person involves themselves in. Being able to accomplish goals would never happen without passion for what you do. In my eyes, loving what you do, and being a great motivator, and educator to others really shows dedication in any Leadership role. Key: Motivation. If employees are motivated by a great leader, then the whole dynamic of a company will change for the better. Work will be more enjoyable for everyone and the Employees will show more trust towards you. Once this trust has been established between leaders and followers, it becomes the leaders task to educate them on key aspects of being an effective member of a well-rounded team.

Communication:

As one of the most important parts of any leaders philosophy, communication leads to a successful, and established well-oiled working machine. In my own experiences from class, communication played a large role in the cooperation of my fellow classmates during our trip to a teams-course. Communication and collaboration play a large role in and business environment in order to be successful and productive. Having every player on the team work together is one step, yet being able to communicate well really adds a key aspect to team efforts. Leaders having organized a way for employees to communicate will most definitely show a less stressed work environment and a more fluid way of getting things done.

Philosophy:

All of these traits lead to a Leader who can be productive and straight forward, yet someone who can still be calm and composed and be able to listen to outside ideas. I consider myself to be a Leader who can adjust to situations no matter how hard the challenge, and be able to come away from it with a goal and a desire to learn from it. Leading by example is one of the key aspects that I believe in to become a successful leader. If you do not lead to educate employees, then there is not point of leading at all. My philosophy is that a leader is not just a person who is there to set rules and monitor from the sidelines, but a person who gets active and listens to outside ideas and comments on how to improve on past failures, and to be able to adjust for the benefit of the whole team.

Jobs, Mackey, and Schultz

"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader." —John Quincy Adams

Anyone can be a leader, but a great leader is someone who can combine the qualities we have been studying all year long-- communication, management, motivation, and accountability.

Case Studies

1. Consider the work of Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks Corporation. As a leader, he overcame the most important obstacle to succeed as a leader: believing in oneself. When Howard brought Starbucks, no one believed he could make it into a successful venture. No one could possible believe he could make any money selling Coffee. Fast forward 20 years, and Starbucks is now one of the most frequently visited business all over the world. What I learned from Howard's leadership is the importance of not worrying about what other people think. Good leaders can't just conform to societies' expectations; if they did, they would never have the independence to think for themselves. Many people would probably associate this concept of doing what is right as a sort of "human-rights" leadership philosophy. But they are wrong because good leaders can do what is right regardless of the circumstance. It could be humans-rights, family, business, community work Schultz did what was right by putting aside his fears and societal expectations. He always thought win-win because he never gave up or doubted his potential. If he had, he never would've gone so far in his business.

2. I also like to mention Steve Jobs as a great leader who really exemplifies many of the qualities we have been talking about all year. As a leader, Steve is able to withstand people's expectations of him. Steve is an effective leader because he has a drive for success that Daniel Pink mentioned in his book. For Steve, it isn't about the money. Rather, it is his passion for innovation. He didn't necessarily go to college very long, but he still took classes that interested him and this lead to many of his Apple products. The keyboards we use on all computers (including windows) can be attributed to Steve Jobs. 

In my opinion, a good manager/leader needs to be able to hit 3 essential points:

1. Communication- If a leader can't communicate, then he isn't really leading anyone! The definition of leadership is being able to guide others, so a good leader must be able to effectively define the roles of the sender and receiver by setting up a system where there is verbal and non-verbal aspects. For example, a leader could place a box where people can drop notes in for criticism.
2. Motivation- A leader can't get everything done on his own: he needs to work collaboratively. In order to do so, he needs to make sure his employees and those who are under his command feel the drive to accomplish the task. A good way to do so is to find a balance between authority and democracy. At the end of the day, the leader has the final word but he needs to intake the ideas of others. Whole Foods, for example, is largely run by its workers and considering its commercial success, it definitely works!
3. Begin with the end in mind- In his extraordinary book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens, author Sean Covey explains how effective teenagers always have a goal they are trying to accomplish; there is a famous quote: "A goal without a plan is just a wish." Similarly, good leaders always understand their goals. Thus, they manage their company accordingly to accomplish this goal. By taking the steps to work towards that final end result, great, not good, leaders set themselves apart because they have purpose.

Lauren Konopka's Leadership Philosophy

Leader Types:

Autocratic Leader: This type of leader has absolute power and listens to no one else (dictator).

Bureaucratic Leader: A bureaucratic leader does everything by the book insuring the staff follow all procedures exactly.

Transformational Leader: This type of leader leads to inspire their employees and team.

