Overall I found these three assessments enlightening, encouraging and helpful!

Northouse (2018) provides definitions of the leadership approaches that these assessments are based in: 1) Trait: focused on personality characteristics of the leader 2) Skills: focused on the leader’s capabilities 3) Behavioural: focused on what leaders do and how they behave (p. 73).

Trait Approach (LTQ)

For this assessment I asked five of my team to do the survey. The scores on dependable and determined were the most enlightening. My team’s average was notably higher on dependable than my score. Lately, I have been worried about being dependable as a leader, because I have multiple roles and responsibilities and am now doing this part-time MA. In juggling many things, I noticed I can sometimes be forgetful or fail to follow through on things. I want my team to feel like they can rely on me and trust I will do what I say.

I was challenged when my team scored me lower on determined than I scored myself. I have always seen myself as a very determined person and my husband, my family and close friends often comment on this. This makes me want to ask my team more about their scores, because I may need to grow more in this area in the ministry setting.

Skills Approach

For the skills assessment, I was surprised that my technical score was as high as it was, at 18. I generally shy away from technical things as much as possible. The human and conceptual scores did not surprise me, as both were very high and equally scored at 27. I have known those two areas are my leadership strengths.

Behavioural Approach

For the behavioural approach, the results were not surprising. Both task and relationship were high. Task was scored at 40 and relationship at 45. I know I prefer relationship over task, but I am still very task-driven.

This exercise was good to do and I would like to use these assessments in my ministry staff team, as we navigate changes for the near future and a possible shift in leadership roles.

 

Northouse, P. G. (2018). Leadership: theory and practice (8th ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.