GST 204 Complete Note PDF

GENERAL STUDIES UNIT, AIR FORCE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, AIR FORCE BASE, KADUNA COURSE TITILE: LEADERSHIP SKILLS COURSE CODE: GST 204 Transformation is a fundamental shift in the deep orientation of a person, organization or society such that the world is seen in new ways and new actions and results become possible that were impossible prior to the transformation. Transformation happens at the individual level but must be embedded in collective practices and norms for the transformation to be sustained. Leadership Development Programme (LDP) proposes novel approaches to teaching and learning, which emphasizes the practical involvement of participants. It is interactive and involves exercises and actual implementation of breakthrough projects by teams that make difference in the lives of the target population. In this course, leadership concepts comprising of listening, conversation, emotional intelligence, breakthrough initiatives, gender and leadership, coaching and leadership, enrolment conversation and forming and leading teams will be taught. Course Outline 1. Leadership: definition of the concept 2. Leadership styles 3. Leadership theories 4. Leadership qualities, skills and ethics 5. Tools for effective leadership: i. Motivation ii. Power iii. Team dynamics/ Team Building iv. Decision-making and v. Delegation of Responsibilities 6. Leadership and Information 7. Emotional Intelligence and leadership 8. Leadership and Culture 9. Gender and leadership in traditional and modern settings 10. Mentorship and leadership 11. The experience of people in leadership (AFIT community: military and civilian) 12. Measuring Leadership performance 13. Leading in asymmetric or uncertain contexts 14. Setting personal leadership goals (SMART/SMARTER) and ways of forming (or nurturing) teams. 15. Exercises in peer leadership (Group / Team work) 16. Portrait of a global /national leader under 30/40 years of age in at least two fields e.g. politics, environment, technology, art, science etc. WEEK 1 LEADERSHIP: DEFINITION OF THE CONCEPT The term leader and leadership is one that exists in all communities and cultures which man inhabits. Leadership is a necessary component of the human society, at different levels and facets of life. From traditional settings to the religious scenery, political to the military, educational, business, entertainment and even the international world, leaders are existent. This only implies that leadership is pivotal for group, communal, national and organizational growth and development. WHO A LEADER IS… There are several views of who a leader should be, while some subject the term to the knowledge or skills people possess, some others define it according to the specific traits and qualities people exhibit and their ability to manage social interactions. More often, writers who attempt to give meanings to the term leader, convey the essence of leadership from their own point of view for instance, in a typical community or society, the term may refer to anyone in the community who has relatively high visibility, such as elected officials. In an organization, it is often used to highlight the executive director, president, and/or Board members. However, a leader is certainly more than someone who is widely recognized or possesses organizational authority (Kolzow, 2014). The following however are definitions of a Leader; A leader is a person who selects, equips, trains, and influences one or more followers who have diverse gifts, abilities, and skills and focuses the follower(s) to the organisation’s objectives, causing the follower(s) to willingly and enthusiastically expend energy in a concerted coordinated effort to achieve the organizational objectives. In addition, Sorenson & Epps (1996) see a leader as a forceful and dynamic personality who really leads from the front; an architect and implementer of strategy; a mediator in conflict situations; an integrator who assures the climate of the organization; a person able to motivate subordinates and who, by persuasion, compulsion or example to others; succeeds in getting others to follow the leader’s wishes. A leader is therefore responsible for inspiring and creating the enabling environment for his/her followers to productively harness their abilities into achieving individual growth and meeting organizational goals. One could conclude as John Seaman Garn opined, “Leaders are just ordinary people with extraordinary determination.” DEFINING THE TERM LEADERSHIP The term leadership means different things to different people, teams and organisations; thus, its definition is varied depending on perspectives, personalities, philosophies and professions. Consequently, there are as many definitions as there are writers on the concept of leadership. Some definitions provided by different writers are: “Leadership is the relationship between two or more people in which the leader attempts to influence the follower(s) toward the accomplishment of some common goal or goals, which are worthwhile, meaningful, and challenging goals.” “Leadership is the ability to exert interpersonal influence by means of communication towards the achievement of a goal.” It is also the “art of mobilising others to want to struggle for shared aspirations.” “Leadership is an influence process that enable managers to get their people to do willingly what must be done, do well what ought to be done.” (Cribbin, J.J. ‘Leadership: strategies for organizational effectiveness’) “Leadership is that process in which one person sets the purpose or direction for one or more other persons and gets them to move along together with him or her and with each other in that direction with competence and full commitment.” (Jaques E. & Clement, 1994) “Leadership is the raising of a man’s performance to a higher standard, through stimulation and motivation; which eventually leads to the building of a man’s personality beyond its normal limitations.” Harvard Professor Rosabeth Ross Kanter suggests that leadership is the art of mastering change... the ability to mobilize others’ efforts in new directions. Buttressing the thrust of this definition, Vance Packard, defined the term as the art of getting others to want to do something you are convinced should be done; while Harry Truman succinctly see leadership as the ability to get men to do what they don’t want to do and like it. While there are diverse definitions of leadership, the varied definitions have a few common elements (denominators): Influence exerted by leader Art of persuasion Leader-follower interactions/ relationships Set objectives/ shared aspirations Notably, leadership as seen from the above definitions is not a person or a position. It is a complex moral relationship between people, based on trust, obligation, commitment, emotion, and a shared vision of the goal. Class Discuss (The Leaders are BORN or MADE Debate) “Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile.” Vince Lombardi The belief that only a few people are born to this world with the natural abilities to lead is untrue and misleading. Leaders are NOT BORN but NURTURED. While a potential leader can be born with innate qualities that predispose them to being leaders, such as natural intelligence and the ability to learn, this doesn’t mean that effective leaders are the smartest people in an organization. However, they have to be smart enough to make decisions and to mobilize resources to do the work that is needed. Hence, it’s not about how leadership was acquired by someone; it’s more about how he or she acted on it that makes the difference Kolzow (2014). More so, it is a fallacy that leadership is exclusively reserved for individuals with certain sex, physical trait, quality or position or it is the private reserve of a few charismatic men and women. Leadership in fact is a process ordinary people use when they are bringing forth the best from themselves and others. Hence, everyone and anyone have the capacity to lead at some level despite their sex, physical trait, qualities or even the position they find themselves in an organization. While it isn’t likely that everyone will become a leader, which regrettably Kolzow (2014) attributed to the lack of will by too many people to change or to develop their leadership potential. To him, more often, many people find it easier to “go with the flow” and be content with their circumstances. And even if they aren’t content, they would rather complain about their situation than do what is necessary to change it. Becoming a leader means having the will to pursue a path that builds competency and capacity. This path, however, is not an easy one that is quickly mastered, its development is an ongoing process, not an event or the implementation of a specific program. And as John C. Maxwell (2005) in his book “The 3600 Leader” noted, “Leading is not a one-time event; it is an ongoing process that takes time.” WEEK 2 LEADERSHIP THEORIES According to Merriam -Webster dictionary, a theory is ‘an idea or sets of ideas intended to explain facts/events. It is also ‘the general principles or ideas that relate to a particular subject.’ A leadership theory contains ideas on how to lead effectively and/or become a better leader. While leadership principles are timeless, the theories that examine those principles may change. There are several/ diverse theories of leadership in literature. A review of these theories shows they could be placed into the following three groups: a. leadership as a combination of traits or personality characteristics, b. leadership skills c. leadership as a process that explores the relationship between leader and followers, The Great Man Theory The Great Man theory was one of the earliest theories that exist on leadership. Thomas Carlyle in 1847 put forward a theory known as the “great man theory”, when he claimed that leaders are born and that only those men who are endowed with heroic potentials could ever become the leaders. He opined that great men were born, not made. These leaders thus have certain physical traits and personality characteristics which distinguished them from non-leaders. The great man theory presents the case that leaders are individuals endowed from birth with great characteristics and heroic abilities. Mahatma Gandhi dynasty is also a good example of great man theory, where the offspring of Mahatma Gandhi have had easy path to the leadership of Indian National Congress simply because of privileged birth and the perceived notion that they carry superior natural genes or have inborn leadership genes. This theory is morally flawed, as its focus is on the individual; and it has been seen as was the case with Adolf Hitler, Napoleon Bonaparte, who exercised dictatorial powers. The theory is also flawed because there are no scientific proofs backing it. Trait Theory While the great man theory implies that people are somehow endowed with some “essence” of leadership, trait theory sees leaders as persons who have specific characteristics that enable them to lead. This theory (one of the earliest theories) provides a base for measurable and testable characteristics such as virtues, race, gender, height, appearance, psychological factors, efficacy factors and cognitive factors. Trait theory is built around a leader’s qualities that are both acquired and inborn. Emergent traits (those which are heavily dependent upon heredity) as height, intelligence, attractiveness, and self-confidence and effectiveness traits (based on experience or learning), including charisma, as fundamental component of leadership (Ekvall & Arvonen, 1991). Max Weber termed charisma as “the greatest revolutionary force, capable of producing a completely new orientation through followers and complete personal devotion to leaders they perceived as endowed with almost magical supernatural, superhuman qualities and powers”. This initial focus on intellectual, physical and personality traits that distinguished non-leaders from leaders portended a research that maintained that only minor variances exist between followers and leaders (Burns, 2003). The failure in detecting the traits which every single effective leader had in common, resulted in development of trait theory, as an inaccessible component, falling into disfavor. Also, due to cultural and contextual differences, trait theory was highly criticized. Edwin Ghiselli, one of the great proponents of Traits theory, identified six (6) traits (inborn and acquired) as being very important for effective leadership: 1. Need for achievement 2. Intelligence using good reasoning and judgment, ability to integrate and interpret information 3. Decisiveness where decisions are made in difficult situations without undue delay/ hesitations. 