Matching Leadership Style to a Situation
MATCHING LEADERSHIP TO A SITUATION
Leadership Styles
Choosing the Right Style for the Situation
From Mahatma Gandhi and Winston Churchill to Martin Luther King and Steve Jobs, there can seem to be as many ways to lead people as there are leaders. Fortunately, businesspeople and psychologists have developed useful, simple ways to describe the main styles of leadership. By understanding these styles and their impact, you can develop your own approach to leadership and become a more effective leader and school head as well. We'll look at common leadership styles in this article, and we'll explore situations where these styles may be effective with your people.
(Note: The leadership styles in this article are based on several core leadership frameworks.)
Adapting Your Approach to Leadership
Leadership is not "one size fits all" thing; often, you must adapt your style to fit a situation or a specific group. This is why it's useful to gain a thorough understanding of other leadership styles; after all, the more approaches you're familiar with, the more tools you'll be able to use to lead effectively.
Let's take a deeper look at some of the leadership styles that you can use.
1. Transactional Leadership
This leadership style starts with the idea that team members agree to obey their leader when they accept a job. The "transaction" usually involves the organization paying team members in return for their effort and compliance. The leader has a right to "punish" team members if their work doesn't meet an appropriate standard.
Although this might sound controlling and paternalistic, transactional leadership offers some benefits. For one, this leadership style clarifies everyone's roles and responsibilities. Another benefit is that, because transactional leadership judges team members on performance, people who are ambitious or who are motivated by external rewards – including compensation – often thrive.
The downside of this leadership style is
Leadership Styles
Choosing the Right Style for the Situation
From Mahatma Gandhi and Winston Churchill to Martin Luther King and Steve Jobs, there can seem to be as many ways to lead people as there are leaders. Fortunately, businesspeople and psychologists have developed useful, simple ways to describe the main styles of leadership. By understanding these styles and their impact, you can develop your own approach to leadership and become a more effective leader and school head as well. We'll look at common leadership styles in this article, and we'll explore situations where these styles may be effective with your people.
(Note: The leadership styles in this article are based on several core leadership frameworks.)
Adapting Your Approach to Leadership
Leadership is not "one size fits all" thing; often, you must adapt your style to fit a situation or a specific group. This is why it's useful to gain a thorough understanding of other leadership styles; after all, the more approaches you're familiar with, the more tools you'll be able to use to lead effectively.
Let's take a deeper look at some of the leadership styles that you can use.
1. Transactional Leadership
This leadership style starts with the idea that team members agree to obey their leader when they accept a job. The "transaction" usually involves the organization paying team members in return for their effort and compliance. The leader has a right to "punish" team members if their work doesn't meet an appropriate standard.
Although this might sound controlling and paternalistic, transactional leadership offers some benefits. For one, this leadership style clarifies everyone's roles and responsibilities. Another benefit is that, because transactional leadership judges team members on performance, people who are ambitious or who are motivated by external rewards – including compensation – often thrive.
The downside of this leadership style is