Hi everyone,
I'm excited to be in this class because as an accountant high ethical standards is a must but I believe it is a top priority in any position. I currently work as an Accountant/HR assistant director for a non-profit organization.
I have two teenagers and I'm looking forward to my son's graduation next month. He will also be attending Carlow in the fall. I think it will be interesting for us to both be attending the same school at the same time. Although I'm not sure he sees it that way. LOL I have one crazy mixed beagle that we rescued from Animal Friends last year. He gets into everything but is a real cutie.
I'm look forward to graduating from the MBA program at Carlow next July. I'm sure that this degree will provide me with many new opportunities for personal and professional growth.
Connie,
ReplyDeleteGreat review and it looks like you are a professional blogger!
This looks like a great book that many organizations should use to turn managers into leaders. It is so true that with the globalization of business good leaders are becoming more in demand. It sure is hard to find people in the work place that exhibit even half of the ten characteristics you list, let alone the top four.
Honesty is a top characteristic, not only in business but in life. It is always quite refreshing to find honest people or experience honest acts, because unfortunately they are few and far between.
You made a pointed out a good connection between this book and Caritas in Veritate.
1. I absolutely think it is possible to be credible without being overconfident or arrogant. An example that comes to mind is my current supervisor. She left her position a year ago and asked 10 of us to come with her to a new place and we did. She is confident but humble and has earned our respect and confidence in her. She possesses almost all of the ten desired characteristics.
2. It seems that good leaders do often have a natural instinct to lead but I also believe leadership skills can be taught. But in order for someone to learn them they must already possess moral values and characteristics. If they have the right foundation skills and techniques can be learned.
3. I don’t think anything is guaranteed to work in ALL situations. I think there will always be people put into leadership’s positions who do not belong there and people will always think they are good leaders but really are not.
Thanks
Thanks Colleen. Yes it was a really good book on how to be a leader. It is hard to find coworkers with these characteristics. In fact, many of our top management people are the ones who are most lacking in this area.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about being able to be a credible leader without being full of yourself. It sounds as if you have a supervisor who is wonderful. She must be really something to have ten people leave their jobs to follow her.
I believe leadership skills can be taught also. The skills can be something you acquire over the course of your life. Moral values and character are ingrained in you as you grow up. I guess parents can be credible leaders of their families also. Credible leaders can be found everywhere not just in the work place. But, I think we really need them in the work place now with globalization and increased social media.
You are right in thinking that bad leaders get put into leadership positions and good ones don’t always. All the training in the world won’t change a person who has immoral values and is self-centered.
Thanks for your comments Colleen. You have some great ideas.
Do you think it is possible to become a credible leader and not become overconfident and arrogant? I just touched on this in my blog not 2 seconds ago. Along with great leadership comes power, and we all know how power has the ability to corrupt. I believe in alliances, and the circle of trust. A leader must surround his or herself with a circle that will serve as a check system to ensure that moral character remains intact. This is true on the most basic levels—we can all count on a good friend to pull us back in once we’ve gone off the proverbial deep end. I don’t know if it’s fail safe, but it’s a sure step in the right direction.
ReplyDeleteAre people born leaders or can it be a learned skill? I’ve been confronted with this question a time or two throughout the MBA program. I’m always cautious when answering because I believe it’s both. Some people are just naturally engaging, while others have to work at it. It can also depend on circumstances. None of us know what we are capable of until the perfect set of circumstances or opportunity comes along…and instantly, a leader is born. I’ve researched everyone from Adolf Hitler to Muhammad Gandhi and I still can’t give you an absolute on this one.
Would this approach to learning how to be a credible leader work in all situations? It’s an excellent blue print, but how can you teach emotional intelligence? How can you teach someone empathy, which is needed to be an ethical leader. It’s a step in the right direction, but certainly not the be all, end all solid ethical leadership.
I absolutely agree with you Ronya about surrounding yourself with people of character that can call you on something that could lead you down the wrong path.
ReplyDeleteThe leader question is a hard one but I believe there are some people who are born with a gift of leadership but need to be taught ethics and values along the way to make them a credible leader. I think it can be learned also over the course of a life.
