Are Leaders Born or Made Essay Example for Free

Are Leaders Born or Made Essay People have debated whether leaders are born or made for centuries. However, I am absolutely convinced that good leaders are made than born. If you have the desire and willpower, you can become an effective leader. â€Å"Good leaders can develop through a never ending process of self-study, education, training and experience† (Jago, 1982). To inspire workers into higher levels of teamwork, there are certain things a leader must be, know, and, do. These do not come naturally, but are acquired through continual work and study. Good leaders are continually working and studying to improve their leadership skills; they are NOT resting on their laurels. Definition of Leadership Before we get started, let’s define and understand about leadership. Leadership is a process by which a person influences others to accomplish an objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and coherent. Leaders carry out this process by applying their leadership attributes, such as beliefs, values, ethics, character, knowledge, and skills. In the field of organizational learning, leadership entered the discussion as a proxy for the organization. Initial concepts of leadership in organizational learning were based on the notion of the dominant coalition. Organizational learning theorists had suggested that the senior management team, or dominant coalition, was in fact the organization level of organizational learning. Moreover, leadership has been described as the â€Å"process of social influence in which one person enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task. According to Ken â€Å"SKC† Ogbonnia, â€Å"effective leadership is the ability to successfully integrate and maximize available resources within the internal and external environment for the attainment of organizational or society goal. Charismatic Leaders are made but not born. However, there are many well-educated and motivated people who lack of the knowledge to lead others. So they don’t assume leadership positions, or if they do, they don’t do very well in them. Thus, to become a made leader, we need to know about the characteristic of a leader for us to learn and explore from there. Having charisma is an important quality to any successful leader, that’s all highly successful people must develop to maximize their success in leadership roles, as well as use it to gain a great advantage over their competition. Charisma can be explained as an indefinable personal magnetism that helps draw people to you, and makes them want to cooperate and work with you to accomplish your dreams. To increase your own level of charisma, you must first be confidence in your own vision. If you have a clear vision of what you want to accomplish, then you need to focus on setting goal for yourself, and make plan to achieve them without delay. The clearer you are about your purpose, and how you are planning to achieve it, will naturally to attract others to help and support you in any way they can. However, some say charismatic is born but not made. Yes, it’s. But without the born charisma, you can also increase the level of you charisma by talking and interaction with other, certain interactions and rewards increase starting relationships, such as a Celebrity using a Charming Introduction will instantly have a new friend. Charisma skill-building requires friends and relationships to progress. Personality and Physical Build Besides, the personality is also an important element to become a made leader, great leaders must have the ability to project themselves, to communicate with subordinates in order to accomplish a task by teamwork. The dictionary definition of personality is the collection of emotional and behavioural traits that characterize a person. That is, your personality is how you present yourself to the world. It is how others see you. Is that important for leadership effectiveness? I think so. Your public persona is the catalyst for enrolling followers. For example, you might be typically dominant, or perhaps you’re always a friendly person, or even someone who takes very few risks. These examples are personality traits. You may also simply improve your personality by your appearance such as dress up and make up well as the appearance oneself always the first impression they given to other. Aside of personality, physical build is also a trait of characteristic for being a leader, this can be made and improved by one self. For example, the children now are mostly taller and stronger than their parents because of the better knowledegement care. Talent, skills and knowledge Beyond the personal traits of a leader, leadership talent, skills and knowledge someone must master if they want to be a leader. Leadership talent is those innate traits that a person is born with but which they need to work on to develop their potentiality, Leadership skills are learned behaviours that a person practices and hones over time. And leadership knowledge is acquired learning about the methods, strategies, successes and failures of other leaders in business and in different walks of life. The traits include intelligence, creativity, diplomacy, persuasiveness, and organizational ability. The difference of the three is an intrinsic character of the leader and the latter two are learned. And an effective leader combines all three: harnessing mixture of their natural characteristic, their learned replicable behaviors, and their mental data and learning into their own unique way to expressing themselves as a leader. Knowing well of the managerial function Besides, knowing well of the managerial function is also a must for a made leader. From day-to-day operating, they should be able to learn about planning, organizing, staffing, directing and controlling in order to lead their subordinates in an effective way. Planning refers to anticipate the opportunity, problems and conditions and choosing from among the alternative of future courses or actions. That includes forecasting, programming, scheduling and etc. The organization functions consist of developing the organization, delegating authority and establishing relations. Staffing is about planning the organization with suitable personnel constitutes the staffing function. Direction function involves managing people and work through the means of motivation, proper leadership, effective communication and coordination. Controlling function enables management to ensure the achievement is in accordance with the established plans. Communication skill Moreover, to be a made leader, we should train ourselves to make effective communication thru experience. The communication skill can definitely be improved if you have the desire to do it, a smart leader must always the â€Å"30 seconds message† which transmitting the most important message within the shortest time. Effective communication is more than just being able to speak and write. A leader’s communication must move people to work toward the goal the leader has chosen. Besides that, a leader has to be able to motivate everyone to contribute. Each of us have different â€Å"button†, a great leader should knows how to push to right button on everyone to make them really want to do their best to achieve the leader’s goal. This is definitely not born because leader could press the right buttons on everyone through understanding their personality. Honesty and Integrity, Forward looking, Independence and Innovation. In addition, the characteristic of a leader is also consisted by honesty and integrity, forward looking, independence and innovation. Once should not even be considered to become a leader without having demonstrated the honesty, integrity and trustworthiness to have and maintain a position of public trust. At all levels, individuals with integrity and honesty show moral courage by doing the right thing even when it is not popular or by expressing dissent when actions or pending decisions would violate organizational and/or constitutional values, laws, and regulations. In addition, they confront unethical behavior in others. Furthermore, the honestly and integrity is about following rules and regulation, this is made as we have no choice but have to follow the rules and regulation of the organization. As a great leader, we always need to be forward-looking toward any issue or problem. When people do not consider their leader forward-looking, that leader is usually suffering from one of two possible problems which are the leader doesn’t have a forward-looking vision and the leader is unwilling or scared to share the vision with others. The forward-looking attitude can be influenced by those people who are surrounding us with positive-minded, this can be made but not born. Last but not least, a great leader is also an innovator. Innovation is about making new tools, products and process, bring forth something â€Å"new† which allows human being to accomplish something they were not able to accomplish previously. We can be innovation through study, research, discuss and deliberated from past experience. Leaders must be tough enough to fight, tender enough to cry, human enough to make mistakes, humble enough to admit them, strong enough to absorb the pain, and resilient enough to bounce back and keep on moving. Leaders must be tough enough to fight, tender enough to cry, human enough to make mistakes, humble enough to admit them, strong enough to absorb the pain, and resilient enough to bounce back and keep on moving. Leader is made because a person becomes a leader through life and work experiences, through mentors and personal reflection. Leader takes time to develop and they were made just like anything else, through hard work. If you are given a chance, you practice, you can also be a leader.

