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Reflection on Military and Civilian Leadership

Leadership in civilian and military organizations caries some of the very same characteristics. Even though each organization may emphasis different aspects of leadership the same traits that were successful in one arena, such as the military or civilian world, may transfer across sectors. A comparative analysis in the Journal of Military & Strategic studies offer some perspectives on leadership manifestation in multiple arenas (Horn, 2014).  The leadership styles in the military and the civilian world may not be so different even though the definitions may change. Each has their own way of looking at leadership due to the needs of their environment. The actions that make one successful in one organization may also make the same person successful in another. Consider how a logistic's officer in the military may require certain levels of knowledge and skill in order to reach leadership status. The same idea would apply in civilian distribution centers that rely on sim

What Military Leaders Can Teach Business Executives?

Leadership in tough situations requires one to dig deep to find values, meaning and strength at a more basic level. A paper by Jennings and Hannah discusses the concept of leadership identity formulation among those who experience some of the world’s most intense situations. They create a more concrete formulation of the idea of ethical leadership in the military even when the situation is tough and the right path is not easy to discern. The report focuses on the choice between moral versus legal aspirations. The ultimate aim of any military is to project and employ force to defend their people, rights of their citizens, interests and very core values of their people. When stressful situations occur individuals within units have multiple competing interests. They may engage in self-preservation, protection of their unit, protecting civilians, engage their personal values, or engage the unit’s values. Each creates different avenues and opportunities for action. How someone cho

Altruism as an Enhancement to Leadership

Leadership is something of interest to businesses administrators, students and politicians. Leadership is often defined using   both its results as well as its traits. Recently, altruism has garnered greater interest among researchers as an additional trait of inclusion in high performance leaders. New research helps to understand what connection altruism has with networking, interpersonal influence, effectiveness and success. Leadership ability often comes from the social capital built within greater networks. Nothing great can be done alone. These networks are described as a purposeful focus on how a person is perceived in relationships (Luthans, et. al, 1988). It is this perception of self that creates positive affectivity by balancing the leader’s personal image with that of others. If you don’t have an understanding of how people are perceiving you it will be impossible to enhance that impression. The researchers further move on to argue that performance, satisfaction

Effective Leadership under Fielder’s Contingency Model

Leadership is often situational in its effectiveness and outcomes. When a leader’s traits match the requirements of a situation a positive result can occur. Fielder’s Model of Leadership helps put within proper context how leadership traits mix with a motivational type to determine the effectiveness of a leader within a particular contextual situation. Crises situations call for one approach while periods of rest require another to develop maximum optimal behavior. Fielder’s model of leadership is one the oldest leadership models around. It follows a couple of beliefs: The performance of a leader depends on two interrelated factors: 1) the degree to which the situation gives the leader control and influence-that is, the likelihood that the leader can successfully accomplish the job; and 2) the leader’s basic motivation-that is, whether self-esteem depends primarily on accomplishing the task or on having close supportive relationships with others (Axtell, 1991). Fielde

Personal Definition of Leadership

The transformational leader who is passionate about distance learning has an opportunity to be a part of a societal change process.   America and the global community are going through a paradigm shift in regards to public perception of distance learning.   Alone, one person cannot initiate and coordinate a national or global societal change, but individually, a transformational leader can establish a vision, create a passion, and develop a leadership plan.   As I reflect on my own personal leadership plan in the field of distance education, a three-step approach was taken.   Self-reflection, honest feedback, and continual learning were the components that I used in designing my personal leadership plan. Bennis, leadership author and guru, defined leadership as “ the capacity to create a compelling vision and translate it into action and sustain it ” (2003, p. 1).   Leadership can be learned.   If one has the desire to be a leader, one can be.   " Like John Kotter, Prof Be