Again, I agree with you on not being able to teach someone empathy. Without strong morals, all the teaching in the world will not make you ethical.
You had some very thought provoking comments. Thank you.
Hi Connie!
ReplyDeleteGreat post! So colorful and informative! I believe that it is definitely possible to be a credible leader without becoming overconfident and arrogant. I have stated the word “humility” throughout my postings in this class as well as the leadership class as a strong word for successful leadership. As a leader when you have humility while being a strong leader and assisting others to perform at the best of their ability, arrogance does not come into the picture. I feel that there are definitely some people that are “born to be leaders” but there are many parts of leadership that can be learned. I feel that this approach, or at least most of the approach can work in all situations. The six disciplines of credibility are so important in many venues of leadership. The leader must discover themselves because if you don’t believe in yourself how can you believe in and lead anyone else? Appreciating not only constituents but also employees is crucial while affirming shared values and developing capacity. Serving a purpose while leading makes one credible but also sustaining hope for all that a person leads involves motivation and drive for the task at hand. When a leader follows these steps not only are they creditable but they are also a strong motivator because their employees trust them and strive to do their best to in a sense, “make them proud.”
Hi Alison,
ReplyDeleteThank you. You can't be a great leader without humility. It is the anchor for keeping you from becoming arrogant and full of yourself. I agree with you leaders are born and leadership can be learned also. A leader has to share the same values as his followers and believe in what s/he is preaching. Self-confidence is a must in any leader. Making your followers "proud" is a good analogy Alison. I always feel that way when I have a boss or leader that is credible. Thanks for your comments.
Hi Connie,
ReplyDeleteI think your review seems like an excellent synopsis of the book, and was very well composed! I think that the idea of credible leadership will only become more important as we move forward into a globalizing world. While I am seeing many connections between everyone's books for this week, I find that it is critically important for leaders to develop skills in finding deeper meanings in understandings in order to reach the levels of trust and humility that are the essence of strong ethical leaders.
In response to your questions:
1. Do you think it is possible to become a credible leader and not become overconfident and arrogant?
Yes, I do think this is possible. If leaders remain committed to their visions and missions while simultaneously listening to people with an open mind and a positive attitude, I think it helps ground them against overconfidence and arrogance...they will be too busy engrained in their passions for which they are leading to feel confident enough (or be concerned with)their own arrogance.
2. Are people born leaders or can it be a learned skill?
While I think that some people are fortunate enough to be born with qualities of leadership, it can also be learned. In either case, as we have learned from Monique's review of Covey's book, to be most effective, all leaders should engage in lifelong learning.
3. Would this approach to learning how to be a credible leader work in all situations?
Yes, I think that when used in combination, all of the leadership components can be applied in balance, which will allow for the flexibility to handle each unique challenge/problem as an opportunity!
Great questions, and great blog!
Thanks!
Hi Rachel,
ReplyDeleteThank you. You're right Rachel. The world will need more credible leaders as globalization increases. We'll be in big trouble if we don't. Greed and self-interest in leaders could lead the world into an economic and social mess.
I keep seeing humility in a lot of our teachings in this class. It is obviously one of the most important characteristics needed in a leader to keep them centered on service to others.
I hope we are all learning to become credible leaders because as you stated before, we're going to need them in the future.
You have very thoughtful responses and great ideas Rachel. Thank you.
FROM MATT A.
ReplyDelete1.Do you think it is possible to become a credible leader and not become overconfident and arrogant?
Hi it’s Matt A. Absolutely it is possible to become a credible leader and not become overconfident and arrogant. Many leaders have great emotional intelligence which makes them good and humble leaders. Emotional intelligence is a self-perceived ability to identify, assess, and control the emotions of oneself, of others, and of groups. The model claims that EI includes four types of abilities:
1.Perceiving emotions – the ability to detect and decipher emotions in faces, pictures, voices, and cultural artifacts—including the ability to identify one's own emotions. Perceiving emotions represents a basic aspect of emotional intelligence, as it makes all other processing of emotional information possible.
2.Using emotions – the ability to harness emotions to facilitate various cognitive activities, such as thinking and problem solving. The emotionally intelligent person can capitalize fully upon his or her changing moods in order to best fit the task at hand.