Laissez-faire Leader: Normally people who follow the Laissez-faire tries to leave their employees alone to decide for themselves, they are usually surrounded by a skillful team of employees.

Democratic Leader: Invites other employees and team members to come up with decisions and relies on an agreement between everyone of what is best.

My Leadership Philosophy

I try to be a mix of all types of leaders ranging from a Autocratic form of leadership to more of a Democratic way of leading. I believe that there are certain situations that require certain types of leadership. I think a good leader knowns this, and uses their flexibility to their advantage. If I were to choose what type of leader I am, it would involve more of the democratic style. In other words I am a quiet leader.

-I like to work behind the scenes, I’m very quiet, patient, and careful with my work.

-I don’t assume there is a right way to do things, I take things one step at a time, and work off of that.

-I like when there is structure because I know exactly what to do, and don’t have to be creative with my work.

-I understand that some situation call for direct, forceful action, but this would be my last resort.

-I think  preparation, caution, care, and attention to detail are usually the best approach to important, demanding challenges.

-I try to keep my mind open to new ideas.

-I understand that, quite often, things turn out much different from what they or anyone expects, and I am ready to move flexibly and rapidly.

- I am well aware of my own self-interests, and I work hard to protect my reputation.

-I like to have a lot of time when dealing with challenges. Time gives people a chance to assess their real obligations and gives sound instincts a chance to emerge.

-I like the get to the bottom of things.

-I also like to get as much feedback from people who have already dealt with some of the challenges I am going through.

-I like to examine and then re-examine problems, looking for new angles/perspectives on everything.

Overall I feel like people think less of quiet leaders and don’t think highly of them compared to other types of leaders. Although I believe myself to be a quiet leader, I still have my own opinions and just because I don’t always verbally share them with everyone doesn’t mean they are not there. Everyone has their own interests and ways of expressing themselves, especially when it comes to leading other people. I am a quiet leader and that is okay.

Elizabeth Schack's Leadership Philosophy

My Leadership Philosophy

Leading others is hard work and takes time. People react differently to different people, and I believe a good leader has to be able to adjust what they are saying so that it registers to the people listening. I strive to be this type of person all the time. I am a democratic and transformational leader. I try to include everyone in decisions and be the type of leader who inspires people to work well. Below are my top ten qualities I believe should be in a good leader. I strive to have all of these qualities in my everyday life.

1. Listen
   Be attentive. If you want your workers to listen to you, you have to listen to them too. Hear what they’re saying to you and remember it--it may help you in the future.
   
   
2. Have a sense of humor
   Be understanding. Life happens, things don’t always work out perfectly. Understand that mistakes and accidents happen and there is nothing to change this. Accept this and next time just be prepared in the future for the next one.
   
   
3. Lead by example
   Be confident. If you want your workers to produce good work you need to show them how to do it. You’re the leader, you’re the role model. Show them how it’s done, but be open to new ideas. Have some humility though; everyone’s human, even you make mistakes.
   
   
4. Motivate, Motivate, Motivate
   Be enthusiastic and passionate. Make your workers know that what they are doing is important and that without them things would be much harder. Make them feel important so they know their work is important.
   
   
5. Be open to new ideas
   Be creative. Times change, methods need to change along with it. Ideas twenty years ago may have been great for that time, but they won’t work now. If there are new ideas to help make things better, it isn’t an insult to you. Your workers want to make the job more efficient for you and them. They're working with you not against you.
   
   
6. Gain Respect
   Be assertive. While it is great to be open to new ideas, don’t let your employees walk all over you. You’re the boss and they need to know it. Make sure you make choices for the good of the company, not because you don’t want to hurt somebody’s feelings.
   
   
7. Take time for yourself
   Be able to take a break. Being the boss can be stressful. Make sure you’re healthy and well or else nothing in your office will get done. You’re only as strong as your weakest link.
   
   
8. Communicate well
   Be clear. If you want something done, but nobody understands you, it won’t happen. Make sure you communicate your ideas well so there aren’t questions later. This way things will get done the first time. Ask questions and make sure people know what they are doing.
   
   
9. Work well with others
   Be cooperative. If nobody can work with you, how is work supposed to get done? Try to get along well with others.
   
   
10. Take Ownership
    Be responsible. Your teams work all comes down to you. Don’t be afraid to step up for the faults. Learn what went wrong and do better next time. But don’t blame anybody for anything. Your work represents you, so if you don’t want to look bad, make sure your work doesn’t.