4. Self-confidence- having a good positive self-image, trust in themselves and confidence in their abilities. 5. Initiative- being a starter with ideas, and having a high level of energy, drive and tenacity. 6. Supervisory ability- getting the job done through others in team members. Others identified by other scholars are: 7. Creativity - innovative and original in their thinking 8. Task-relevant knowledge -- know their business and what it takes to make it successful 9. Credibility – honest, trustworthy, predictable, and dependable. 10. Motivation - enjoy influencing others to achieve shared goals. 11. Flexibility - adapt to fit the needs of followers and demands of situations. A well- known Chinese proverb says that the wise adapt themselves to circumstances, as water molds itself to the pitcher. (Kolzow, 2014) The focus of trait theory is on the individual just like the Great Man theory and this is a great flaw as attention was not given to followers and situation (s). Also a person does not become a leader merely by virtue of the possession of some combination of traits. Class Exercise: Study the 11 traits and score yourself on a scale of 1-5, where 1 is the lowest mark and 5 is the highest mark Contingency Theories (Situational) There are several versions of Contingency theory, but they all primarily opines that the leadership style used is reliant upon the factors such as the quality, situation of the followers or a number of other variables, thus, there is no precise stand-alone universal leadership style. The situation (environment), followers and leader’s behavior and style occupy central position in this theory; as they are seen as the primary factors that effectiveness of a leader. In most cases, leaders do not change; only the dynamics, environment and followers change. The style of leadership that is operative in some circumstances may not be effective in others circumstances / environment as situations are fluid (always changing). Basically, the internal and external dimensions of the environment/ situation require the leader to adapt to that particular situation. Contingency theorists assumed that the leader was the focus of leader-subordinate relationship; situational theorists opined that the subordinates played a pivotal role in defining the relationship. Though, the situational leadership stays to emphasize mostly upon the leader, it creates the significance of the focus into group dynamic. “These studies of the relationships between groups and their leaders have led to some of our modern theories of group dynamics and leadership”. The theory of situational leadership proposes that style of leadership should be accorded with the maturity of the subordinates (Bass, 1997). “The situational leadership model, first introduced in 1969, theorized that there was no unsurpassed way to lead and those leaders, to be effective, must be able to adapt to the situation and transform their leadership style between task-oriented and relationship-oriented.” Behavioural Theory As the questions about how to measure traits continued to challenge trait theory, researchers began thinking about measuring behavior. While you can’t easily measure confidence or loyalty in a person, they noted, you can define a behavior or a set of behaviors that seem to embody the trait. Researchers define behaviors as observable actions, which makes measuring them more scientifically valid than trying to measure a human personality trait. Behavioral theory contains some very different assumptions from trait theory. Trait theory assumes that a leader is born with specific traits that make him or her a good leader. Behavioral theory, on the other hand, assumes that you can learn to become a good leader because you are not drawing on personality traits. Your actions, or what you do, define your leadership ability. Hence, this leadership theory focuses on the actions of leaders not on their intellectual qualities or internal states. What it takes to be a leader according to this theory is simply training and observation. A systematic comparison of behaviours of leaders by many writers has seen them being categorized as autocratic, democratic and laissez faire leadership styles. Participative Theory Participative leadership theory suggest that the ideal leadership style is one that takes the input of others into account. Participation and contributions from followers is encouraged and this makes members to feel relevant and committed to the decision-making process. It improves commitment and increases collaboration, which leads to better quality decisions and a greater chance of the group achieving set objectives Transactional/Management Theory The transactional leadership theory is one in which leader-follower associations were grounded upon a series of agreements between followers and leaders. A type of contingent-reward leadership that had active and positive exchange between leaders and followers whereby followers were rewarded or recognized for accomplishing agreed upon objectives, in other words a system of rewards and punishments is operated. In other words, when the followers in this case employees are successful, they are rewarded and when they fail, they are reprimanded or punished. This theory is an extremely common component of many leadership models and organizational structures. Relationship/Transformational Theory It focuses on the connections formed between leaders and followers. Leadership is seen as the process by which a person engages with others and is able to “create a connection” that results in increased motivation and morality in both followers and leaders. Relationship theories are often compared to charismatic leadership theories in which leaders with certain qualities, such as confidence, extroversion, and clearly stated values, are seen as best able to motivate followers. In this theory, the leader focuses on followers’ needs and input in order to transform everyone into a leader by empowering and motivating them Skills Theory This theory of leadership states that learned knowledge and acquired skills/abilities are significant factors in the practice of effective leadership. Skills theory acknowledges the connection between inherited traits and the capacity to lead effectively, but argues that learned skills, a developed style, and acquired knowledge, are the real keys to leadership performance. A strong belief in skills theory often demands that considerable effort and resources be devoted to leadership training and development. Pictorial Illustration of the Evolution of Leadership Theories Source: Kolzow, 2014 WEEK 3 LEADERSHIP STYLES/ TYPES As seen from the discuss on leadership theories, the meaning of leadership has remained unchanged, while the various ways and styles in which leadership is translated into practice and action have undergone a whole lot of transformation. Leadership style is seen as the way in which a leader carries out his/ her functions and relates towards members of the group; and this is believed to be largely influenced by the behavior of the leader. Leadership style is also an approach or methods taken by a particular leader in leading and implementing policies of the organization. In addition, leadership style basically refers to a leader's characteristic behaviours when directing, motivating, guiding, and managing groups of people. Inspirational leaders can inspire political movements and social change. They can also motivate others to perform, create, and innovate. A leadership style can as well be described as the manner and approach of providing direction, implementing plans, and motivating people. As seen by the employees, it includes the total pattern of explicit and implicit actions performed by their leader (Newstrom, Davis, 1993). The Advantages and Relevance of Leadership Style Leadership styles are very important for the organization and the leader because outcomes are consequent on leadership style adopted by the leader. Adopting a leadership style is sometimes considered sacrosanct in leading others because it is determinant of how successful a leader will be. The relevance of leadership styles are; 1. A Leadership style is very important in a modern organization as it leads to higher performance by the team members. 2. Leadership style is critical for enhancing motivation and morale within the members, and helps to respond to change. 3. A Leadership style facilitates organizational success by creating responsibility and accountability systems among the members of the organization. In short, it increases value in an organization. 4. A Leadership style enables the leader guide his actions and role. 5. A leadership style exposes the strength and weaknesses of the leader and provides an opportunity for improvement. 6. Leadership style helps a leader improve his communication with your employees. Communication is one of the most critical tools of success. When you understand what type of approach you adopt as a leadership, you can then work on improving your communication. 7. A Leadership style enables a leader to motivate and inspire subjects to greater productivity 8. A leadership style enables a leader to figure out whether the style is helping or damaging the organization. 