Leading from Anywhere, Free Essay on Leadership

Leadership can be argued as both a practical skill and a research area that takes into account the ability of a person in a company or an organization to lead other people or guide individuals towards the attainment of a common vision or goal. The world is rapidly changing, and leaders are required to be proactive in the sense that they can lead from anywhere regardless of where other members of the team are located. In most cases, leaders who can lead from anywhere are those who rely on influence rather than authority. It is required that no matter your position, the place of work or professional goals, one should only use his leadership authority when members of the team fail to act as per the organizational policies. However, matters leadership must be inclined to influence because it will ensure that the team works effectively and efficiently (Garcia-Morales, Jimenez-Barrionuevo, & Gutierrez-Gutierrez, 2012). It is through the influence that the leader will be able to lead from any part of the globe even if the organization or company is based in a different locality.

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Some of the ways through which a leader can lead through influence include building trust with the co-workers. Trust is the best means through which influence is carried. Trust also enables other co-workers to contribute to key decision-making procedures in the company, something which makes them feel that they are part of the entire process. Cultivation of reliability through consistency is also another mechanism which can help a leader lead from anywhere. Inconsistency usually plays a greater role in ruining a person's reputation. Leaders must, therefore, be consistent to allow people to rely on what they say and the kind of tasks they execute. Every company has a working mission and vision through which leaders are required to align their influence and activities. A leader can, therefore, add value to the vision with the aim of going beyond championing for the vision but ensuring that extra achievements are accomplished. The vision will in-turn, have greater value to the contributors and the leader as well. Adding value to the vision also allows the leader to eliminate the vision challenges which could have existed due to a few elements of resistance either from the workplace or those deduced from the competition. The response of a leader to vision challenges also influences his ability to be able to lead from anywhere (Wren, 2013). For example, it is required for leaders to attack any challenge which may appear to sabotage or criticize the vision. Leaders must also lead through participation because it cultivates ownership and ensures that things are done differently. When people feel that they universally own the organization, they will always try possible means to ensure that most of their activities are inclined towards the achievement of the set objectives and goals.

Other people may also choose to solve a problem by ignoring that it exists. Some may also prefer not to support the vision of the organization. Leaders are not required to take that kind of behavior. They are supposed to maintain a high level of effectiveness and integrity when dealing with situations. For example, a challenge of dress code should not be fiercely confronted but rather addressed through favorable means. Leaders who confront the co-workers in case of any challenge are likely to lose influence and begin to deal with resistance. Leading from anywhere, therefore, calls on leaders to consider including the co-workers in key decision making measures and adopting favorable mechanisms which do not demean their positions as a way of asserting influence.

It is also worthwhile to realize certain tensions accompany that leadership. Most of the tensions are those attributed to by people sharing different opinions towards the attainment of the set objectives or some preferring to do things according to their pace. Such a situation leads to the loss of vision and an inevitable result of both discouragement and dissatisfaction. The energy applied by a leader to a situation may also cultivate tension with other co-workers. Leaders must, therefore, learn to use amicable mechanisms when dealing with problems. The need for fulfilling an objective or acquiring a result where some leaders may opt to inform other non-cooperating workers that the task may be achieved with or without their efforts may also bring tension. The kind of behavior is most common with the old-style autocratic leaders who were very authoritative and needed things to be done their way. It is important for a leader to inspire co-workers by making them believe that the task cannot be achieved without their input even if it can be achieved without their participation. The co-workers must be made aware that their participation will have some level of efficiency in the course of accomplishing the task. Ethics, therefore, play an important role in being a leader. It helps in the creation of value by enabling a leader to set up an open and clear communication channel where other basics of value are routinely communicated (Wren, 2013). It equally gives the leaders the opportunity of influencing a profound dimension of understanding values, principles and the need for acceptance on the role they play in-according the co-workers chance for growth. The growth may be observed from the view of self-worth, professional career, and personal knowledge to mention but a few.

The video of Matika Wilbur is centralized around survival of disappearance, the humanization of native people and re-imaging. It directly connects with Mankiller's quote about the existence of historical facts which have played a part in our being today and the need to comprehend and understand contemporary issues and historical problems. Her video features different personalities of Native Americans who still have the view that racism exists in America. They are, however, not concerned about the challenges of the day but rather their survival. They believe that the fact that they are alive today is by itself a depiction that their ancestors lived the hard times of history. The connection requires leaders to try and relate most of the problems or the contemporary issues which exist to some of the historical facts. For example, some people are deeply rooted in their culture and beliefs and may find it difficult to blend easily with other people. It is upon the leader to iron such differences and bring everyone on the same page without making other people feel that they are lesser beings or do not have utility to the company or the organization.

The organizational structures are also divided into different levels with individuals having specific rights and responsibilities. The levels include, first, middle and top-level managers. The rights of individuals are nearly similar across all the levels. The major differences are on the responsibilities. For example, the first level is mostly constituted by the co-workers whose responsibilities resolve the execution of organizational activities. They are the people who contribute greatly towards the attainment of the set objectives and visions. The middle level is mostly made up of the supervisors and the coordinators. They take orders from the managers and pass them to the co-workers and exercise supervision with the aim of ensuring that the right thing is done (Wren, 2013). The final level is the top-level managers. They are the leaders, the people who decide what should be done and that which should be avoided. At this level, we also meet the levels of leadership. For example, the positional and influential leadership to mention but a few.

Nonetheless, mid-level management of any organization is usually accompanied with some conflicts and challenges especially when the supervisor and the supervisee both contribute to the identification of the strategies which may overcome challenges and resolve conflicts. The supervisor will have a feeling that the supervisee should first try his strategies in finding the solutions, a situation which will make the supervisee feel inferior and not part of the decision to be made even though he had his strategies identified (Garcia-Morales, Jimenez-Barrionuevo, & Gutierrez-Gutierrez, 2012). The result may see the supervisee putting aside his strategies and adopting those of the supervisor, however, the execution process of strategies may not be well done due to the exclusion of the supervisee. It is, therefore, important for every leader in any level of the organizational structure to take the concerns of those below them seriously, just as John Maxwell maintains in the video that a leader can only lead through influence and the influence can only exist if everyone's concerns are taken into account.

References

Garcia-Morales, V. J., Jimenez-Barrionuevo, M. M., & Gutierrez-Gutierrez, L. (2012). Transformational leadership influence organizational performance through organizational learning and innovation. Journal of business research, 65(7), 1040-1050.

Wren, J. T. (2013). The leader's companion: Insights on leadership through the ages. Simon and Schuster.