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Great Man

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Great Man
Great-Man Theory
Defining a Leader
Omar Quesada
Webber International University

Introduction

As I have read about it, a particular interest in my has been raising about the wonderful way many people has utilized their natural abilities as a medium of reunion and leadership. I found a string link between this gifts or skills these men had and their particular behavior in the time they lived. I would like to talk about the special characteristics that had to be present; more specific the building process of a divine individual, a prophet capable of guiding its people and the importance they have represented to humanity, whether realistic or not, since the theory has been around ever since.

Great-Man Theory

In order to get to know more about the theory of the great man, we should not ignore that this is a theory based on leadership. So, what is leadership? Scholars have defined leadership as “ the process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task”. To my personal beliefs, leadership is: a medium to an end, it is a very particular tool with which gifted individuals in the interpersonal field can either alone or together command, guide, and lead another group of people towards completing an established goal by cheering, supporting and setting a relation with the subordinates based on a strong dose of trustworthiness.

Now, the Great-Man theory of leadership according to Winston & Patterson (2006) refers “to the idea that leaders possess innately superior qualities that distinguish them from other people, including the ability to capture the imagination and loyalty of the masses.” In other few words, that leaders are born, not made. Winston & Patterson (2006) also quote that “a leader achieves influence by humbly conveying a prophetic vision of the future” meaning that he resonates with the follower beliefs and values in such a way that the follower can



References: Cawthon, D.L (1996). Leadership: The great man theory revisited. Business Horizons, 39(3), 1-4. Retrieved April 7, 2012, from Academic Search Premiere. Cherry, K. (2012). The great man theory of leadership. Journal of Effective Management, 3(2), 10-17. Retrieved April 7, 2012, from Academic Search Premiere. Covey, S.R. (1989). The 7 habits of highly effective people. Provo: Free Press. Invisible Children (2012). More about us. Retrieved April 14, 2012, from www.invisiblechildren.com Lapham’s Quarterly. (2012). Great man theory. Retrieved April 7, 2012, from http://www.laphamsquarterly.org/voices-in-time/great-man-theory.php Leadership Central. (2012). Great man theory. Retrieved April 7, 2012, from www.leadership-central.com Mead, M. (1970). Culture and commitment. San Francisco: Natural History Press. Winston, B. & Patterson, K. (2006). An integrative definition of leadership. International Journal of Leadership Studies, 1(2), 7-14. Retrieved April 7, 2012, from Academic Search Premiere.

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