Introduction
Leadership is integral for the success of any organization in the current multifaceted business and operating environment. Manning & Curtis (2022) state that a successful leader ought to effectively exercise their leadership abilities to inspire higher morale among the followers to attain better results for their organization. However, not everybody can be a leader and be effective in leading others. Leadership is not easy; therefore, influential leaders should possess and work towards pushing for organizational success. Effective leadership is defined by numerous traits a leader should possess to lead and inspire members of an organization. In the following sections of the paper, I seek to define personal leadership traits that I consider critical in describing myself as an effective leader. Since I may not be perfect, I further identify missing leadership traits that can hamper my leadership performance. I also discuss the findings of my emotional intelligence assessment and the methods I can use to develop the critical traits I do not currently possess (see Appendix 1). The assessment will also help analyze the essential traits of a better leader in addressing possible performance difficulties in a human services organization.
Personal Traits Essential in Effective Leadership
I am of the opinion that I possess critical traits that can enable me to be an effective leader, such as self-awareness, being visionary, and active listening.
Self-Awareness
Leadership starts with self-awareness, which involves understanding personal strengths and weaknesses. Leading based on innate strengths relates to natural leadership, which is critical for everyday success. The intentional application of personal strengths in leading others seeks to inspire others to do the same. By understanding one’s weaknesses, a leader is open to finding new ways to improve leadership effectiveness. Therefore, through discovering personal strengths and weaknesses, a leader is on a path to exercising transformational leadership. Self-awareness is a sign of confidence, high self-esteem, and high regard for personal success (Korzynski, 2019). It marks the beginning of leading by example, which involves establishing high standards as a principle of the organization’s culture, including having a proper code of governance.
Being Visionary
Being visionary entails being willing to take risks and try new ways and things. A vision helps an organization to continue to grow and develop in the place of simply settling down into a relaxed and complicit humdrum. According to Manning & Curtis (2022), a vision promotes the ability of the leader to confront difficulties along the way to meeting the desired goals and objectives. There is a low likelihood of dwelling on problems and, in its place, paying attention to finding solutions. Leaders may not have answers to every situation; the vision drives the intent to work towards finding solutions to every challenge, looking at the bigger picture and prioritizing the tasks.
Missing Traits: Valuing Input and Feedback
Despite being an active listener, sometimes I am faced with the challenge of seeking feedback from other individuals. Manning & Curtis (2022) state that effective leaders must embrace innovation and welcome new ideas, which is essential to becoming competitive and moving the organization forward. It is also necessary to understand that a leader has much more to gain from the reaction of others than by essentially trusting their ideas. Additional input from others is needed to enable an organization to adapt to changing times to succeed. Change is a good thing, but when a leader does not value input from others, the organization is exposed to resistance to change, which can prove lethal when adopting new organizational processes and procedures.
Active Listener
Communication is vital in motivating and inspiring high morale among members of an organization. An effective leader should be willing to listen keenly to the views and opinions of others. Regardless of the size of an organization, active listening is critical in helping the leader identify gaps and problems while simultaneously clearing up mix-ups. By listening, a leader will fashion their message appropriately to let the workers know what is expected of them. Then the leader can cheer team members to voice any concerns and issues, manage conflicts, be highly engaged in the job, and build rapport with others (Northouse, 2017). The leader will be able to handle frustrations and easily win over everyone so they can work toward shared goals.
Findings of Emotional Intelligence Assessment
The personal emotional intelligence assessment findings indicate that my performance is simply okay. The findings imply that I may relate well with colleagues, while I may not work comfortably with others. I agree with the findings of the assessment given that my best score was on being able to identify my strengths and weaknesses. I also scored well on calming myself down when I feel anxious or upset, setting long-term goals and reviewing my progress regularly, and using active listening skills when people speak to me. I was unsure of my ability to recognize my emotions, lose my temper when frustrated, be a good listener, enjoy groups, move on when I feel frustrated or unhappy, ask for feedback, and read other people’s emotions. That is why I identified self-awareness and being visionary as personal traits, I consider critical in enabling me to be an effective leader. I need to improve my leadership abilities by working on developing other traits required for effective leadership.
Methods to Start Developing the Missing Traits
The journey toward becoming an effective leader requires long-standing practice and dedication. Effective leadership entails a relentless journey of personal development. Self-awareness is essential, but I need to develop the missing traits to become a better leader. One way is to find a mentor with more experience who will provide guidance on how to overcome the shortcomings that hinder performance as an effective leader. Another approach to becoming a better leader is to invest in coaching and developing others. Cote (2017) argues that effective leaders must have an unaffected interest in the growth and development of themselves and their colleagues. The leader must be interested in understanding the needs, goals, and aspirations of others and supporting them well. Developing and demonstrating emotional intelligence is also critical to effective leadership. Emotional intelligence helps offer the team firmness and hope, particularly during thought-provoking times.
In addition, different tools enable the development of effective leadership. An example is the Runrun.it signature task and workflow management system. It enhances effective leadership by enabling leaders to work with more efficient operations and processes. The system has a Smart Time Tracking program, which has automated timesheet production to enhance efficiency. Data collected helps the leader better understand how to manage staff and teams. The tool can help every leader better comprehend their mandate and twist how things are done.
Necessary Traits to Become a Better Leader and Address Possible Performance Difficulties in a Human Services Organization
Effective leadership is critical to organizational success through proper coordination and alignment of processes. The primary focus should be on enhancing organizational performance and achieving desired results. The first point a leader should consider in overcoming performance difficulties is understanding the root causes of a performance problem before addressing it fully. Additionally, performance in a human services organization involves both motivation and ability. Better performance can be attained by having individuals with sufficient ability and motivation. The leader can help to develop this through active engagement with the workers through proper communication and active listening.
Training and development are other significant components a leader can deploy to enhance employees’ ability and motivation for better performance. The leader should be able to identify employees’ talents and assign them roles and responsibilities that they can handle proficiently. The leader can assign roles based on how employees perform on the job. The employees can further feel motivated through assessment, inspiring teamwork, and colleague support (Korzynski, 2019). It is critical for the leader to be able to encourage timely feedback, which boosts evaluation. Additional traits to bolster performance entails using personalized rewards and recognition and promoting a culture of honesty and openness, especially in providing accurate feedback that can either be positive or negative.
Conclusion
In conclusion, effective leadership is critical for organizational success and good performance. An effective leader is enabled to succeed by traits including active listening, emotional intelligence, appreciating feedback, and being visionary. The leader can develop additional essential skills constantly through learning, personal development, coaching, mentoring, and using different tools. Finally, leading a human services organization to overcome performance difficulties rotates around enhancing the ability and motivation level of the workers.
References
Cote, R. (2017). Vision of Effective Leadership. Journal of Leadership, Accountability and Ethics, 14(4).
Korzynski, P. (2019). Employee motivation in new working environment. International Journal of Academic Research, 5(5), 184–188.
Manning, G., & Curtis, K. (2022). The art of leadership (7th ed.). McGraw-Hill.
Northouse, P. G. (2017). Introduction to leadership concepts and practice (4th ed.). Washington, DC: Sage.