9. A leadership style enables a leader to handle challenges more effectively. Challenges arise in every work environment and a leader must be prepared to use approaches or improve existing approaches that will lead to success and achievement of goals. Categorization of leadership styles There are different categorization of leadership styles. A review of some of the categorizations shows there is: a. Categorization based on how decisions are made (autocratic, democratic and Laissez faire). b. Categorization based on how leaders handle situations (charismatic, participative, situational, transactional, transformational, servant-like), c. Categorization based on the focus of the leadership (goal-oriented [task focused] and people-oriented [relationship focused]) which is a mix of various categorizations. Leadership Style Based on How Decisions are Made A. Autocratic leaders Sometimes called the Authoritarian style. This is where leaders spell out the goals, deadlines and methods while making decisions on their own with little consultation with others. In fact, the leader tells his or her employees what to do and how to do it, without getting their advice. Here, the leader doesn’t usually get involved in the group’s work and it is less likely to see creative decisions under this style of leadership. However, it is a decisive way of leading and can suit high-risk, short-timescale decisions. Lewin noted that leaders who adopt this style can be seen by others as dictatorial and tend to get stuck in one mode of behaviour. The autocratic leader makes decisions mainly focused on greater quantity of output. He himself makes all the decisions that relate to the group and is probably the only source of influence in the group’s activities. His most effective technique in maintaining this leadership position is by withholding knowledge of goals, not sharing information required for the task, and not providing feedback to members on their progress. The followers, however, tend to be unhappy with the leadership style and express hostility B. Democratic leaders Sometimes called the participatory style. This is where the leader expresses his or her priorities and values in setting goals and making decisions, but also takes part in the group’s work and accepts advice and suggestions from colleagues. The leader includes one or more employees in the decision making process, but the leader normally maintains the final decision making authority. This style can produce more creative problem solving and innovation than the Authoritarian approach so it makes sense to adopt it in competitive, non-emergency situations. Democratic leader is mindful of his subordinates input in the decision making process of the group. He/ she gains additional information from followers. The participative process, although time-consuming, effectively encourages each member’s input and familiarity with the problem. The followers displayed high degree of satisfaction, commitment, creativity, and motivation; working with great enthusiasm and energy irrespective of the presence or absence of the leader; maintaining better connections with the leader, in terms of productivity. C. Laissez faire leaders Sometimes called the delegative style. The laiseez faire style means the leader hands over responsibility for results to the group. He or she lets them set goals, decide on work methods, define individuals’ roles and set their own pace of work. The leader allows the employees to make the decisions, however, the leader is still responsible for the decisions that are made. It can work well provided the group shares the same overall intent as the leader and if he/she trusts all members of the group. The leader lets subordinates make the decision and hence takes no real leadership role other than assuming the position. The leader has a propensity of escaping responsibilities This leadership style is only considered relevant while leading a team of highly skilled and motivated people who excellent track-record, in the past. Hence, Laissez-faire leaders demonstrate very limited participation (involvement) in vital organizational matters, allowing followers to make almost all the decisions; preferring to act simply as a general ‘supervisor’ who outlines policies and things to be done to the followers, and incline to procrastinate their response to critical issues. Laissez-faire leaders are least attentive to the completion of duties and productivity and are largely ‘figurehead leaders’. No direction is given to the group members. This avoidance behavior in the leader results to excessive frustration among followers and low level of followers’ self-esteem. Laissez-faire leaders show very little care for followers' actions and their consequent impact on organizational outcome rather become source of followers demotivation. Leadership Style Based on How Leaders Handle Situations 1. Servant leaders: According to Zig Ziglar (a famous motivational speaker), servant leadership is centered on the word ‘help’. In his words: “If you help people get what they want, they will help you get what you want.” The leadership style sees the heart of leadership is based on serving others, and not the other way round; where the leader is seen as was trying to get others to help them. Although naturally, as the leader serves (works as a servant first), he/she gets served even without pushing or asking for it indirectly. The things that characterizes this style are: a. The servant-leader places the concerns of others above their own. b. They work for their followers or group unconditionally. c. Measure their Success by how much value they add to others Mahatma Gandhi: “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” 2. Charismatic Leaders: Charismatic leaders are persons with high level of likeability (likeable personality) and personal charm. These kind of leaders captivate a lot of people and thus have many followers. In the reality show world, style and entertainment people like Kim Kardashian. Adolf Hitler, the leader of Germany in the 1930s and 40s; has been cited in many literature as a charismatic leader who was a passionate communicator who painted a picture of superiority of the Germans to them, culminating in the Germans embarking on the killing of other races. The things that characterizes this style are: a. Excellent communication that enables them paint irresistible pictures of their goal/ cause to their followers. b. They use very persuasive language to inspire their followers. c. They create emotional appeal d. Interpersonal skills that helps them to connect with their followers 3. Participative Leaders: This leadership style runs along similar line with the democratic leaders. Leadership Style Based on the Focus of the Leadership 1. Goal- oriented Leaders (task focused) : 2. People-oriented Leaders (relationship focused) Other Leadership Style 1. Positive Motivational Leadership Style 2. Negative Motivational Leadership Style 3. Employee Oriented Leadership Style 4. Production Oriented Leadership Style 5. Paternalistic Style 6. Transformational 7. Pseudo leadership style Some leaders are prone to use one general style in almost all situations. Other leaders “flex” their style to meet the particular needs of each situation encountered. In both cases however, it is important for the leaders to know what their main style preferences are so that they can evaluate the likely effectiveness of that style in a given set of circumstances (or know how far they may need to change their style in order to get a better result. WEEK 4 Leadership qualities, skills and ethics Tools for effective leadership: vi. Motivation vii. Power viii. Team dynamics/ Team Building ix. Decision-making and x. Delegation of Responsibilities WEEK 4 LEADERSHIP SKILLS 1. Active listening: This is the process of hearing the follower’s emotions and intent as well as the spoken words. Leaders should listen to followers without judging the quality or intent of the message until hearing the full message. By not passing judgment as the follower speaks, creativity is more likely to occur in followers. It is through active listening that followers feel free to express their opinions and beliefs. Followers choose to be innovative and to present/explain their innovation because followers want to. By creating an environment that is without fear, followers are willing to express and the increased number of ideas and insights would benefit the group. 2. Effective communication skills: Leaders make frequent use of communication skills to influence followers to align with the organization’s mission and work toward the accomplishment of the organization’s objectives, through rhetoric (the process of using language effectively), using formal and informal communication channels. Martin Luther King, Jr. (who fought for the rights of Blacks in the United Sates) is a good example of a leader who rated high in this skill and presented a description of the future to their followers. He used rhetoric and picturesque speech to create preferable, desired images in the mind of the follower as to what the future could (check his essay – ‘I Have a Dream’) 3. People management skills: Every leader has follower (s). In most cases the followers are from different social, cultural, professional, religious and economic backgrounds. So every group is a mix and this directly affects their perspectives on issues. One of the essential skill every leader should have is the ability to manage the different people and make sure team members comprehend and adhere to shared aspirations that the group has. This is enhanced when the leader is objective and is not biased towards a particular sub-set of the group. 4. Persuasion: Leaders should be persons who marshal people toward the pursuit set goals. The idea of marshalling, it means leaders need to challenge people to reach to a goals. The idea of followers actively working to achieve the goals goes beyond the concept of inspirational motivation. Followers have to “see” the incremental steps that connect the present to the future with each follower understanding his/her individual role in the concerted and coordinated effort. 5. Planning and Delivery 6. Creativity 7. Consistency: Charting a clear cut direction is a necessary is an essential skill if desired set goals are to be achieved. However, for followers to understand how to act in order to achieve the future state of the organization’s vision, it is necessary for the follower, with, or without, the help of the leader to work through ambiguity and achieve clarity of action. As part of the creative problem- solving process the followers have to resolve role ambiguity so that the employees as a whole can work in a concerted effort. 8. Critical thinking Skills: Leaders must be able to use logical reasoning to evaluate facts and information, in order to make objective decisions. Critical thinking skills include the ability to build and discern inductive or deductive arguments. The reason the leader needs critical thinking skills is that higher levels of critical thinking skills increases the abilities of leaders to form persuasive arguments and suggest solutions or end results that are not obvious. Ethical Leadership Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without strategy. (General H. Norman Schwartzkopf Quoted in Kolzow, 2014) The two primary words in ethical leadership are: 1. Ethics and 2. Leadership Ethics are the principles, values and beliefs that define what is right and wrong behavior. Leadership is the process of influencing others to achieve goals. Thus, we can define ethical leadership as the process of influencing people through principles, values and beliefs that embrace what we have defined as right behavior. Character cannot be separated from leadership, it is an essential part of effective leadership. For a leader to demand the right behavior from his followers, he too must exhibit exemplary leadership. Therefore, if you want to be a great leader of others, you must first become a great leader of yourself, (John Spence quoted in Kolzow, 2014). It is very important for leaders to exhibit exemplary behavior they expect from their followers, this means that they must demonstrate and communicate clear values for both themselves and their organization and be ethical in all their dealings (Kolzow, 2014). If leaders are to be inspired and then inspire others, they must have a clear sense of their personal and professional values which should be clearly evident to everyone in the organization. If a leader can stand on his set principles and be confident about his beliefs and values, which he exhibits publicly or when no one is watching, he will be respected and admired by his followers. ‘A person’s true character is revealed by what he does when no one else is watching’ (Unknown quoted in Kolzow, 2014). QUALITIES / ATTRIBUTES OF A GOOD LEADER Every good leader should possess certain distinct qualities which increases their acceptability by their followers and others who may be outside their group. Some of the qualities are listed below, the list, however, is e not exhaustive: 1. Integrity/Honesty/Transparent (Trust happens when leaders are transparent. Welch) 2. Trustworthy 3. Visionary 4. Courageous 5. Humility 6. Self-confidence (Self-confidence is the lifeblood of success. Jack Welch) 7. Focus/Clarity 8. Self-reflection 9. Righting wrongs 10. Intelligent 11. Decisive / Action - and Result-Oriented 12. Organized 13. Communication 14. Compassionate (Respecting and caring for others) 15. Innovative 16. Risk taker (The history of great leaders is the history of great risk takers. John Spence) 17. Ambitious/ Goal- getter Integrity ‘Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching’ C.S Lewis A leader cannot be a positive influence to others if he doesn’t have integrity. Integrity doesn’t mean the leader is perfect, it just means the leader is honest and open. Integrity means the leader does not throw away his core values to the wind at the slightest opportunity. It is this quality that makes the leader earn the trust and loyalty of the followers. Trust is a very precious commodity which cannot be bought, but earned. Visionary Vision can mean a long-term goal or an idealized future state, and being visionary therefore means the ability to see into the future and expectedly since every group exist for a purpose leaders are expected to be visionary. Vision could be deﬁned as an idealized verbal portrait of what the organization aspires to achieve. It is also the ability to see into the future and create something out of nothing. The articulation of a vision for the group is often the beginning point of the leadership process. A good vision does not only define the direction of the group but it also helps to motivate followers and impacts their performance. For groups or organizations, to stay on the right course, their vision statements, should be written and regularly referred. John Welch stated that the task of leaders is to ‘create a vision, articulate the vision, own the vision and drive it to completion.’ However, the leader’s vision needs to be clear, exciting and inspiring to the followers. Courageous Courage is the ability to take risks even in the face of danger. This is a distinguishing mark between leaders who succeed and those that don’t. Great leaders see the danger but decide to still make the move despite obvious contradictions. Many times, a leader’s vision goes through a time of testing, it takes courage to stay through and not throw up the towel. Courage is required to drive the vision to completion Humility Brian Tracy writes ‘Humility doesn’t mean that you are weak or unsure of yourself. It means that you have the self-confidence and self-awareness to recognize the value of others without feeling threatened’ Humility is the quality that helps the leader ‘wear the shoes’ of those he leads. Thomas Merton aptly describes it this way ‘Pride makes us artificial and humility makes us real’ Humility is the willingness to be vulnerable. This attribute boosts leader-follower relationship and makes leaders more effective. Focus Focus is keeping an eye on the goal. Good leaders discipline themselves to stay undistracted from the expected outcomes. They fix their eyes on the positive side of the situation, on their strengths and the potential of the team. Strategic planning This deals with the ‘how to’ of the vision. Strategic planning involves anticipating difficulties and to handle it (foresight), studying trends and developing the capacities of the followers. Class exercise: Choose and order the attributes in order of importance; add any attribute that you feel was missing from the list but is essential. WEEK 5 TOOLS FOR EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP A. MOTIVATION Motivation has its root meaning in the Latin word ‘movere’ which means to move. Motivation has been defined in many ways with no single definition that is universally accepted. Some definition of motivation are: 1. Motivation is “the existence of a reason for provoking willingness to work and have high work performance” 2..Motivation is ‟an individual’s degree of willingness to exert high level of effort to reach organizational goals‟‟ 3. “Motivation concerns energy, direction, and persistence of voluntary actions that are goal directed. 4. Motivation occurs when a person is activated toward an end. 5. Helliegel, Slocum and Woodman (1992) describe motivation as “the force acting on or within a person that causes the person to behave in a specific, goal-directed manner". Motivation is quite dynamic and should not be seen as static; “the art of motivation is a process of changing one’s willingness to exert effort” (Kamery, 2004, p. 92). From these definitions it can be derived that motivation concerns the willingness of somebody to behave in a certain way and this willingness is dynamic in the sense that it changes over time Effective leaders should therefore be able to motivate their group member as the ability to motivate others contributes toward the effectiveness and success of the groups. In other words, there is direct relationship between motivation and productivity / performance. When leaders do not motivate followers, it is likely that the group will be unsuccessful. Unmotivated members of a group are likely to spend little effort in the achievement of set goals, exit the group given the opportunity, as much as possible and produce low quality work. There are two types of motivation, namely intrinsic (internal) and extrinsic (external) motivation. Intrinsic (motivation is internally driven within the employee, rather than from external pressures or rewards. Certain task characteristics are important in the sense that employees must perceive the work content as being satisfactory and fulfilling. Extrinsic motivation is externally driven and the focus is on the outcome of the activity for the task- worker himself. The outcome could be a reward or the avoidance of punishment. B. TEAM BUILDING A team refers to as a group of people/ persons and expectedly groups are meant to work together to achieve common goal(s), with each member of the group contributing his/her quota. Team building is a process meant to improve the performance of the team and involves activities designed to foster communication and encourage cooperation. Since members of the group have different personalities, background and experiences, the objective in team building is ensuring that members are able to work together, avoid potential disputes and problems and keep the morale of team members high. Stages of Team Development Team development has been broken into four stages by Bruce Tuckman: Form, Storm, Norm, and Perform. 1. Formation Stage: This is the first stage in team building/ development. Most times, it starts with the person who has the vision/ goal for the team assembling the team and defining the goals, which should provide focus and be attainable. This same person(s) may assume the leadership of the group or another person within the group could be appointed. It is the responsibility of the leadership at this point to try and find out the strength (and possibly the weaknesses) of the team members. This is essential so that the group will be cohesive and ‘purpose-fit’. It is also a familiarization stage for member of the team members. Most times this stage is devoid of much crises as team members will be extremely polite to one another. 2. Storming Stage: It is not unusual for teams to have crisis/ crises or problems, however if this is left unchecked or unresolved the teamwork would start to slip or drop. The problems could be directly related to tasks (or ideas) or personalities. It is crucial for the team leadership to look for appropriate, creative means or methods to resolve the problems and direct the team’s energy in the right direction to reach the goals. This stage is where the problem solving skills of the leadership is put to task. Communication is extremely important at this point, not only is proper use of words needed, the tone and emotion of the leaders must be effectively used. The leader should remember that communication also involves active listening to team members. Effective teams communicate clearly and openly about problems. Ineffective communication can cause unnecessary tension and stress to team members and continue to make the problem simmer below the surface and thus adversely affect the team’s performance. 3. Establishing Team Norms Stage: Norms are standards of proper or acceptable behavior binding upon the members of a group and serving as a guide to control or regulate behaviours within the group. This stage therefore, involves laying out the norms of the group, as well as defining team roles, rights, and responsibilities. This quite necessary so that behaviours and activities within the group are regulated helps avoid or limit problems later. It must be noted that team leadership is not a top-down effort, the leader is at this point expected to serve. 4. Team Performance Stage: By this stage, the team is working together effectively, problems have been smoothed out, and achievements begin to become evident. A great deal of work will be accomplished at this stage. The team will be able to tackle new tasks easily and confidently. They will be comfortable using creative means. It is essential at this point to evaluate and report on progress that has been made. 5. Project Completion and Team Disbanding Stage: The last phase of the project is completion. Often at this time the team will evaluate the results, debrief, and take time to learn and improve its processes for use in future team-based projects. Team Size, Composition, and Formation Team composition: Homogeneous vs Heterogeneous 1. Impacts level of cohesion 2. Quantum of creativity 3. Level of conflict Making a Team to Work 1. Requires cooperation from all members 2. Good communication 3. Leader must be a good time manager 4. Leader must be able to facilitate effective team dynamics and processes 5. Select persons with the right kind of skills/ competences 6. Appreciate and reward performance Factors to Consider When Assembling a Team 1. It is very important to consider the team membership. Their experience, problem solving ability, and action oriented capabilities. 2. Team Relationships: For a team to be successful the members of the team must be able to give and receive feedback. A relaxed, comfortable and accepting environment and finally, open and honest communication are required. 3. Organizational Environment: The ‘climate and culture’ of the organization must be conducive to team behavior. Competitiveness should be discouraged and uniformity should be encouraged - this will eliminate conflict and discord among team members. Assignment: How do you lead a productive meeting? C. POWER Leaders are influencers, and they need power to be able to influence members of their group. There are varied definitions of power in books (literature). The Merriam – Webster Dictionary defines Power as the ability of a person to control and influence people or organizations. Another definition of power has been given as the potential ability of one person in an organization to inﬂuence other people to bring about desired outcomes. The influence used could be reward, punishment etc. Sources of Power John French and Bertram Raven in 1959 in their work ‘The Basis of Power’ categorized the sources of power which leaders into five distinct sources of power, namely: 1. Legitimate Power: When a leader is selected, appointed or elected, he or she is vested with certain authority because of the position he/ she occupies. The followers or team members in the group accept that they are obligated to follow his or her direction with respect to work activities. Thus, followers accept the legitimate rights of formal leaders to set goals, make decisions, and direct activities. 