Being a Leader
The Team Behind a Successful Leader
LastName – 2 Even though this might seem unrelated, the concept of enlisting others is somewhat similar to a popular debate among sports enthusiasts that revolves around the true value of a head coach or manager. This is so because some would say talent ultimately wins out on the field of play, while others swear by a belief in the system where talent can only go so far without the right person in command. Bringing this back to the world of business; is there a greater chance for a team of hard workers to succeed without a talented leader, or with someone who is respected and admired at the helm? Much like a sports team, the group needs a good leader to provide guidance, motivation, inspiration and oversight. Granted, a lack of these things will not immediately sink the ship, but overall success in the long term is far more difficult to achieve without that brilliant leader in control. Of course just as easy as it is to buy into that, there is the opposite side of the coin which overwhelmingly displays how impossible it is for a leader to succeed without enlisting others. Kouzes and Posner explain “whether they’re trying to mobilize a crowd in the grandstand or one person in the office, to Enlist Others leaders must improve their capacities to act on these two essentials … appeal to common ideals and animate the vision” (Kouzes and Posner, 2007). They elaborate on that idea by describing how “successfully engaging in these two essentials can produce very powerful results … whether it’s to one person, a small group, or a large organization – constituents report significantly higher levels of job satisfaction, motivation, commitment, loyalty, team spirit, productivity, and profitability … clearly there’s a big payoff to bringing the vision to life” (Kouzes and Posner, 2007). Before addressing the importance of animating the vision, it makes sense to discuss the reasons for a leader to focus on appealing to common
LastName – 2 Even though this might seem unrelated, the concept of enlisting others is somewhat similar to a popular debate among sports enthusiasts that revolves around the true value of a head coach or manager. This is so because some would say talent ultimately wins out on the field of play, while others swear by a belief in the system where talent can only go so far without the right person in command. Bringing this back to the world of business; is there a greater chance for a team of hard workers to succeed without a talented leader, or with someone who is respected and admired at the helm? Much like a sports team, the group needs a good leader to provide guidance, motivation, inspiration and oversight. Granted, a lack of these things will not immediately sink the ship, but overall success in the long term is far more difficult to achieve without that brilliant leader in control. Of course just as easy as it is to buy into that, there is the opposite side of the coin which overwhelmingly displays how impossible it is for a leader to succeed without enlisting others. Kouzes and Posner explain “whether they’re trying to mobilize a crowd in the grandstand or one person in the office, to Enlist Others leaders must improve their capacities to act on these two essentials … appeal to common ideals and animate the vision” (Kouzes and Posner, 2007). They elaborate on that idea by describing how “successfully engaging in these two essentials can produce very powerful results … whether it’s to one person, a small group, or a large organization – constituents report significantly higher levels of job satisfaction, motivation, commitment, loyalty, team spirit, productivity, and profitability … clearly there’s a big payoff to bringing the vision to life” (Kouzes and Posner, 2007). Before addressing the importance of animating the vision, it makes sense to discuss the reasons for a leader to focus on appealing to common
Bibliography: Kouzes, James M. and Posner, Barry Z. The Leadership Challenge. John Wiley & Sons Inc. California, 2007.