Violence Will Never Bring Victory Over Terrorism :: Argumentative Persuasive Topics

Violence Will Never Bring Victory Over Terrorism This has been a very angry year for many of us - the year since September 11, 2001. In a spirit of anger, hate spreads to become hostility. This hostility must be focused on something or someone. Howard Thurman in his book The Growing Edge, states, "If hostility cannot express itself toward anything else, then it is like a boomerang and turns upon its possessor." A key question that all Americans continue to face is how to respond to the death and destruction brought into our lives by the terrorist attacks. One might expect hate and hostility, but the prevailing response has been compassion and heroic efforts to support those who have suffered a loss. Immediately after the attacks of 9/11, President Bush identified the key issues, including the anger and grief of the American people. Bush said, "Grief has turned to anger and our anger to resolution." We are resolute in the goal of victory over terrorism and the defeat of those who harbor terrorist. What does that word "resolute" mean? Firmness, Determination, Pursuing a fixed purpose, unwavering. This fixed purpose continues to seek target s around the world. The glass in the side view mirror of my car cracked last week so I looked in the phone book to find a repair shop. I choose one on Lee Highway. On the right I saw an auto glass repair shop so I pulled in to the parking lot. I had the car with the broken mirror so I asked the lady behind the counter if they could replace the glass. She looked at the car and said they did not stock that piece and could not match the tinting. I pulled out the address and name of the original glass shop that was on down the road and asked her how far it was or if she could recommend any place that would be closer. She stated that Brainerd Glass was closer. I asked which shop she would recommend. She said," Brainerd Glass -- that other shop is run by a man from Saudi Arabia." I responded, "there are good and bad people in Saudi Arabia just as there are good and bad people in Chattanooga." I hope our targets are more directed than at those who are Arab, or practice Islam, or look like a terrorist and board a plane, or have ideas that seem strange.