2. Reward Power: Reward is used by leaders to motivate members and ensure good performance. When leaders use their authority to bestow rewards on other people, such power is called reward power. The reward could be pay increases/raise, promotions, attractive work assignments, time off, compliments, recommendations for special benefits, pay bonuses etc. This power is particularly important as leaders control resources and their distribution. 3. Coercive Power: This power is opposite (and negative side) of reward power and it is based on fear. It basically refers to the power to punish or recommend punishment. The punishment could be that subordinates are ﬁred (dismissed), demoted, criticized/reprimand, denials of privilege, undesirable work assignments, or have their pay increases withdrawn as a result of poor performance or noncompliance with laid down norms. 4. Expert Power: This power results from a leader’s special knowledge, experience or skill in a specific field. The other group members or subordinates follow the leader’s recommendations because of his or her superior knowledge. Most times in the corporate world, the upper rung of the ladder is made up of people who have experience, knowledge and skills that they have gathered through the years and expectedly they are seen as having expert power. And this power is used to influence those who are on the lower rung of the ladder. 5. Referent Power: This power is dependent on the leader’s personality characteristics such as attractiveness, charisma or likeability; which makes the other group members or followers respect and admire him/ her; so that the see the leader as a model to be emulated. Charismatic leaders exercise this power and it is used to influence the followers rather using legitimate power which is reliant on the leader’s formal title or position. Assignment: Which sources of power, or combination of sources of power, may be most effective in helping a leader to create and maintain an ethical work climate? D. DECISION MAKING Decision making is one of the important and challenging task that leaders must take on daily. Leadership decision making has been defined as ‘the process of using critical thinking skills to optimize a decision’. Leaders must know what decisions to make and keep the interest of all stakeholders involved. Also leaders should allow their skilled subordinates - individuals and/or groups to participate in the decision making process mostly when their involvement will enhance the quality and/or acceptance of the decision by everybody at the workplace. Factors That Influences (Quality) Decision Making 1) Leadership style: autocratic, democratic (participative), and Laissez faire (delegative) leadership style are the common leadership styles that influences decision making. The autocratic leader who is authoritative in nature takes total control and ownership in decisions making. The decisions are taken without consultation or suggestion of ideas from his/ her subordinates. This style works well when decisions have to be made quickly and in emergency situations. The democratic style is more inclusive of the group members. This leadership style allows, and encourages members of the group to express their ideas, and be involved in the decision making process. The Laissez-faire style allows the leader to delegate the decision-making responsibility to an individual or group. This style works well if the leader is surrounded by motivated, skilled and talented group members or subordinates and the leader does not stimulating subordinates. 2) The goal (s)/ mission and vision of the group/ task at hand 3) Data available: data obtained from primary (observation, field work, interviews, experiments) and secondary (past record of events, archive-documents, recent publications on the subject matter) sources provides quantitative or qualitative information sources which guides in the choices made and the making the final decision on the situation. 4) Research done on the situation/ task: when research is conducted with the sole aim of making decision it enables the leader to identify a resemblance (similar concept), what has been done and what needs to be investigated with regard to a particular situation. 5) Sharing of valid information Steps in Decision Process 1. Defining the Problem 2. Develop Alternatives / options 3. Evaluate the Alternatives / options 4. Make the Decision 5. Implement the Solution 6. Monitor your Solution E. DELEGATION “Delegating work works, provided the one delegating works, too.” - Robert Half “As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.” - Bill Gates Delegation is when members of the group are given authority by the leaders to carry out a specific task or act on the leader’s behalf, accompanied with responsibility and accountability for results. Delegation of tasks or duties is essential because a leader cannot do all of the work in a group or organization. While some leaders delegate responsibilities easily, some others find it difficult they would prefer to do the task themselves in order to ensure that the task is done right or perfectly. What every leader should put in mind is that delegation of responsibilities has immense benefits, it is not all tasks that should be delegated. The nature of the task, the circumstances and the responsibilities involved should determine what can be delegated. Delegation Decision List When Tasks could be delegated: 1. When there is a lot of work to be done and the leader does not have the time. 2. When a member of the group other than the leader can do the work better. 3. When the task would help develop the follower and would benefit from responsibility. 4. When someone expresses an interest in a task and has the capacity to do it. 5. When it is a low priority on your list and doing it will affect other tasks that are more important and are critical to the running of the group. When not to delegate: 1. When the task is high on the priority list in order of importance and has serious consequences. 2. When no one can do the job better then you 3. When the task is of a confidential nature 4. When there is no one in the group who has the capability or skills to carry out the task. 5. When the task has deadline pressure and doing it yourself will ensure that you meet the deadline. Steps in Delegation 1. Defining the task, 2. Selecting the person to do it (mindful of his abilities), 3. Explaining its purpose and expected results, and 4. Setting a deadline. 5. Follow-up Advantages of Delegation 1. It helps to reduce the workload on the leader 2. It promotes the training of the subordinates in the art of sharing responsibility and making decisions. 3. It enhances the culture of trust in the group, as it takes trust for a leader to be able to transfer authority to subordinates. 4. To develop second line of leadership and prepares other to also take the reins of leadership later. 5. Many subordinates are motivated because they have been entrusted with responsibility and given the opportunity to develop. WEEK 6 LEADERSHIP AND INFORMATION Excellence in leadership is founded on vision – a sense of knowing where you are going. But to get there you will also need the wherewithal to make the journey. Thus excellence in leadership must involve the mastery of leadership skills. One of those skills required is information or communication-related skills. Information Defined Defining information could be a very complex task. But for the purpose of this leadership class, we will adopt the definition that says, “Information could be regarded as data processed for useful purpose.” Merriam Webster Dictionary defines information as the knowledge obtained from investigation, study or instruction. It therefore entails that one’s knowledge and how s/he acts on the information received is determined by the efficiency of the investigation, study or and instruction given. Importantly, as Aboyade and Aboyade (2017) pointed out, “the availability of relevant information enables an individual or group to make concrete, meaningful and right decision.” They went further to highlight the characteristics of useful information to “be accurate, complete, timely, accessible, relevant, affordable, verifiable, and reliable.” Hence, for leaders to make incisive and decisive decisions, information is fundamental. Nature of Information 1. Information could be regarded as processed data for useful purposes. 2. It could be described as values in decision making process and problem solving. 3. It is knowledge gained through a course of study, communication, research, instruction, etc. 4. It could also be regarded as knowledge communicated to increase an understanding of facts, concepts or ideas. 5. Information refers to the act of informing. 6. It is that which informs and lets somebody to know. Different Types of Information a Leader Should Know 1. Educational information 2. Health information 3. Geographical information 4. Tourism information 5. Security information 6. Military information 7. Political information 8. Agricultural information 9. Weather information 10. Recreational information 11. Occupational information 12. Legal information, etc. Leadership and Communication An essential skill leaders should learn is that of communication. Communication from within oneself to the interpersonal, group and organizational levels, and even to the international stage. Communication is a way of sending and receiving information and giving feedback. Through communication, message (thought and feelings) is encoded by the person who sends it (the speaker), and decoded by the person who receives it (the listener). Encoding and decoding of information are very important. If information is received and wrongly decoded, it might cause conflict. In a similar vein, if information is wrongly encoded, the receiver might be confused. Communication is not complete until feedback has been received from the decoder. The way a leader encodes or decodes information determines his relationship with his followers and the achievement of organizational set goals. Generally, encoding and decoding information depends on several factors, such as: 1. Individual’s Value System 2. Perception 3. Assumptions 4. Communication style Some Roadblocks to Communication 1. Ordering 2. Threat 3. Excuse 4. Judging 5. Lecturing 6. Knowing it all 7. Preaching To break the barrier to communication, there must be willingness, openness and respect on the part of both the listener and speaker. Willing here refers to the interest to listen to the other person, while openness refers to the sharing of factual information and respect is the ability to recognize other people’s point of view. As noted by the Centre for Strategic Leadership, a leader needs to think with clarity, express ideas, and share information with a multitude of audiences. A leader must learn to handle the rapid flows of information within the organization, and among customers, partners, and other stakeholders and influencers. The Centre for Strategic leadership identified three (3) important elements of an effective communication for leaders, namely 1. In communication leaders should be as authentic as possible. A leader’s behavior, action and communication should be a reflection of his/her values and beliefs. Speaking, acting and communicating like another person usually rebuffs followers, as people tend to respect, want and will follow an authentic leader. 