Week One

Week One: Definitions of Leadership

         

Leadership like everything else has changed with the passing of time. As each decade brought upon new challenges our views of how we see the world changed. Each new leader of our free nation contributed greatly to our definition of leadership today. With changing times came great need for leadership to expand from just one solitary leader to the multitudes becoming one with the leader. The first few decades represent leadership as the leader influencing people to move towards a certain direction.

The leader in the 1920s had to influence the people to move towards a certain direction that was beneficial for them. The leader had to show the people the way out of their problems. The 1920s were plagued by problems of moral behavior conduct such excessive drinking leading to Prohibition. For these reasons leadership was focused on getting the populace to cooperate with the leader. The 1930s were marginalized by welfare and social programs to bring the country out of the Great Depression. FDR the leader during this decade had to become creative and promote programs to help people get back on their feet. Being a good leader at this time meant moving the country forward. The 1940s were dominated by leaders persuading people to do their will; Hitler taking over Germany and manipulating millions of people to commit mass murder. Leadership up until the 1990s is primarily a leader working for his people. The 1990s brings a change in leadership to a leader and his followers working together for a common goal. The people of our nation begin taking an active role in the government and in the way our country is run. While the decades prior the people merely obeyed and followed the leader.

While there are many changing approaches to leadership through the decades, there is no one best way to lead. This leadership truism can be interpreted in terms of there being many approaches to lead, it all depends on what you choose to do with your leadership. One example of this is Adolf Hitler’s rise to power and his amazing leadership that was used to destroy and kill. While he was a very effective leader he chose to use his power over the masses to commit mass murder. This reminds me of another leadership truism; just being in a leadership role does not make one a leader. Good and bad leaderships happen at all levels. Just because a person is given a position of power does not automatically make a leader, they have to work towards becoming a leader. Being thrown into leadership does not guarantee that you will be a good effective leader. Being a good leader takes time and practice.

My own responsibilities as a leader are at work as a tutor and teacher’s aide. My job is to help out students that are falling behind and need extra assistance. It is my job as a leader to show my students that I am responsible and am there to help them succeed. I have to be able to show that I am capable and knowledgeable of the information that I give my students. It has taken a few months to gain the respect of my students and learn to tutor students effectively. I did not get good at my job overnight, I had to use trial and error to become respected and learn to be also a good example for my students.