Ex- football player Kavin Plank Essay

Under armor was founded by American ex- football player Kavin Plank in 1996. Its headquarters are in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. Plank started the business in his grandmother’s basement. The word of mouth publicity brought revenue and ultimately in two years time Plank started reaping profit. The main objective of the company was to design a superior quality t- shirt which instead of absorbing sweat, provides perspiration and compression. But it ended up producing various other sports products such as footwear, apparel and accessories. Armor happens to be the designer of performance apparel which it claims would maintain body temperature and improve performance. (Under Armour  ® 2010) Under Armour UA’s mission is to make the customer feel comfortable while wearing its products. Its aim is to make all athletes feel better in their uniforms with the help of science and innovation. Providing comfort to the customers is the first and foremost priority of UA. For that purpose, Heat Gear and Cold Gear products were introduced which would serve the purpose of ease and satisfy the athletes during the calisthenics, practice or course of game. (Under Armour  ® 2010) Products, goods and services The products range from t-shirts to footwear and accessories. These categories are further extended to all types of sportswear. You name the sport (from baseball to hunting) and you can find the custom design outfits and footwear along with accessories required for that sport. The company introduced Heat Gear, Cold Gear and AllseasonGear products and various other products to entice the customers. (Under Armour  ® 2010) Marketing Strategy and Position in the market Under Armour understood the market at the start of the business. The word of mouth publicity at small scale to ignite the marketing process for a relatively new company was good enough to bring in customers. Till date the company sponsors events such as Under Armour High school All- American Football Game and Senior Bowl. (Ayala 2008) Under Armour also sponsored the ESPYs. At the event, the company also managed to get leads on a pilot and two movies as well. It sponsors various college teams for publicity. The commercials and punch line are catchy and attract many customers. Under Armour products could also been in Video Games. In Flight Night 3, Dallas Cowboy player and spokesperson Eric ‘Big E’ was among the Fighters game players could choose to be. Their marketing strategy is strong and has provided them powerful position in the market. (Walker 2008) Competitors The company saw downfall in 2008. According to today’s financial news the company’s competition is sinking. In 2009 UA made Fiscal Fourth Quarter results’ announcement that are down nearly half of where they were this time next year. Shares of Gilden Active wear and Lululemon went down by 30% and 20% respectively. (Financial news 2008) Luckily, today they are flourishing at increasing speed. The competition and hard time was beneficial in this regard. Their hard work is paying them off. The biggest competitors of UA are Colm and Nike. UA is increasing pace to reap as much revenue as Nike is. Its revenue was calculated to be approximately $885 million a year in contrast to Nike’s $19 billion this year. (Wikinvest 2010) Bibliography About Under Armour, Underarmour. com, Under Armour  ®, 2010, web, July 18, 2010 from http://www. underarmour. com/shop/us/en/affiliate-home Ayala, V. ‘Under Armour: Solid Growth Story’, Seeking Alpha, July 2008, web, July 18, 2010 http://seekingalpha. com/article/87622-under-armour-solid-growth-story-more-visibility-needed ‘Under Armour’s competition sinks’, Today’s Financial News, December 11, 2008, web, July 18, 2010 http://www. todaysfinancialnews. com/us-stocks-and-markets/under-armours-nyseua-competition-sinks-6437. html Walker, K. Andrea, Commercial Alert, ‘Under Armour in public eye’, July 24, 2008, web , July 18, 2010, http://www. commercialalert. org/issues/culture/product-placement/under-armour-in-public-eye Under Armour (UA), Wikinvest. com, Wikinvest, 2010, web, July 17, 2010 from http://www. wikinvest. com/stock/Under_Armour_(UA)