2. A leader should be visible in communication. A leader’s physical presence and availability is a form of communication. A leader’s visibility is a form of communication. They noted that “if you want to communicate well, don’t be out of sight. Don’t be known only by your emails and official missives. Be present, visible, and available. Getting “out there”- consistently and predictably - lets others know what kind of leader you are. People need to see and feel who you are to feel connected to the work you want them to do...” 3. Finally, they identified that a leader should be a good listener. Listening is a powerful skill which determines how effective one acts to an information. God listeners are good communicators and good communicators are also good listeners. Listening well helps a leader gain a clear understanding of his followers’ perspective and knowledge. It also fosters trust, respect, and openness. In fact, listening actively, helps a leader to effectively mentor, coach and motivate others. Hence, it is important for leaders to allow people to air their gripes and complaints. Ask questions that open the door to what people really think and feel, and pay close, respectful attention to what is said, and what is left unsaid. What effective leaders do when they communicate According to the Centre for strategic Leadership, when communicating, effective leaders: 1. Handle resistant audiences well; 2. Listen to individuals from all levels of the organization; 3. Encourage direct and open discussion; 4. Initiate difficult, but needed, conversation; 5. Are clear about expectations and ask good questions; and 6. Involve others before developing a plan of action. Active listening Techniques 1. Clarifying: clarify what the person says. Ask questions to be sure of the person’s view 2. Restating: summarizing: restate what the person says 3. Validating: acknowledge and make the person feel important and worthy of what s/he has said. 4. Encouraging words: this helps in active listening. Different Forms of Information a Leader Should Know 1. Oral information: Spoken words or verbal conversation. 2. Written information: Information that has been written down in black and white. 3. Textual information: Information consisting of words that have been written down, typed or printed. 4. Numeric and special information: Information consisting numbers, figures and special characters. 5. Bibliographic information: Consisting a list of information arranged alphabetically. 6. Graphical information: Pictorial representations such as maps, pictures, charts, tables, 3D models. It could be print or electronic. 7. Multimedia information: Combination of text, voice, animation, still, and moving. 8. Print: Newspapers, magazines, books, journals, pamphlets, indexes, bibliographies. 9. Electronic: Software, e-books, e-journals, e-magazines, tapes, DVDs, CDs, tapes. Sources of Information 1. Primary source: A primary source of information refers to first hand or eyewitness account of an event. It could also be regarded as raw data or facts which have been gathered at an occasion. 2. Secondary source: A secondary source of information comes after the fact. It is the literature that analyses, interprets, relates or evaluates a primary source of information. 3. Tertiary source: A tertiary source of information serves as a lead or a guide to both primary and secondary sources of information. Examples include abstracts, indexes, bibliographies, etc. Leaders are Readers The leader must have access to all information relevant to his field of activity. He should read extensively on his field, and attend all worthwhile seminars, symposiums and other forums that broaden his knowledge. Journals are helpful sources of information, because they distil the essence of books for our use. We should subscribe to, or buy, at least one international journal in the field of our specialty. We should also make effort to be well informed in related fields. A leader should also exercise discrimination in his reading. All reading gives information, but some books give a better quality of information, with wider coverage and more reliable authorities. So it’s worthwhile limiting your reading to books that are worth the time and effort – not least because there are thousands more titles emerging every year and you can never hope to keep up. Reading by itself is a misunderstood activity. Some people read to put themselves to sleep. Others read for entertainment. But a leaders reading should be directed primarily to learning. Lee citing Dimnit in his Art of Thinking says, “Never read good books – always study them.” As leaders, we must plan our readings, and systematically acquire information. Plan to read a book a fortnight, if not more. Become a member of a good library and visit it regularly. Reading should act as a catalyst to thought. Reading without thinking does not profit you. New information acquired from reading must be “bolted on” to what you know already; otherwise you will not retain it. Making brief notes will help you clarify your thoughts on the subject, and so assist recall. Leaders Should Evaluate Information Sources and Resources We live in a world with overload and overflow of information, however not all aspects of it is valid, useful and accurate. Once a leader finds desired information, there is the need to critically evaluate it so as to determine its significance with respect to the type of information required. Evaluating sources of information is an important skill leader should possess. There is the need to decide where to look, what clues to look for, and what to accept. In evaluating the credibility of an information source, there are several key areas to look out for. 1. Authority of the author 2. The Publisher 3. Objectivity of the author 4. Quality of the work 5. Recency 6. Relevance of the work Relevance of Information to a Leader Information is a pivotal tool for a successful leadership. A leader must make effort to be well read, as information opens up opportunities, makes the leader aware of his followers, the organization and the dynamics of his/her environment. The following are specific relevance of information to a leader. 1. Generally, information is needed, not only in relating successfully with the followers but also in formulating and achieving the organizational goal. 2. It tells us what is going on, how problems are being solved, what challenges are ahead. 3. The more information we have, the easier it is for us to understand our challenges and what is required to tackle them. Conversely, the less information we have, the more difficult it is for us to make positive headways. WEEK 7 EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND LEADERSHIP Defining Emotional Intelligence (EI or EQ) EMOTION Emotional Intelligence (EQ), is a combination of two words ‘Emotion’ and ‘Intelligence’ where Emotion is a strong feeling derived from one’s circumstances, mood, or relationships with others. There are different types of emotions, which can be positive or negative such as anger, love, fear, sadness, disgust, pride, shame to mention a few. Emotions influence people’s behaviours, as such, how an individual responds to a situation is dependent on how the person feels about the situation. Some Characteristics of Emotions are: Emotions happen suddenly (spontaneously) Emotions are dependent on perception Emotions can be aroused by thoughts Emotions are persistent Emotions are cumulative INTELLIGENCE Intelligence is the ability to think, reason logically, and understand how to deal with situations. It is the ability to learn from experience, adapt to new surroundings or environment and the ability to solve problems. It is about how one learns, understands, deal with new situations, reason analytically, cope well and live effectively. Intelligence involves but not limited to verbal comprehension, ability to deal with numbers (mathematical operation), ability to memorize, perceptual speed, visual capacity, ability to notice the difference and similarities, logical reasoning and spatial ability. INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT (IQ) Intelligence Quotient (IQ) is the measure of one’s intelligence. EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE (EQ OR EI) Emotional Intelligence (EI) is the ability to recognise, interpret and process emotions in yourself and others. It is the ability to understand and manage your own emotions, and those of the people around you. When individuals or groups relate, emotions are displayed. When these emotions are effectively managed within oneself and others, for organizational productivity, emotional intelligence has been exhibited. Simply, emotional intelligence involves knowing the right way to display emotions and manage others’ emotions. It involves discerning a time to speak and a time to be silent. Most times, people display emotions and react to issues on impulse rather than responding reflectively. Individuals who tend to respond on impulse without thinking have low Emotional Intelligence. In the words of Aristotle: “Anybody can become angry, that is easy; but to be angry with the right person, and to the right degree, and at the right time, and for the right purpose, and in the right way, that is not within everybody’s power, that is not easy.” – Aristotle This implies that displaying emotions with the right person, at the right time and in the right way, and at the right degree, rather than at the most tempting time or in the most tempting way, is Emotional Intelligence. Emotional intelligence also refers to a person’s abilities to perceive, identify, understand, and successfully manage emotions in self and others. It is being able to effectively manage ourselves and our relationships. “What matters for success, character, happiness and lifelong achievements is a definite set of emotional skills – your EQ - not just purely cognitive abilities that are measured by conventional IQ tests” – Daniel Goleman INTELLIGENT QUOTIENT (IQ) VS EMOTONAL INTELLIGENC (EQ OR EI) High IQ (Albert Einstein) High EQ (Mother Theresa) Critical Poised Condescending Outgoing Inhibited Committed to people Uncomfortable with sensuality Sympathetic and caring Emotionally bland Comfortable with themselves IQ EQ Predicts success at school If strengthened greatly, improves one’s chance of success in every sphere of life. Predicts about 10% of success on the job Predicts about 85% success on the job Is fixed (at birth) and peaks in the late teens Not fixed (at birth). It can rise steadily and and early twenties continuous improvement is possible It is relative to culture Knows no cultural differences It cannot be developed It can be developed It is measurable Realistically and objectively measurable. EQ is NOT 1. Being weak 2. Being calm 3. Being agreeable 4. Turning everything into a joke 5. Never laughing 6. Acting on impulse 7. Showing no interest 8. Giving everybody a hug EQ is not the opposite of IQ, It is not the triumph of heart over head, it is the unique intersection of both – David Caruso Components of Emotional Intelligence There are four (4) components of EQ, they are: 1. Self-Awareness 2. Self-Management 3. Social awareness 4. Social/relationship Management A. Self-Awareness: It is the ability to recognise and understand your feelings, thoughts, emotions, behaviours, and how they affect your life and work. Self-awareness is the basis of other components. This includes the ability to accurately assess your strengths, weakness, values, limitations, ambitions and self-confidence. How do you become Self - Aware 1. Know your personality type 2. Self-Assessment Knowing your Personality Type Type A or Type B? Personality Type Test s/n P1 P2 1 When exercising... When exercising... I try to keep a steady pace. I push myself to go harder. 2 In conversations, sometimes... In conversations, sometimes... people interrupt me. I interrupt people. 