Reflective Journal

Discuss about the Leadership for Transformations and Transactional Leadership Styles.

Leadership has always been an important perspective for me. I have worked hard since a long time to build my leadership skills. This is predominantly because I have a lot of experience in playing various sports. As a sports person I have understood the importance of a good leader. Through these sports and team participations, I have understood the impact that a leader can have on a team. Through this course, I was able to learn various leadership styles and attributes. I leant the importance of leadership as well as how different leaders functions differently. Even in an organization, leaders of the business play a significant role in guiding the team to the pinnacle of success (Bolman & Deal, 2017). Leaders are bestowed upon with the responsibility of guiding, mentoring and effectively managing team members (Yukl, 2013).

Through this course, I was able to analyze myself as a future leader. We conducted numerous activities and took several classes which helped me gain a deeper insight upon my leadership potential. I tried to analyze my strengths and weaknesses. Through this report, I aim to reflect on these abilities and device an action plan which would include my short term and long term goals that would be adopted in order to become a good leader. I have reflected upon my leadership abilities through my previous experiences and along with that I have taken feedback from my friends and family members in order to understand my weaknesses. I have also shared three significant incidents that depict my leadership abilities. These incidences have taught me a largely about the importance of a leader and I have shared my learnings from these incidents as well.

The first significant leadership experience that I had was when I was newly appointed as the captain of the cricket team. The announcement came as a surprise for me and I honestly did not believe I was ready for it. Our first match was against one of our biggest rivals and I had to make a great first impression as a leader. There were two new players in our team. I decided to bat first in order to lead my team with a good score. I carefully analyzed the batting order that followed and ensured that the new players are sent in the middle order rather than the last order. By doing this small thing, I was able to put a lot of trust in them. Their performance was exemplary and the entire team was proud of them. I believe that one small move transformed the equation that new players in the team have. They both felt welcomed and immediately felt connected to the team. Such strategic thinking is critical for the success of a leader.

Importance of Leadership

My biggest leadership quality is being responsible. I tend to take psychological ownership of every project that I am ever a part of. A leader must be responsible in any organization too as it would be pivotal to the success of the organization (Selznick, 2011). As a sports captain while playing football or cricket I have always taken responsibility for my team members and worked to fulfill it. For example, if we had to compete with a strong team, I tend to bat first in order to keep a high score and boost morale of the team members. On the other hand, if we tend to bat against a relatively weaker team then I give new members a chance to perform in the beginning while taking responsibility for the team during the end. Sports have taught be a lot about responsibility. This is one aspect of my personality that I will build even further in order to ensure that my team can rely on me.

A longtime ago I had heard this saying “An individual’s network is an individual’s net worth”. Since then I have learnt the importance of creating and maintaining a strong network of people. I have studied in several different schools and worked with many people on a personal as well as a professional front. I have always tried to maintain a good relationship with people even after they move to different cities or even if we are not working together anymore. Relationship building is a crucial aspect for a leader and hence they must work upon building their network (Raelin, 2011). Another positive ability as a leader is my relationship building skills. Even in my cricket and football team, I have always worked hard at maintaining a positive relationship with all the team members. A lot of team building exercises are also conducted for sports team so that everyone can get to know each other better. Even in organizations, a leader must have a strong network that can be effectively utilized in the longer run for to develop a hyper loop of positive synergy (Goleman, 2017).

A leader is bestowed upon with the responsibility to creating a positive working environment. This is essential in order to motivate team members and ensure that everyone works to their highest potential (Low, 2018). Optimism has always been my strong suit. I tend to see the positives in every situation that I am associated with and this is exactly the kind of leader I wish to be. An optimistic leader can change the outlook of every member in the team and motivate them to perform to the best of their ability (Chaudhry et. al., 2012).

Leadership Attributes: Responsibility, Relationship Building, Creating a Positive Working Environment

A second leadership incident that has left a significant mark on my leadership skills is when our football team was going through a dull season. I was the captain of the team and as a leader it really impacted me that the team was not performing well. We had lost 4 matches in a row. Despite the right amount of practice and great team dynamics, I was unable to understand the problem. This is when I tried to analyze the last four matches that we played in order to get to the root of this problem. While this analysis, I realized that are two main forwards had a major communication gap. Both of them were focused on enhancing their number of goals and hence were reluctant to pass the ball to each other. This led to a lot of problem within the team and the overall communication suffered.

After realizing this issue, I immediately confronted both the players. I had a straight forward conversation with them and asked them to decide if they wish to play for the team or for themselves. The entire communication was very transparent helped us clear the air. This incident helped me understand the importance of communication in a team and specifically as a leader. Being a leader involves being optimistic and positive but at the time of a crisis, it is important that the leader is straight forward and is able to confront team members in an efficient manner.

