Leadership Theories
1.) INTRODUCTION
“Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it” Dwight D Eisenhower
Leadership is one of those things that are often awfully hard to define but you know when you see it, and you definitely know when it is missing. Leadership is a process that is ultimately concerned with fostering change. In contrast to the notion of management, which suggests preservation and maintenance, leadership implies a process where there is movement-from wherever we are now to some future place of condition that is different. Leadership is not something we do, it is something we are. Leadership also implies intentionality, in the sense that the implied change is not random-“change for change’s sake”- but is rather directed toward some future end or condition, which is inherently value-based.
A traditional definition of leadership: Leadership is an interpersonal influence directed toward the achievement of a goal or goals.
Three important parts of this definition are the terms interpersonal, influence, and goal.
• Interpersonal means between persons. Thus, a leader has more than one person (group) to lead.
• Influence is the power to affect others.
• Goal is the end one strives to attain.
Basically, this traditional definition of leadership says that a leader influences more than one person toward a goal.
Consistent with the notion that leadership is concerned with change, we view the “leader” basically as a change agent-one who fosters change. Leaders, then, are not necessarily those who merely hold formal “leadership” positions; on the contrary, all people are potential leaders. Furthermore, since the concept of leadership and leader implied that there are other people involved; leadership is, by definition, a collective or group process.
In short our conception of leadership comprises the following basic assumptions:
•
“Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it” Dwight D Eisenhower
Leadership is one of those things that are often awfully hard to define but you know when you see it, and you definitely know when it is missing. Leadership is a process that is ultimately concerned with fostering change. In contrast to the notion of management, which suggests preservation and maintenance, leadership implies a process where there is movement-from wherever we are now to some future place of condition that is different. Leadership is not something we do, it is something we are. Leadership also implies intentionality, in the sense that the implied change is not random-“change for change’s sake”- but is rather directed toward some future end or condition, which is inherently value-based.
A traditional definition of leadership: Leadership is an interpersonal influence directed toward the achievement of a goal or goals.
Three important parts of this definition are the terms interpersonal, influence, and goal.
• Interpersonal means between persons. Thus, a leader has more than one person (group) to lead.
• Influence is the power to affect others.
• Goal is the end one strives to attain.
Basically, this traditional definition of leadership says that a leader influences more than one person toward a goal.
Consistent with the notion that leadership is concerned with change, we view the “leader” basically as a change agent-one who fosters change. Leaders, then, are not necessarily those who merely hold formal “leadership” positions; on the contrary, all people are potential leaders. Furthermore, since the concept of leadership and leader implied that there are other people involved; leadership is, by definition, a collective or group process.
In short our conception of leadership comprises the following basic assumptions:
•