3 I am quiet I am not quiet 4 I stay at home/hostel on holidays & I go out, party/hang out with friends on Weekends holidays & weekends 5 The pleasure in a task is... The pleasure in a task is... exploring its possibilities. finishing it. 6 I am shy, I don’t talk to people I don’t I like meeting new people and talking to Know them 7 I am caring and understanding I am not interested in other people Result of TEST s/n P1 (TYPE B) P2 (TYPE A) 1 Reserved, introvert, easy going Outgoing, extrovert 2 Patient Ambitious, rigidly organized, workaholics 3 Contented Restless, in a hurry, impatient 4 Doesn’t speak much Loud, 5 Patient, good listener, expressive Push themselves with deadlines, and hate both delays and ambivalence. 6 Reflective, thinking about the Impatient, interrupts conversation, truthful outer and inner worlds 7 Have a poor sense of time conscious, sensitive schedule 8 live at a lower stress level care for other people, always try to help others OTHER TEST QUESTIONS What makes you happy What makes you sad What motivates you What do you enjoy doing most What makes you feel discouraged What makes you angry How long do you stay in the bathroom What do you value most Who is your role model Self-Assessment SWOT Analysis Decision Taking without a second thought How do you handle challenges Imagine reading your own Obituary in a News Paper (Story of Alfred Nobel), what will people say about you? Decision Taking Without a Second Thought You are on an aeroplane that suddenly hits extremely bad turbulence and begins rocking from side to side. What would you do? A. Continue to read your book or magazine, or watch the movie, trying to pay less attention to the turbulence. B. Become vigilant for an emergency, carefully monitoring the hostess and reading the emergency instruction card. C. A little of both A and B D. Not sure, never thought of it. a. Such a person is in a stage of denial b. Such a person is in a Stage of panic and being too conscious c. Balanced view (high emotional intelligence) d. Very bad How do you Handle Challenges ARE YOU A CARROT, EGG OR COFFEE BEAN? CARROT: Goes in strong and hardened, but, comes out soft and weak after being overwhelmed by the challenge EGG: Goes in soft and fragile, but, comes out strong and hardened. Coffee Bean: Remains the same, but, leaves something pleasant (aroma) behind. You shouldn’t be changed by the challenges you face, instead, you should make an impact, by leaving a remarkable mark or change to the condition that brings the pain. Individual Differences and Personality Every man is in certain respect like All other men, like Some other men and like No other man Everyone has his/her HILLS (Strengths) and VALLEYS (Weaknesses) As a leader, be proud of your Hills and learn to manage our Valleys, by accepting them ACTIVELY OR PASSIVELY Passive Acceptance: Learning to accept weaknesses we CANNOT change. E.g, height, hair volume, speech consistency, etc. Active Acceptance: learning to tackle or do something about the weaknesses we CAN change, e.g., overweight stress level, etc. Serenity Prayer - “God grant me the Serenity to accept the things I CANNOT CHANGE; Courage to CHANGE the things I can, and the Wisdom to know the DIFFERENCE” – Reinhold Niebuhr (1932-1933) Assignment (Voluntary) 1. Identify and describe specific aspects of your personality, that you are happy about and proud of (physical, intellectual, emotional, social or moral) 2. One thing about your personality you don’t like but will accept passively ii. One thing about your personality you don’t like but will accept actively. Send to me on WhatsApp: 07037473830 B. Self-Management: It is not enough to know who you are, it is also important to know how to build self-acceptance and regard for your own weaknesses. It is the ability to control disruptive, unproductive, or harmful emotions and desires, this includes trustworthiness, conscientiousness and adaptability. People need to learn how to manage their emotions and impulses. Leaders who are skilled in self-management are always optimistic and hopeful despite challenges, obstacles, setbacks and outright failures. How do you Manage Self Conditioning your Mind: Explore your brain and mind, because, it has the potential for self-acceptance and acknowledgement (remember Sibusisso Vilane, the first black man to walk to the south pole of Mount Everest unassisted). The things we exercise or condition our mind to do or belief have a way of shaping up. Changing self-talk through REBT (Rational Emotive Behavioural Therapy): REBT (by Albert Ellis (Father of REBT)) is a technique of altering one’s perception, attitude and behaviour through logical deductive reasoning. o Using the A (Activating Event or situation) B (Beliefs) C (Consequence) D (Disputing) E (Effect) model. Positive Affirmations - Statements that can be repeated silently and aloud wherever you are and whatever you are doing. E.g. I AM THE BEST, I AM COMPETENT, I WILL SUCCEED, I AM NOT A FAILURE, (Short words, not more than 10 words long) o Dr Emiel Coue used this method for his patients. By making them repeatedly say “Every day and in Everyway, I am getting better and better” o Humans act, feel and perform by what they imagine to be true about themselves. o Positive affirmations help to recondition, re-programme and influence the subconscious (which is full of negative thoughts over the years) o Positive affirmation helps to release positive hormones into the body that makes us healthy. o “If you think you can, you’re right; if you think you can’t you’re also right” – Henry Ford How to manage ANGER (just before the class ends) C. Social Awareness: This is the ability to recognise, understand and appropriately respond to the emotions of others. Socially aware leaders practice empathy, which means being able to put yourself in other people’s shoes, sense their emotions and understand their perspective. Competencies within Social Awareness Empathy (understanding other people. It is the ability to hear and understand unspoken or partly expressed thoughts, feelings and concerns of others.) Organizational Awareness Service Orientation How to be Socially Aware Know that individuals have varied personality and reasons for relating, therefore, will relate with you differently (Tree Analogy) Empathy o Pay attention to individuals’ critical interactions with others. o Turn off the sound on the television, watch and see if you can IDENTIFY THE MOODS AND NON VERBAL CUES of the actors without hearing anything. Organizational Awareness o Identify key people who exert influence inside and outside the organization. o Get to know people’s perspective on how to get things done Service Orientation o Measure your level of service for others o Analyse your service, concern for others (helper or a watcher?) o Modify some procedures your team members have complained about. D. Relationship/Social Management/Skills It is the ability to connect with others, elicit desirable responses build positive relationships. Leaders with high emotional intelligence are aware of the impact their behaviours have on others, and they treat people with compassion, sensitivity and kindness. Social skills also entail developing and inspiring others with a powerful vision, listening and learning and communicating clearly and convincingly with others and using emotional understanding to influence others in positive ways. How to improve your social Skills Develop Others o Take time to talk to individuals about their aspirations, what they want to do better and the new things they would like to try out Communication o Pay attention to people’s non-verbal cues and the visual aids they use to get their message across. o When delivering information, encourage your listeners to ask questions and summarize your key points to ensure they have understood you. Conflict Management o If you sense trouble brewing with an individual, bring the grievance to the fore, before the conflict escalates. o If you are in disagreement with someone, focus on the issue and not the person. Ask yourself, “Are my words and actions productive in trying to resolve this situation”? Build Bonds o Take part in professional associations or appropriate social events to build your network and strengthen your relationship. Teamwork and Collaboration o Avoid taking control of the agenda or being the first to make suggestions. o Share the different to be played in a group. o Celebrate team’s success. Leaders and emotional Intelligence An important ability for leaders is to understand the range of emotions people have and how these emotions may manifest themselves. Leaders who harness and direct the power of emotions to improve followers’ satisfaction, morale, and motivation get better results and enhance overall organizational effectiveness. The emotional state of a leader influences the entire team, department, or organization. Most of us recognise that we can “catch” emotions from others. Leaders recognise the importance not only of keeping their own emotions in balance but also of helping others manage negative emotions so they don’t infect the entire team or organization. Leaders tune in to the emotional state of others, bring unhealthy or negative emotions to the fore, and encourage people to explore the positive emotions in their everyday work. Leaders have a lot to do with whether employees have positive or negative feelings about their work lives. Almost everything that influences people’s moods in the workplace is under the control of leaders. Hence, the reason leaders need a high emotional intelligence. They have to regulate their own emotions to remain positive and hopeful to help those around them. Importance of Emotional Intelligence in a Leader 1. Leaders use their understanding of emotions to inspire change and lead people towards a better outcome, to build teamwork and collaborations and to resolve conflicts that arise inevitably. 2. Emotional intelligence enables leaders to recognise and respect followers as whole human beings with feelings, opinions, and ideas of their own. 3. Leaders use their emotional intelligence to help followers grow and develop, see and enhance their self-image and the feelings of self-worth and help meet their needs and achieve personal and organizational goals. Conclusion Emotional intelligence is not about suppressing emotions, it is about learning how to recognise, process and channel them in a way that benefits you and your team. Enhancing your emotional intelligence requires efforts, but it can be achieved with sustained practice. Hence, emotional intelligence can be learned, as anyone can strengthen his or her abilities in the four categories. TAKE HOME PACKAGE THE TREE TEST (TREE ANALOGY OF INDIVIDUALS IN OUR LIFE) by Tyler Perry Every individual that comes through your life, in a way fall in between the three analogy LEAF PEOPLE Some people come into your life and they are like leaves on a tree. They are only there for a season. You can’t depend or count on them because they are weak and only there to give you shade. Like leaves, they are there to take what they need and as soon as it gets cold or a wind blows in your life, they are gone. You can’t be angry at them, it’s just who they are. BRANCH PEOPLE Some people come into your life and they are like branches on a tree. They are stronger than leaves, but you have to be careful with them. They will stick around through most seasons, but if you go through a storm or two in your life, it is possible that you could lose them. Most times they break away when it is tough. Although they are stronger than leaves, you have to test them out before you run out there and put all your weights on them. In most cases, they can’t handle too much weight. But again, you can’t be angry at them, it’s just who they are. TRUNK PEOPLE There is usually one person who comes into your life and he/she is like a trunk of a tree. He/she is stronger than the branch people but might not stand by you forever. He/she carries and helps you distribute nutrients to all the branches, you can count on him/her to stand by you through most