This course also helped me learn about different leadership styles. These leadership styles vary from person to person and no single leadership style can effectively work in every situation. A democratic leadership style allows team members to be more participative (Bhatti et. al., 2011). Such a style works best when team members are self-motivated and driven (Lasswell, 2017). On the other hand, autocratic leadership style is more centralized in nature and the decision making authority remains with the leader. This strategy works well when team members are relatively new and the nature of the job is very critical and sensitive (Rast et. al., 2013).

In order to understand leadership styles better we tried to analyze the leadership styles of several great leaders like Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs and Mahendra Singh Dhoni. As a sports person, I have learnt a lot from Mr. Dhoni who is the ex-captain of the Indian Cricket Team. The man is known as a finisher because he has taken his team to success in the last few overs many times. However, the leadership attribute that I like the most about him is his temperament. He continues to remain calm and think strategically during the most successful innings as well as in the face of extreme failure. This is the attribute that I wish to learn as a leader.

Leadership Styles: Democratic and Autocratic

As a leader, I tend to follow a transformational leadership style. I was made the captain of the cricket team at an early stage. The team was fairly new then and communication was not that effective. A lot of new members were still joining. I saw that as the perfect opportunity to change the way cricket is being seen with our team. I formulated a short term and a long term strategy and discussed the same with all the team members. Together we sat and established clear goals for the upcoming season. Our practice routine became more disciplined and more team building exercises were conducted. I also brought in the culture of celebrating wins and losses. The team always parties after a match that is won but somehow everyone went straight home after they lost a match. I wanted to change this attitude and make the team understand that failures are also important. Hence we began the trend of celebrating our successes as well as failures as a team.

The third leadership incident that is very important for me taught me the importance of leading by example. As the football team was starting the new season, I felt that the practice sessions were often delayed and there was increasing absenteeism. Every other day some or the other member was absent and this largely impacted the practice for the entire team. Eventually when I reflected, I realized that I was often late to practice myself. I could not effectively balance my personal matters and hence I missed practice on a few occasions. It was then that I learnt that as a leader it is highly important to lead by example and set the right example for the team. It is highly important that leaders lead by example in order to command respect (Braun et. al., 2013). I then put efforts to mend my ways. I approached practice five minutes before time and never missed a session. This motivated other team members too and are practice sessions started becoming more effective.

Through this course, I also learnt things that I needed to improve as a leader. I took feedback from my team members anonymously and many team members mentioned that I tend to get too aggressive at times which sometimes motivates them but can sometime act as an agent of fear. Secondly, I also realized that I needed to be more patient while communicating with the team. I often lost my temper and needed to reach conclusions fast. Lastly, I also learnt that I needed to be more aware of what was happening in the world. I do not read the news frequently and this may often lead to a lack of content in my communications. A leader must have better and more knowledge than team members. This is important to instil respect within them. Hence I would work upon the same and spend some time every day in reading the current affairs of the world. Lastly, I also need to work upon the habit of not setting smart goals for team members. Our goals are often vague and are not communicated properly to the team. This also adversely impacts our performance and coordination.

Examples of Great Leaders

Great leaders have changed the shape of different organizations, industries and economies. They have been pivotal to the success and growth of the world at large. This is predominantly why economies as well as organizations are urged to choose their leader with utmost care. Because it is the leader who guides the entire team and is responsible for effective decision making on behalf of all involved stakeholders. The relationship between the leader and his team is a two way relationship. In order for the success of both of them as an entire ecosystem, it is imperative that they function in a coordinated manner and depict trust and respect towards each other. Hence, not just the team members but even leaders must put efforts towards ensuring that their team can trust them, rely on them and that there is mutual respect (Antonakis & Day, 2017).

In order to improve upon my leadership skills I have formulated an action plan which includes my long term and short term goals. For the success of any leader it is important that he or she has a certain amount of

My long term goal is to captain the national cricket team. It is a long term goal and cricket is my biggest passion. I will continue to play for local as well as state teams in the meanwhile. I hope to be a leader that can guide and motivate the team in the right manner. I do not want to be a leader who simply takes responsibility for the team during a match but the one who can guide people’s careers and can be reached out to at any given point of time if needed.

Another long term goal is to completely mentor at least five people from my team and make sure that they have a successful sporting career ahead of them. A leader is also a mentor who must take responsibility of team members in an effective manner (Muir, 2014). In order to achieve this, I would begin by simply shortlisting the members that I see potential in. I would like to make an action plan for them and train them on a regular basis. I would also research further about the right opportunities that they can avail in order to grow their sports career be it football or cricket. I would definitely make sure that I am reachable to them at any given point of time. I would also ensure that not only do they become great players but that they also become great leaders.

