A511.9.3.RB - Course Reflections

At the beginning of the course, I defined leadership as a person that unites and motivates a group of people toward a common cause or goal.  I don't think I'd change that definition, now that the end of the course is drawing near.  The way I defined it applies to all the situations I can think of.  To be any more specific would be to deny the title of leader to those that are truly leading people.

Moving through this course and learning the different leadership theories has explained some things to me, about the role of a leader.  I guess I've had a bit of natural leadership ability, being able to read what makes people tick; what motivates them.  Now, with the exploration of leader-member exchange theory and path-goal theory (Northouse, 2018), I have terms to apply to what came naturally.  I can now be more deliberate in the actions I may already have taken.

The type of leader I aspire to be is somewhere between an adaptive leader and a servant leader.  I try to put the needs of my people ahead of everything else.  The military side of me says that sometimes the mission comes first, though.  I have to learn to reconcile those two sides of me, which I suppose is part of being adaptive; learning when and how much to serve.

Reference

Northouse, P. (2018).  Leadership: Theory and Practice 8th ed. SAGE Publications. Kindle Edition.

A511.7.3.RB - Inner Work for Authentic Leadership

After viewing the brief video of Bill George (2012), I had these thoughts:

From a leadership standpoint, the most instructional experience for me was my first time supervising a shop.  It was in Iraq, about 10 years ago.  The shops previous supervisors had been reassigned or been injured.  Personally, I was dealing with the birth of my son back home and an overbearing civilian supervisor that was making my life exceedingly difficult.  All of this, combined with my inexperience, resulted in my handling the situation very poorly.  I took a very aggressive tact and spent more time enforcing rules and writing counseling papers.  I didn't have the knowledge or maturity to stop and consider that it might be my own actions and behaviors that were causing my airmen to misbehave and become unproductive.

Enter our flight superintendent (a department manager, if you will).  Rather than come down on me with the same aggressive tact I had taken, he took me aside and provided some very frank and honest feedback.  I didn't have the time or place to reflect, given the emergent and hostile nature of our location.  But, he mentored me, without strict direction of exactly what I should do.  I was given the time and space necessary to learn and grow.  In the end, I salvaged the relationship with my team and got productivity back on track.  When I returned back to my home station, I sought new opportunities that would allow me to learn to be a better supervisor and leader.

These days, I take more time to consider my decisions on how to handle conflicts or when rules are broken.  Learning to pick my battles, how to keep my cool, and choose my words more carefully were all important lessons that I learned from my first experience.  I continue to seek new opportunities to learn and grow as a leader.  Which is why I've grown frustrated in my current position that isolates me from formal leadership and focuses more on resource management and analysis.

Reference

George, B. (2012).  Harvard's Bill George: Inner work for authentic leadership. [Video file].  Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=86&v=SmPu2LQ84ts

A511.6.3.RB - A Leader From the Past

I have had a lot of leaders in the past, but how many were actually transformative in how they led?  I wondered if it was necessary for the leader to intentionally be transformative.  I've had leaders that inspired through positive example.  I've also had leaders that served as negative examples.  Northouse  (2018) described these types of leaders as psuedotranformational leaders. The positive examples made me want to work harder for several reasons; to impress them and gain their respect, to exceed their expectations, and be a better mechanic and supervisor.  The negative examples influenced me through fear and anxiety; I strove to avoid punishment and struggled to remember the intricate and inane details of daily activities that didn't require that level of micromanagement. 

Reflecting on what I think made the leaders transformative, I also consider the role I played in their ability to be transformative.  In circumstances where I was happy in my job and interested in learning more skills I was more receptive to being led in such a transformative way.  I also responded to transactional leadership, especially early in my career.  One of the most valuable things a military leader can give their people is time off.  Being cut loose early on a Friday was an amazing feeling.  Even my negative examples could turn that exercise into something I would dread.  Was I sent home because I did something wrong?  Or was it because I did something well?  The goal posts were always moving. So, I never knew where I stood.

Ultimately, my experiences have made me the leader that I am today.  I try to set a positive example, while also providing clear direction and expectations.  When performance is sub-par I provide timely feedback and explore the possibilities that all of the subordinate's needs aren't being met.  While I wish I could have gone through my career without the trauma of the negative examples, I'm grateful for where I am today.

Reference


Northouse, P. (2018).  Leadership: Theory and Practice 8th ed. SAGE Publications. Kindle Edition.