LDRS 500-Unit 1-LA 5
The principle of servant leadership
Servant leadership, which originated in the writings of Greenleaf (1970, 1972, 1977), has been of interest to leadership scholars for more than 40 years. Servant leadership is an approach that runs counter to common sense. Greenleaf (1970) suggested that servant leadership is a unique leadership philosophy that “begins with natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead” (as cited in Northouse, 2018, p. 220). The Communication between leaders and followers is an interactive process that includes sending and Receiving. Servant leaders communicate listening first to serve. Northouse (2018) viewed Listening as a “learned discipline that involves hearing and being receptive to what others have to say” (p.221).
Listening allow us to be aware and help us to discern the information that leads to understanding and have a better conversation. I work as a medical laboratory technologist, dealing with nurses, doctors, coworkers, and students, which requires having an active listening skill to be able to serve. It necessitates listening genuinely with the intention to understand then collaborate with others. Jit, Sharma, Kawatra (2016) examined the choice of conflict management strategies made by servant leaders and found they “exhibited highly rational skills regarding their ability to listen actively and understand the situation and build trust to have a genuine agreement in resolving conflict” (p.600). Servant leaders demonstrate listening to help in the diagnosis of a conflict situation and bring an amicable solution to the table.
Empathy is feeling with people and begin with listening. It’s quality that requires perspective taking and staying out of judgment and reminds me when I have to resolve an issue arisen with two coworkers on their assigned bench. Different opinions and perspectives caused a problem. Recognizing the emotions of other people and communicate them helped in resolving the issue. Empathy It’s a vulnerable choice when servant leader puts followers first; it gives the leader a better understanding, and take action to alleviate their suffering. Northouse (2018) noted, “empathetic servant leaders demonstrate that they truly understand what followers are thinking and feeling” (p.221). It manages emotional turmoil after
conflict and anguishes employee distresses and workplace incivility. Empathy sustains a relationship and brings the best among workers (Jit et al. (2017).
Commitment to the growth of people as noted in Northouse (2018), that servant leaders are committed to helping each person in the organization grow personally and professionally” (p.222). A great leader strives to enable their followers to grow their potential and servant leaders believe if you create the right value and culture, followers will do extraordinary things. A fundamental study by Schaubroeck, Lam, and Peng (2011) explained servant leadership focuses on promoting integration among unit members and
“influenc[ing] the team performance through affect-based trust and team psychological safety. This quality has been modeled in my team lead on a daily basis. She focused on her team members to give us the support needed to meet our work and personal goals. I grew in my profession to take an extra role in my job. Through the leader-followers relationship, servant leader committed to helping followers with intrinsic values that go above and beyond. I believe the commitment to the growth of people is my next endeavor to examine and help coworkers and students to reach their potential.
How did servant leaders expect to make a decision in a culture where managers and leaders in position?
Reference
Jit, R., Sharma, C. S., & Kawatra, M. (2016). Servant Leadership and conflict resolution: a qualitative study. IJMCM: International Journal of Conflict Management, 27(4), 591-612. doi:10.1108/IJCMA-12-2015-0086
Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and practice, Seventh Edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. ISBN 971452203409
Schaubroeck, J., Lam, S. K., & Peng, A. C. (2011). Cognition-based and affect-based trust as mediators of leader behavior influences on team performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 96(4), 863-871
