A511.1.3.RB - Leadership vs. Management

Management is a job position, however Leadership is a belief.  The guidelines Yukl sets out of managers all address the “how” and “what” of a job: Understand reasons for demands and constraints, expand the range of choice, determine what needs to be accomplished, analyze use of time, plan daily and weekly activities, avoid unnecessary activities, conquer procrastination, take advantage of reactive activities, make time for reflective planning, identify important problems that can be solved, look for connections among problems, experiment with innovative solutions (p40-44).  None of these guidelines answer the question of why.  Why do managers make great leaders, or is it why do leaders make great managers.  I would argue it is the later.  Most people can follow a job description if they want to keep their job, and if they enjoy their job they will probably do well at it, but to be a great manager one must be a great leader.  A good leader knows and understands why they are in the role they are in.

Leaders know how to inspire their passion in others.  They take the guidelines for managers and add a personal touch to them; they make others believe in what they believe in.  When setting a goal for a company they will explain why they are looking to achieve that goal and maybe open up a dialogue with the staff about why they are committed to the same goal.  This shows the staff they are committed to them and there ideas.  

Great leaders can make great managers.  When a leader brings their beliefs and passions to a job they can inspire and entire team.  Team members are more likely to follow a leader that can explain why they are doing what they do.  Anyone can give directions and delegate tasks, but a true leader can encourage many to follow and work together for a common goal.   

Yukl, G. (2012). Leadership in organizations (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc 

A500.9.4.RB - Course Reflections

Now that I have finished Leadership Foundations in Research I have a chance to reflect on what I have learned, what I feel I did well at and what I struggled with.  To start with the positive I both enjoyed and did very well with the action research paper and presentation.  I appreciated taking a look into myself and looking at what I may need to improve on.  In the end I learned a lot about my own procrastination as well as how to help others.  I felt the discussions were very helpful and interesting.  Being able to read what other people think and feel about a topic gave me the ability to look at my own thoughts and evaluate them.  I felt the critical thinking aspect of this course is something I will take with me throughout my education and my career.  

The one piece of this course I struggled with was “The Brain” activities.  Where I do understand the idea behind the assignments there were not within my learning style.  I have made “webs” before when brainstorming and from them I tend to create an outline.  I am not one to go into great detail when jotting down thoughts, I prefer short reminders that will trigger my mind into remembering.  I feel my “Brain” assignments served the purpose for my own use; I could have been more in depth with details to show my knowledge.  

All in all I think this course was a great starting point in my educational journey into Leadership.  From this class I have taken knowledge and skills that will help me to achieve my goals.  I also feel I still have a lot to learn and I am hoping my classes will continue to lead me down a path to greater understanding. 

A500.8.3.RB - Good Presentation Design

Most of us have gone to a conference or business meeting and thought “just another boring presentation”, but few of us have actually thought about why they are so uninteresting.  There could be many different reasons why a person perceives a presentation as dull, a few that come up repeatedly are the listener’s own lack of interest in the topic, the presenter’s lack of enthusiasm for the topic and bad media presentation.  

Overcoming a listeners lack of interest in a topic can be the most difficult as the speaker has to work to change a belief of another individual.  I believe however it can be done.  The reasons the listener has for being uninterested can range from distraction by other things in their lives to feeling they were forced to attend yet do not want to be there.  These reasoning’s may have nothing to do with the presenter themselves, but a personal feeling.  

The presenter who shows excitement and enthusiasm for the topic being presented can influence the entire crowd.  Most listeners can decide if they are going to enjoy a presentation within the first few minutes.  When a presenter comes on with energy and interacts with the audience they have a better chance of winning them over.  This is a good point to tell a story or ask questions of the audience, this can help to personalize the topic.  

The final piece of a presentation is any media or visuals the presenter will be using.  These materials should be used as an outline of the topic not a word-by-word transcript.  The purpose of media is to serve as a quick visual reference of the material the presenter is speaking about.  If the visual is too busy or hard to understand it will detract from the words being spoken.  In a presentation where statistics are being presented they should be simple and easy to follow as to not confuse the audience. 

The keys to a good presentation are keeping the audience engaged and interested, present material in an energetic and enthusiastic way, and only use media as an outline not a reading tool.  Interacting with the audience is also a good idea; this makes the topic more personal.  Even if the presenter isn’t comfortable in front of people they should try to not let it show.  A good presenter makes a good presentation.