seasons, even when all the branches and leaves are gone. Although he/she is likely to last with you to the desert, if the axe of life falls on you, you are still likely to lose him/her. ROOT PEOPLE If you can find some people in your life who are like the roots of a tree, then you have found something special. Like the roots of a tree, they are hard to find, because they are not trying to be seen. Their only job is to hold you up and help you live a strong and healthy life. If you thrive, they are happy for you, they stay low-key and don’t let the world know they are there. And if you go through an awful storm they will hold you up. Their job is to hold you up, come what may, and to nourish, feed and water you. Just as a tree has many leaves and branches but few roots, look at your own life, how many leaves, branches and roots do you have? What are you in other people’s lives? Thank God for your roots. TYPE OF PEOPLE IN A WORKPLACE / TEAM 1. Programmers (Fills you, helps you and the Team) 2. Hackers (Takes everything they can from you and the organization/team without giving back) Typical (Negative) Workplace/Team Behaviour 1. The Aggressive 2. The Critical (always finds fault) 3. The difficult to impress 4. Dishonest 5. The Egocentric 6. The lazy 7. The Chauvinist 8. The Gossip 9. The Toxic 10. The Uncontrollable 11. The challengers of your managerial skill Your emotional intelligence should come to fore when you have no choice but to work with such kind of people. How to Manage Anger Anybody can be angry, but not all know how to express it. If you know how “to be angry with the right person, and to the right degree, and at the right time, and for the right purpose, and in the right way, (Aristotle), then you are wise. The following steps will help you manage your anger 1. The most difficult time of controlling your anger is the initial stage/phase. Once it starts, rather than say something, keep quiet, take a deep breath and count from 1 to 50. By the end of the counting, the hormones and adrenaline secreted will come down. 2. Drink a glass of water, rush it as if you are thirsty. 3. Once you start losing patience, shift your mind to someone or something else that makes you happy. Think of happy moments to divert your mind. 4. Music helps to relieve mental stress. Put your earphone and unwind with soft music to divert your mind, reduce the adrenaline in your system. 5. Try talking to yourself. Go the bathroom and vent out all your anger. 6. Try reading - newspapers, magazines, novels, etc. 7. Try singing or humming a happy song. 8. Take out your frustration by playing games. Distract yourself from anger. 9. Take a walk, step out, go for fresh air to relax and think. Take time to spend time alone. 10. As a long term solution, mediate (or practice Yoga). It is one of the best ways to control your emotions. Other Tips on Anger 1. You can reduce being angry by drawing 2. Avoid replying any message when you are angry 3. Never get angry with a person who has nothing to lose. 4. Inability to listen carefully results in anger. 5. Say sorry at the right moment and in the right way, to reduce the anger of others Once your anger has subsided, it is very essential to talk it with the concerned person(s). Remember, communication is very important, but at the right time and in your right condition. Week 8 Culture and Leadership Definition - Culture Culture is complex to comprehend and the word has various meanings Generally the term is used in three different ways mainly as an integrated pattern of human knowledge, beliefs and behaviour and secondly as attitudes, values, morals, goals and customs of the society and thirdly an association with excellence in arts or taste. Most broadly, 'culture' includes all human phenomena which are not purely results of human genetics. The discipline that investigates human culture is called anthropology. The term culture represents a systematic way of life of persons and groups of people or society. It is the unique way people or society behave and do things. Different people may have different cultures or way of life which will include their way of writing, expression of anger, eating, types of food, way of dancing, behaviour, singing, clothing religion dancing and other cultural practices. It also refers to a set of patterns of human activity within a community or social group and the symbolic structures that give significance to such activity. Some cultural elements include customs, laws, dress, social standards, religious beliefs, and traditions. Types of culture The two basic types of culture are 1. Material culture: which include physical things produced by a society. For instance, artefacts, symbols, architectural style, dress, food 2. Nonmaterial culture: they are intangible things produced by a society. Such as, norms, values, laws and language which makes effective social interaction possible and influences how people react and perceive issues. The term culture as a concept is passed on to the next generation by learning. The term culture as a concept conforms to a pattern or system of beliefs, values and behavioural norms. Leadership On the other hand, the term leadership simply represents the ability to influence and motivate others to do things that help to achieve organizational goals. Leadership can as well mean the art of rallying and guiding people towards achieving organizational goals. The point to note is that leadership evolves with time and has been defined in different ways by different jurisdictions. It is also important to note that being able to influence and motivate people isn’t enough — leaders need to be empathetic and connect with people and must have a sound organizational culture to be successful Both leadership and culture are complementary to each other and provide a strong basis for mutual characterization. Culture provides leadership with a fertile ground to flourish while leadership is an antecedent of organizational culture. Defining and Measuring the Relationship between Leadership and culture. Every group, organization, community, society or country has its own unique culture. Organizational culture is the collection of traits an organization possess and the way things are done in the organization. Organizational culture includes an organization’s expectations, experiences, philosophy, as well as the values that guide member behaviour, and is expressed in member self-image, inner workings, interactions with the outside world, and future expectations. Culture is based on shared attitudes, beliefs, customs, and written and unwritten rules that have been developed over time and are considered valid. The negative cultures can especially undermine positive leadership as initiatives are actively undermined by managers who have a stake in the old culture or struggle to accept the changes inherent in the modern workplace. Whether it’s through manipulation or complacency, negative cultures can create significant challenges for change. At the same time, positive leadership can overcome negative culture and turn the tide over time. A few encouraging results and positive experiences can go a long way. Also through leadership styles leaders may have a powerful influence on an organization’s culture. They set the tone for how employees perceive their work experience, so leadership and culture go hand in hand.. In many ways, leaders’ success depends on their ability to help shape and uphold organizational culture. That’s a formidable task—and one that requires selflessness, conviction and strong character. Besides nurturing those qualities, there are some specific things you can do to improve your impact on company culture. Here are the top four namely maximizing employees engagement, make culture part of your operating and decision processes, building trust and being a role model and pursue a common goal. We cannot imagine leadership without culture. Managers today understand the importance of culture as a factor in whether a company performs well or not. But many of them mistakenly believe they can arbitrarily decide whether or not you will have a good culture but the key understanding is that culture change must include change of behaviour. The examination of the literature on various leadership styles and how they are theoretically and empirically associated with organizational culture shows that the nature of the relationship between leadership and organizational culture focuses on the interactive effect of leadership and culture on organizational outcomes The culture of any social unit includes group norms, shared perceptions, espoused values, and consensus around goals as well as how they solve problems. We need to understand how the different cultures came about and how peoples' behaviours vary from one place to another. Changes in them can affect the world we live in some way. Culture unites people of a single society together through shared beliefs, traditions, and expectations. Culture is socially learned and transmitted by members; it provides the rules for behaviour within organizations. Organizational culture is the collection of values, expectations, and practices that guide and inform the actions of all team members. This can be viewed as the collection of traits that make your company what it is. Great culture exemplifies positive traits that lead to improved performance, while a dysfunctional company culture brings out qualities that can hinder even the most successful organizations. This should not be confused with organizational goals or a mission statement, although both can help define it. Culture is created through consistent and authentic behaviours, not press releases or policy documents. You can watch company culture in action when you see how a CEO responds to a crisis, how a team adapts to new customer demands, or how a manager nonmaterial culture, intangible things produced by a society. There major elements of culture are symbols, language, norms, values, and artefacts and language which makes effective social interaction possible and influences how people react and perceive issues. It is reasonably believed that different cultural and ethnic orientations affect the way leaders behave. The question is how does culture influence leadership, particularly at the organizational level within national or regional culture, several things are shared. This sharing affects how leadership and followership work. There's a common language, group processes for inclusion or exclusion, accepted norms for distribution of status and power, customs for developing friendship and intimacy, and shared ideologies and religions. These commonalities create powerful habits and bonds among people who share them and can exhibit some level of discrimination. Cultural norms can be absorbed and can lead to good or bad consequences. For example, individuals observing negative behaviours may rationalize such negative conduct and practices. These negative behaviours may then escalate and spread to others; taking on institutional momentum including rationalization. Rationalization is mental strategies that justify illegal or immoral behaviour. Leaders and followers may also exist in a social cocoon or micro-culture, such as terrorists in hiding, whose standards of acceptable behaviour may be quite different from the rest of the organization and society at large. Employee expectations and performance as well as organizational structures can be very different across cultures, particularly if comparing Eastern and Western nations. Firms in South Korea and Chinese firms in Taiwan tend to be owned by founders or families. They are likely to be authoritarian, with high-power distances, more and bureaucratic and more c

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