3.Understanding emotions – the ability to comprehend emotion language and to appreciate complicated relationships among emotions. For example, understanding emotions encompasses the ability to be sensitive to slight variations between emotions, and the ability to recognize and describe how emotions evolve over time.
4.Managing emotions – the ability to regulate emotions in both ourselves and in others. Therefore, the emotionally intelligent person can harness emotions, even negative ones, and manage them to achieve intended goals. (Wikipedia.org, 2011)
Read more about EI at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotional_intelligence
2.Are people born leaders or can it be a learned skill?
I believe both. Some people are born with the abilities that make it easier for them to become leaders, such as personal drive, extrovertedness, and a physically pleasing appearance. People that do not have these born abilities will find it harder for people to follow them. Never-the-less, everyone can LEARN to be a good leader through experience, training, and a nurturing environment. See article: http://superperformance.com/areleadersborn.html
3.Would this approach to learning how to be a credible leader work in all situations?
All leadership training has some value in all situations. Honesty, for example, is needed in all leadership situations. A leader has to be a forward thinker and create a vision which leads others to long term success. Dishonesty may help a person win short term victories, but, that person is a manager not a leader.
Hi Connie,
ReplyDeleteYour blog is beautiful! I always appreciate important topics standing out with color! I think honesty is a huge factor in choosing a leader and whether to follow him/her or not. In addition, honest people are respected teachers of others, which is essential for effective and credible leadership. An organization’s leader is vital to establishing a corporate culture and ethics because his/her behavior influences the behavior of the entire organization.
I think it is possible to become a credible leader without being arrogant, but the line separating the two is fine. Once the line is crossed, there may never be any going back, but a true credible leader will never even think about greed or other unethical acts. Their focus is the company and what it stands for. I also think it has to do with how the individual was brought up and other influences; some people are easily swayed or pressured into certain situations. Similarly, some people are born leaders, others are taught, and many people should probably never be given the opportunity. Only so much can be taught from books and articles, but I think most is learned by example. Certain people could become better leaders just by following the practices of someone they look up to. However, I feel books like this one would be helpful to any individual and in a variety of situations. Credibility includes lessons that are applicable in everyday life and all of us are teachers at some point.
Hi, Connie!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your blog and book review. There are a lot of similarities in particular for this week's books and yours really stands out!
I think credibility has always been very important; however, in some ways, I think it is easier to gauge today because of technology. It is harder to hide your skeletons and so more people have access to your information and this gives them an increased power to check you out for credibility.
1. Do you think it is possible to become a credible leader and not become overconfident and arrogant?
Yes, I think it is definitely possible to become a credible leader and not be overconfident or arrogant. That said, some people do allow positions of power, such as leadership, go to their heads! I believe that at their core, most people want to make a positive difference. I think that when someone becomes arrogant, it is often a sign that they are insecure and their arrogance is a coping mechanism meant to cover up their feelings of lack or fear.
2. Are people born leaders or can it be a learned skill? While there certainly are some people who were "born to lead" and it is easier for them, at least initially, I do think proper education and training can give people the confidence to step up and lead in certain areas even if they are not natural leaders. For example, this semester between my Ethics and Strategic Leadership classes, I think the readings, videos and discussions have given a lot of very rich material that can really help to increase leadership intelligence.
I think more people have the ability to lead then they realize, it is their self confidence that holds them back. This can be particularly true at work. I often talk to people who have ideas or solutions, but they feel because they aren't the most educated or have the most experience, their ideas might be "dumb". As people become more confident in themselves, they become more confident to step up and lead.
3.Would this approach to learning how to be a credible leader work in all situations?
I think that credibility, honesty and having an idea of a vision, even if it isn't real clear or simply the motivation are a must for leaders. However, I think leadership can and should be fluid depending on what is at hand. When leadership is fluid, you have more diversity and it is easier to capitalize on everyone's strengths and not a big deal when their is weakness in a particular area. When a group or team understands everyone's strengths and weaknesses, they can be much more dynamic, creative, and successful because they see it as working the group based on what they know.