Tag: Unit 4

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Response to Dizzy Butterfly – Light from Many Lamps – Part 2

Hello Dizzy Butterfly

As I reflect upon A.J. Cronin’s (1951) passage and consider your eloquent post, it occurred to me how the stories we choose from this book really speak to who, and how we are as leaders. Your post was assertive, concise and filled me with the sense that you are very intentional and missional as it relates to you goals and objectives; therefore, like my theory, I felt drawn to your post because I also recognize the very real impact of one’s bias in voice and in thoughts over their physical, mental and spiritual domains. Personally, I have found that the best critical thinking version of myself will often manifest within an environment drenched in positivity and some measure of solitude. Is this why it seems that we are losing so many critical-thinkers in the modern world today – reduced faith in one’s potential and lack of time available for reflection in solitude? In his own achievement, Cronin became a beacon for the leadership lesson of persistence; however, my deeper sense is that when leaders share their struggles with others, they can find regeneration in clarity and motivation. Case in point, Cronin confided in the old man digging a patch of heath, revealing his struggle resulting in some sage-like advice releasing Cronin from his own mental prison, restarting the “unquenchable flame of resolution” (Cronin, 1951, p. 149).

Matt

Cronin, A. (1951). The virtue of all achievement is victory over oneself. Those who know this victory can never know defeat. In L. E. Watson, Light from Many Lamps (pp. 147-152). New York: Simon & Schuster.

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Response to Daneen – Light from Many Lamps – Part 2

Hello Daneen

As it relates to Thomas Carlyle’s (1951) passage titled, Blessed is he who has found his work, thank you for sharing and describing your key insights into how perseverance and self-awareness integrate within your professional career in health care. How a leader demonstrates to themselves and to others a commitment to follow through with a vision and most importantly when to self-adjust, led me to reflect upon Carlyle’s (1951) love for the significance in work when he states, “a man perfects himself by working” (p. 135). Sexism in this age to be sure; however, the statement led me to consider how perfecting himself within the context of leadership, could be adapted and applied externally towards perfecting others we are leading. Personally, the key lesson prompts the question, “How can I grow the measure of perseverance and self-awareness in others so that they can accomplish what may seem completely out of reach”? It is encouraging to hear that you have found your sweet spot at work; however, let us continue to build our awareness, both in self, and in the environment to identify where others are along in their journey, so that like the author, our newly adapted “Carlyle” philosophy will be restated as Blessed is he who has found work, especially in others.

Matt

Carlyle, T. (1951). Blessed is he who has found his work. In L. E. Watson, Light from Many Lamps (pp. 134-137). New York: Simon & Schuster.

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Blog Post Two

Unlike the Roman-era power/leader-member exchange style of leadership as expressed through the Jewish Pharisees and Sadducees of His time, Jesus Christ flawlessly demonstrated how to capture and appeal to, hearts and minds when one looks for “what is right with people rather than emphasizing what is wrong with them” (Searle & Barbuto Jr., 2011, p. 107). By no means did this type of leadership begin with Jesus, but in the context of the most typical leadership approaches of His day, He might as well have started it. In his book Leadership, Peter G. Northouse (2016) states that servant leadership is a paradoxical approach that runs counter to common sense (p. 225); however, when Jesus creates clarity from the complex through parables, heals emotionally, behaves ethically, empowers, puts followers first and creates value for the community (and the world) at large, servant leadership is less paradoxical than one would think.

As One who clearly exemplifies this component of servant leadership, Jesus had an advantage in terms of being fully aware; however, other leaders He was training may not have had a reservoir of experience to draw upon with understanding human behaviour. Similar to emotional intelligence’s (EI) component of self-awareness as “having a deep understanding on one’s emotions, strengths, weaknesses, needs and drives” (Goleman, 1998, p. 84), a servant-leaders awareness is a characteristic which develops from knowing oneself and how they impact the world around them. In slight contrast to this very ethereal-like emotional connection to oneself as a means to serve others, a psychodynamic approach aligns with clinical mechanisms to understand behaviour of both leader and follower striving to “create reflective practitioners” (Northouse, 2016, p. 307). Although the psychodynamic approach digs deep into “underlying irrational processes and dynamics governing human behaviour” (Northouse, 2016, p. 324), in my opinion, the awareness of a servant leader is generally less rigid, more holistic, and like Jesus, extends a consistency in model to all followers, not just a select group.

Matt

Goleman, D. (1998, November). What makes a leader? Harvard Business Review, 76(6), 82-90.

Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: theory and practice (Seventh ed.). Los Angeles: Sage Publications.

Searle, T. P., & Barbuto Jr., J. E. (2011). Servant leadership, hope, and organizational virtuousness: A framework exploring positive micro and macro behaviors and performance impact. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 18(1), 107-117.