Transformational Leadership Style

My leadership role as the cricket and the football team captain as taught me a lot and has had a significant impact on my life. I am sure this role will continue to teach me various facets of leadership that I am yet unaware of. Hence, in order to give back to the society and successfully document my learnings, another one of my goals is to write a book. This book would contain the details of my journey in this field. The book will be written much later when I believe that I experience is truly worth sharing.

There are various short term goals that I wish to achieve with my team as a leader. Firstly, I want the next season to be a success and I want that my team should perform really well. I aim that as a team we should score the highest runs in the upcoming cricketing tournament. I would ensure daily practice. I would also practice with the team in order to be there for them.

As a leader, I would also work towards keeping my team motivated by conducting at least five team building activities every month. These activities will help the team in taking a few breaks at the right time as well as improve the overall team morale. I would also like to make sure that there is clear and transparent communication within the team and all the members.

I would also like to enhance my knowledge and be aware of the current affairs of the world. I would make it a point to read the news on a regular basis and ensure that there is a substantial content in my conversations with others.

In order to be more patient and less aggressive, I would spend fifteen minutes every morning in silence and with myself. I have also signed up for a yoga class which can help me with my fitness as well as ensuring that I have the right temperament at all times. Meditation sessions that are done at the yoga class are known to make people feel calm and enhance their levels of patience. I believe I would be able to manage my team better if I am more patient.

I would make sure that we as a team are setting clear goals. A goal oriented leader is always more successful because that leader has a better plan. Instead of setting vague goals, I would ensure that we as a team set SMART goals which are specific, measurable, attainable, realist and time bound. These goals will help us focus better and have increased coordination as a team.

I would also like to start maintaining a journal wherein I could make a daily entry. The journal on a regular basis would help me with my long term goal of writing a book. This journal will also help me understand and reflect upon the mistakes that I make as a leader. This journal would help me in ensuring that I can always go back to actions and reflect upon my decisions.

There are various leadership workshops that take place every week. I would also ensure that I enroll myself in one of the workshops. After six months, I would also like to enroll myself and one more potential future leader of the team to be a part of the leadership workshop that takes place. These workshops are known to improve leadership skills (Bryman, 2013). Members meet and share their experiences and everyone learns from those experiences. I am sure this will provide a firsthand view of different leadership styles followed by different leaders.

Lastly, I would also continue to reading books and taking a feedback about my leadership skills from my team members as well as friends and family. I would take the feedback received in a constructive manner and work towards improving that aspect of my personality.

My aim is to be a great leader who people can reach out to. I would like to ensure the positivity and optimism in the culture of my team and make sure that there is room for open and transparent communication at all time. My aim is to set a benchmark for future leaders, guide my team, mentor my team and take them in the right direction towards the highest rung in the ladder of victory.

References

Antonakis, J., & Day, D. V. (Eds.). (2017). The nature of leadership. Sage publications. United States.

Bhatti, N., Maitlo, G. M., Shaikh, N., Hashmi, M. A., & Shaikh, F. M. (2012). The impact of autocratic and democratic leadership style on job satisfaction. International Business Research, 5(2), 192.

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2017). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership. John Wiley & Sons.

Braun, S., Peus, C., Weisweiler, S., & Frey, D. (2013). Transformational leadership, job satisfaction, and team performance: A multilevel mediation model of trust. The Leadership Quarterly, 24(1), 270-283.

Bryman, A. (Ed.). (2013). Leadership and organizations. Routledge. United Kingdom

Chaudhry, A. Q., Javed, H., & Sabir, M. (2012). The Impact Of Transformations And Transactional Leadership Styles On The Motivation Of Employees In Pakistan. Pakistan economic and social review, 223-231.

Goleman, D. (2017). Leadership That Gets Results (Harvard Business Review Classics). Harvard Business Press.

Lasswell, H. D. (2017). Power and personality. Routledge. United Kingdom.

Low, K. C. P. (2018). Leadership and Motivation. In Leading Successfully in Asia (pp. 39-80). Springer, Cham.

Muir, D. (2014). Mentoring and leader identity development: A case study. Human resource development quarterly, 25(3), 349-379.

Raelin, J. (2011). From leadership-as-practice to leaderful practice. Leadership, 7(2), 195-211.

Rast III, D. E., Hogg, M. A., & Giessner, S. R. (2013). Self-uncertainty and support for autocratic leadership. Self and Identity, 12(6), 635-649.

Selznick, P. (2011). Leadership in administration: A sociological interpretation. Quid Pro Books.

Yukl, G. A. (2013). Leadership in organizations. Pearson Education India.