Philosophy of Leadership - Assignment A leadership philosophy is the way we see ourselves as leaders. This philosophy guides our actions, our behaviors, and our thoughts. Our philosophies are influenced by external and internal forces. We can change who we are as leaders by simply changing our philosophy of leadership. Leadership philosophies can change as you grow to understand yourself within the context of leading. Creating or finding your leadership philosophy means that you must explore and reflect upon your personal values, assumptions, and beliefs about leadership. Personal values are qualities or characteristics that you value. You would rather leave an organization or step down as a leader than violate your values. Your values guide your intentions and they influence how you lead. When your personal values are clear and you are conscious of them, you create a solid foundation for leading. Assumptions are ideas that are assumed or believed to be true. As a leader it is important to understand what assumptions fuel your leadership thinking. Often leaders are not aware of the assumptions because they are operating from certain paradigms that will not allow them to see assumptions. Reflection into one’s leadership is an excellent way to uncover assumptions. Beliefs are ideas that we hold to be true; they shape our realities. If a leader believes that the only individuals in an organization that can make decisions is the management staff, then that belief will influence how the leader treats others. Beliefs can also be unconscious; they are for us a habitual way of thinking and acting that it doesn’t cross our minds that our beliefs may be prohibiting us. Part 1: Identifying Your Leadership Values From the list below, pick five core values that you feel describe and guide who you are as a leader. You may choose other values that are not on this list. Place them into a chart and answer the questions in the matrix. Achievement Balance Creativity Integrity Activity Challenge Diverse perspectives Justice Advancement Change Duty Love Adventure Collaboration Economic security Loyalty Affiliation Community Friendship Personal Development Affluence Competency Health Recognition Authority Competition Humor Self-respect Autonomy Courage Harmony Are there other values that you would like to include but are not on the list? 2 Exemplar of what your chart should look like: Identifying Your Leadership Values VALUES List your values here Personal Definition of Values List here your definition of these values here How do you envision these values playing out in your leadership? 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Part 2: Uncovering Your Leadership Assumptions Answer the following questions about leadership. By reflecting on these questions, you will find what assumptions are driving your leadership thinking. 3 1. Describe two stories of leadership. One story should describe a positive experience you’ve had with leadership and the second story should describe a time when you had a negative experience with leadership. 2. In your own words provide a definition of leadership. 3. Using your definition of leadership, please elaborate how you first came to understand (or know) your leadership definition. (why did you decide on this definition…why is it important…what made you write it?) 4. Describe the individuals (leaders) or organizations that influence your leadership definition. Part 3: Understanding Your Leadership Beliefs For each of the questions in this section, ask yourself: 1. What were my assumptions? 2. What influenced my assumptions? 3. Would others (co-workers, friends, supervisors) see the situations I described differently? Answer the following questions about leadership beliefs. By reflecting on these questions above, you will find what beliefs you hold about leadership.(Write at least two paragraphs for each question) 4 1. Can people who have caused others harm be leaders? 2. Should leaders have certain qualities to be able to lead? 3. Who decides who leads? 4. How do leaders gain credibility? 5. In general, is there something good about leadership? 6. What do you think is the purpose for leadership? 7. Is leadership behavior developed through personal experiences or through external forces? Part 4: Finalizing Your Leadership Philosophy Now that you’ve identified your leadership values, uncovered your leadership assumptions, and understand what beliefs guide your leadership thinking, you are now ready to write statements reflecting your leadership philosophy using the responses above. Statements about your leadership should be written in the present moment not in the future tense. Creating “present moment” statements helps you to internalize and visualize your philosophy as it is happening now, not in the future or the past. Your leadership philosophy should be a statement that consists of your responses from the above exercise. It doesn’t have to include everything, but it should encompass the general idea of what you’ve written. It doesn’t have to be formatted in a certain way – just whatever makes sense to you. You can write one-sentence statements or you can write a story explaining your philosophy. Start with an initial draft of your philosophy and write it down. Revise it as often as you need. Remember, your philosophy can change depending on where you are at with your leadership..