Dan Harris: Servant Leader

Background of Dan Harris
This section looks at the background of Dan Harris and frames it in such a way that exemplifies him as a servant leader. Dan Harris was born in 1949 in Ohio and grew up on a farm, which taught him what hard work means. Harris’s family also taught him to work hard, be kind to others, and to help others without expectations. Growing up, Harris focused on school and doing well. The most important influences in Harris’s life are his father (taught him to work hard, be honest, be kind, and to be at peace with the world), Jesus Christ (taught him to put others first), Woody Holiday (General GMC manager, stood up for Harris and believed in him), Herman Hoffman, (Harris’s boss in the military was sort of like another father
Harris trusts that “listening to other people is probably one of the best ways to be a successful leader.” Harris does not think that it is acceptable for a “leader” to criticize subordinates publicly, he would never do that. Dan admits that he never had any formal training on how to be a leader, instead, he learned to be an effective leader by watching other people. Many of Harris’s workers have personally told him that they enjoy working with/for him. Harris believes that in order to be an effective leader, a leader must work at it and always think about how to improve oneself for the benefit of everyone. Also, “a leader must lead by example and be overly knowledgeable in the field or the issue at hand. Doing so earns respect from peers because they know that you have put the time and effort into them and the company.” Dan reveals that characters in the Bible have also influenced his leadership style, specifically, Jesus Christ, Moses, and Saul. As well, Robert Schuller (preacher and wrote a lot of books on the power of positive thinking) and Dr. Norman Vincent Peale influenced his leadership style. He likes both of their delivery styles because they encourage one to do better and he appreciates their positive thoughts/outlook on
The purpose of this paper is to provide a working definition of servant leadership, as originally defined by Greenleaf the founder of servant leadership, by identifying characterizations and findings of servant leadership. Through the examination of the definitions, characteristics, and conclusions of servant leadership focuses, it is revealed that Dan Harris embodies what it means to be a servant leader.
As well, the first section of this paper discusses the review of literature in order to fully comprehend what servant leadership means and what it entails. The second section of this paper overviews the methodology necessary to obtain imperative information on a servant leader in relation to a chosen leader, which contains an interview. The third section of this paper includes a brief background of the chosen leader, Dan Harris. This background comprises his life story, in addition to, aspects of his life and characteristics that points to why he is, in fact, a servant leader. The fourth section of this paper applies how the characteristics of Dan Harris correlate to what it means to be a servant leader, this is the application