Introduction to Leadership

Leadership studies are an evolving discipline, and the concept of leadership will continue to develop. For the purpose of this course, we will focus on a single definition that delineates the essential elements of leadership.

Leadership is an influence relationship among leaders and followers resulting in outcomes that reflect shared purposes. Everyday leaders come in all shapes and sizes, and many true leaders are working behind the scenes. Leadership that has big outcomes often starts small.

There are opportunities for leadership all around us that involve influence and change toward a desired goal or outcome. You can start now, wherever you are, to practice leadership in your own life. Leadership is an everyday way of acting and thinking that has little to do with a title or formal position in an organization.

The transformation of leadership requires a paradigm shift. A paradigm is a shared mindset that represents a fundamental way of thinking about, perceiving, and understanding the world.

The biggest challenge facing leaders today is the changing world that wants a new paradigm of leadership. The new reality involves the shift from stability to change, from control to empowerment, from competition to collaboration, and from uniformity to diversity.

The ‘‘soft’’ skills of leadership complement the ‘‘hard’’ skills of management, and both are needed to effectively guide organizations. Although leadership is often equated with good management, leadership and management are different processes.

Leadership theories can help you develop understanding and skills to make you a better leader.

[alembrihantafesse]

thanks to given more understanding OB with leadership dimension

[maeritzebro]

may I know who is the author of this intro to leadership?