Leading Quietly Essay -- Business and Management Studies Essays

Leading Quietly Leading quietly is the ability to influence individuals or groups toward the achievement of goals. Quiet Leadership, as a process, shapes the goals of a group or organization, motivates behavior toward the achievement of those goals, and helps define group or organizational culture behind the scenes. It is primarily a process of influence. Quiet leaders carrier a sixth sense and one who can envision the changing processes in the sense that, while influence is always present, the persons exercising that influence may change. Possession of influence depends upon the situation and upon the relevancy of the individual's skills and abilities to the situation. For example, if a particular individual has the expertise that is required to solve a problem, then that individual may be assumed to have some degree of influence over others. Quiet leaders are realist. They try hard to see the world as it is quiet leaders almost possess a sixth sense (Badaracco, p 11) I have so many ideas of what qualities a quiet leader should have that I often feel overwhelmed and cannot imagine how achieve these skills. There are many ingredients of effective leadership styles. I have read several books and articles on leadership and management. I have also participated in a few leadership training/education modules offered through my employers. There are many theories on what makes an effective or quiet leader. In the book, leading quietly, quiet leaders see the world as a kaleidoscope rather than a fixed target or a well-mapped terrain. Quiet leaders value trust, but they don’t forget how fragile it can be (Badaracco, 12). In my research, I discovered that there are many leadership styles and most are effective if used in the right situations. The directing leadership style would be needed for new hires, or less competent employees that show commitment and a desire to be productive. The employees at this development level would require very clear directions, and a lot of supervision. The atmosphere must be controlled and structured until these employees develop some competence. In today’s work force, many managers lead by the use of email. Instructions and guide lines are provided by connecting to online databases (Maccoby, 39). The coaching style would be useful for existing employees who have lost their sense of commitme... ...ers may feel a more positive association with the company. Companies that show a concern for their employee’s personal growth may find that employees will feel obligated to do a better job for the company. In conclusion, leadership is about service. The greater the ability to serve the needs of others, the more powerful and effective, are the actions of the leader (Cashman, p.23). While leaders lead by virtue of whom they are, leaders create value by virtue of their service. Leadership can be thought of as the dynamic process of assessing our unique potentialities to serve the needs of others like employees, co-workers, and customers. Works Cited: Blanchard, Kenneth, Patricia Zigarmi, and Drea Zigarmi. Leadership and the One Minute Manager. New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1995. Kelly, Kevin, You can’t Make Leaders. Business Week 07 Dec. 1998: Enterprise My Company. Business Week Online Archives. Cashman, Kevin. Leadership in Business Today. Business Journal Serving Fresno. April 1998, i322295, p.23-47. Badaracco, Joseph. Leading Quietly. Harvard Business School Press, 2002. Maccoby, Michael, The Leader. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1981.