How Do You Follow an Unadmirable Leader In the workplace, we often are confronted with the reality that our leader possesses qualities or traits
How Do You Follow an Unadmirable Leader
In the workplace, we often are confronted with the reality that our leader possesses qualities or traits that we don’t admire. These can be simply annoying habits or quirks, or they may be styles, traits, or approaches that fundamentally deviate from our own. Although others may tell you that you could always quit or work for someone else, doing so is not always an easy or wise choice. The question then becomes: How can you follow someone you do not admire?
In last week’s Assignment, you incorporated ideas into your presentation for following unadmirable leaders, or leaders with different styles from those of their followers. For this Discussion, consider an actual situation from your own professional career in which you worked for a leader whose leadership style was inconsistent with what you desired, or for a leader whom you did not admire.
To prepare for this Discussion:
· Identify someone from your academic or professional career (past or present) who was an unadmirable leader. This should be someone you have worked with to some degree (i.e., a supervisor or team leader, rather than the CEO of a large corporation with whom you may have never directly interacted).
Post your analysis of the influence of personal traits on leadership and followership by including the following:
· Describe the leader in question and the situation in which you worked with them.
o Note: Do not identify the individual or the organization where they worked. If necessary, use fictitious names in your description.
· Identify specific traits that made the leader unadmirable or difficult to follow.
· Identify the effects of this individual’s leadership.
o Did the aspects that made them an unadmirable leader produce any negative consequences, whether for yourself, for another individual, or for the organization?
o If you were able to follow this individual, explain how you were able to do so.
Learning Resources
Being Humble
Strong leadership is not about power or coercion. Have you ever witnessed a manager or CEO of a company have an arrogant disposition toward a mistake made within a company, refusing to take responsibility and making life difficult for anyone who resists their tirade? How would your reaction to that circumstance compare to a leader who humbly took responsibility for the mistake regardless of who was at fault and made measured steps to correcting the issues? These resources examine how being a humble leader is an effective leadership trait.
· Hayes, M., & Comer, M. (2011). Lead with humilityLinks to an external site. . Leadership Excellence, 28(9), 13.
· Mayo, M. (2017, April 7). If humble people make the best leaders, why do we fall for charismatic narcissists? Harvard Business Review Digital Articles, 2–5. http://hbr.org
· Wang, Y., Liu, J., & Zhu, Y. (2018). Humble leadership, psychological safety, knowledge sharing, and follower creativity: A cross-level investigationLinks to an external site. . Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 1727. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01727
Being Trustworthy
Trust of a leader is an important element in promoting followership. Imagine if you discovered that a customer of your company was accidentally overcharged, and you told your supervisor about it. How would you feel if the supervisor then told you to just keep quiet about it? What if the supervisor immediately refunded the money and offered an additional discount as an apology? As you review these resources, ask yourself: Can I effectively follow a leader that I do not trust or one who has been shown to be dishonest?
· Meinert, D. (2018, June–August). Why trust matters: When employees are fearful, innovation and creativity sufferLinks to an external site. . HR Magazine, 63(5), 18–19.
· Su, A. J. (2019, December 16). Do you really trust your team? (And do they trust you?) . Harvard Business Review Digital Articles, 1–7. http://hbr.org
· Zenger, J., & Folkman, J. (2019, February 5). The 3 elements of trust . Harvard Business Review Digital Articles, 2–5. http://hbr.org
The Art of Questioning
Have you ever been part of an organization where you (and everyone else) were afraid to ask questions to people in positions of authority? These resources examine the role of questioning by both leaders and followers, including how it can improve communication and lead to more effective decisions. As you review these resources, consider how asking questions promotes dialog between leaders and followers and what the impacts of having that dialog could be.
· Bregman, P. (2019, January 21). The best leaders aren’t afraid to ask for help . Harvard Business Review Digital Articles, 2–4. http://hbr.org
· Brooks, A. W., & John, L. K. (2018, May–June). The surprising power of questions: It goes far beyond exchanging information . Harvard Business Review, 96(3), 60–67.
· Grassl, W. (2018, July–September). Good leaders ask dumb questions: Leadership traits in defense of asking the obviousLinks to an external site. . Nonprofit World, 36(3), 27.
Optional Resources
· OASIS: Academic Skills Center. (n.d.). Microsoft PowerPoint Links to an external site. . Walden University. https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/academic-skills-center/microsoft-office/powerpoint
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