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Blog Post One

As we navigate the turns, barriers and junctions along the road of leadership, the more distant the old guideposts of traditional leadership appear in the rear-view mirror. Even more so beyond contemporary thought and theory, modern-day businesses and organizations are beginning to recognize the value in performance, and to the bottom-line, when working with leaders that employ greater transformative versus traditional leadership approaches. By no means does this new paradigm make the task of motivating other towards a common goal any easier, but in a “dynamic external environment where employees are empowered with greater responsibility and are encouraged to take initiative and risk” (Smith, Montagno, & Kuzmenko, 2004, p. 89), re-humanizing the measure and approach when influencing others is creating many positive exceptions to the old rules.

To paraphrase Peter G. Northouse (2015) in his book titled Leadership, transformational leadership offers some very broad appeal emphasizing the importance of morals and values in a process which influences followers to not only accomplish more than what is usually expected of them, but demonstrates success in what can be achieved as a group when minimizing the role of individual self-interest (p.161). Apart from drifting uncomfortably close to what some would consider trait-like qualities, transformational leadership is personally appealing to me because its approach is, in a sense, mission-like, tethered to a perspective which places value on nurturing change and inspiring positive growth in others over one-self.

As an approach used by many, transformational leadership is woven throughout public, private, for-profit, not-for-profit and institutional sectors the world over. Once lawyer, turned airline pioneer and co-founder of Southwest Airlines, Herb Kelleher developed a vision to challenge the status quo, rooted in orientating attention towards the needs of others from a purpose-driven perspective, while swimming in the mire of a highly risky industry fueled mainly by hardened profit-driven perspective. With a strong charismatic style, Herb believed and developed “a process of influence of reciprocity in relationships that benefit both parties” (Cote, 2017, p. 5); and apart from his clarity of vision, Herb created all hierarchal points in the company to behave as “transforming contexts” (Northouse, 2016, p. 180). Not only did he implement a process of job-exchanging, so that each employee could benefit from experiencing each other’s roles and tasks, but Herb expressed a desire that all Southwest employees would get treated as their first, and only best customer; which ultimately, as a subsequent mechanism of this investment, generated a sense of ownership producing service levels for their flying customers beyond anything ever encountered in commercial air travel before.

Matt

Cote, R. (2017, September 13). Vision of effective leadership. International Journal of Business Administration, 8(6), 1-10.

Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: theory and practice (Seventh ed.). Los Angeles: Sage Publications.

Smith, B. N., Montagno, R. V., & Kuzmenko, T. N. (2004). Tranformational and servant leadership: Content and contextual comparisons. Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, 10(4), 80-91.

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Light from Many Lamps – Part Two

Cancer.

The very breath one takes before saying that word is often just as long as the silence that follows it. For those poor souls burdened with an affliction that strikes indiscriminately with murderous indifference; I ask, which process reveals itself as the true menace? The arbitrary nature of tissue destruction, or the fear that strikes the mind because of it? In the case of Mary Roberts Rinehart, a mid-twentieth century world-famous novelist who battled against cancer, it was the measure of courage and endurance “to face your danger” (Rinehart, 1951) ushering her successfully through a crisis which inspired countless others to refuse the all-too-natural response of fear, silence and delay.

Rinehart’s approach to this very personal challenge was to reject any power it held over her aligning with what Dan B. Allender (2006) calls in his book Leading with a Limp, “effective responses”, drawing upon courage or hope paired with depth (p. 10). Allender goes on to describe how fear is a “completely understandable motivator” in which leaders need to understand precisely how those fears keep us silent and trapped as it relates to our potential influence upon others (p. 5). Because Rinehart is demonstrating an approach that “helps others explore and change their values” (Northouse, 2016) especially in the midst of sudden change, this measure of adaptive leadership is relevant within my own leadership context when learning how to fight for perspective and opportunity in crises, versus letting it produce dysfunctional reactions (p. 258).

It is clear that a crisis like cancer is incomparable to anything I personally encounter in the context of my organizational duties and responsibilities; nevertheless, Rinehart’s words of inspiration resonates just the same. Rinehart (1951) states that “every crucial experience can be a setback, or a new start”; therefore, I believe this should be the quintessential choice before beginning to tackle issues (p. 103). Sharing your courage with others in choosing to adapt one’s comfort level to a new boss, communicating workforce downsizing, or a handling a crisis like a major product recall are just some of the business examples where, with the acknowledgement of fears manipulations, time and contrast with other experiences, we should ask, is it as “soul-shattering as people think?” (Rinehart, 1951, p. 102).

Matt

Allender, D. B. (2006). Leading with a limp. Colorado Springs, Colorado: Waterbrook Press.

Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: theory and practice (Seventh ed.). Los Angeles: Sage Publications.

Rinehart, M. R. (1951). Courage & the conquest of fear. In L. E. Watson, Light from Many Lamps (pp. 100-103). New York: Simon & Schuster.