How to Make an Inference in 5 Easy Steps

We all have to take those standardized tests where youre presented with a large passage of text and must work your way through the multiple-choice problems that follow. Most of the time, youll get questions asking you to find the main idea, determine the authors purpose, understand vocabulary in context, figure out the authors tone, and, the topic at hand, make inferences. For many people, understanding how to make an inference is the toughest part of the reading passage, because an inference in real life requires a bit of guessing. On a multiple-choice test, however, making an inference comes down to honing a few reading skills like these listed below. Read them, then practice your new skills with the inference practice problems listed below. What exactly is an inference? Step 1: Identify an Inference Question First, youll need to determine whether or not youre actually being asked to make an inference on a reading test. The most obvious questions will have the words suggest, imply or infer right in the tag like these: According to the passage, we can reasonably infer...Based on the passage, it could be suggested that...Which of the following statements is best supported by the passage?The passage suggests that this primary problem...The author seems to imply that†¦ Some questions, however, will not come right out and ask you to infer. Youll have to actually infer that you need to make an inference about the passage. Sneaky, huh? Here are a few that require inferencing skills, but dont use those words exactly. With which of the following statements would the author most likely agree?Which of the following sentences would the author most likely use to add additional support to paragraph three? Step 2: Trust the Passage Now that youre certain you have an inference question on your hands, and you know exactly what an inference is, youll need to let go of your prejudices and prior knowledge and use the passage to prove that the inference you select is the correct one. Inferences on a multiple-choice exam are different from those in real life. Out in the real world, if you make an educated guess, your inference could still be incorrect. But on a multiple-choice exam, your inference will be correct because youll use the details in the passage to prove it. You have to trust that the passage offers you the truth in the setting of the test and that one of the answer choices provided is correct without stepping too far outside the realm of the passage. Step 3: Hunt for Clues Your third step is to start hunting for clues – supporting details, vocabulary, characters actions, descriptions, dialogue, and more – to prove one of the inferences listed below the question. Take this question and text, for example: Reading Passage: The widow Elsa was as complete a contrast to her third bridegroom, in everything but age, as can be conceived. Compelled to relinquish her first marriage after her husband died in the war, she married a man twice her years to whom she became an exemplary wife despite their having nothing in common, and by whose death she was left in possession of a splendid fortune, though she gave it away to the church. Next, a southern gentleman, considerably younger than herself, succeeded to her hand, and carried her to Charleston, where, after many uncomfortable years, she found herself again a widow. It would have been remarkable if any feeling had survived through such a life as Elsas; it could not but be crushed and killed by the early disappointment of her first grooms demise, the icy duty of her second marriage, and the unkindness of her third husband, which had inevitably driven her to connect the idea of his death with that of her comfort. Based on the information in the passage, it could be suggested that the narrator believes Elsas prior marriages to be:A. uncomfortable, but well-suited to ElsaB. satisfactory and dull to ElsaC. cold and damaging to ElsaD. awful, but worth it to Elsa To find clues that point to the correct answer, look for descriptions that would support those first adjectives in the answer choices. Here are some of the descriptions of her marriages in the passage: †¦she became an exemplary wife despite their having nothing in common†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦after many uncomfortable years, she found herself again a widow.†¦the icy duty of her second marriage and the unkindness of her third husband which had inevitably driven her to connect the idea of his death with that of her comfort. Step 4: Narrow Down the Choices The last step to making a correct inference on a multiple-choice test is to narrow down the answer choices. Using the clues from the passage, we can infer that nothing much was satisfactory to Elsa about her marriages, which gets rid of Choice B. Choice A is also incorrect because although the marriages certainly seem uncomfortable based on the clues, they were not well-suited to her as she had nothing in common with her second husband and wanted her third husband to die. Choice D is also incorrect because nothing is stated or implied in the passage to prove that Elsa believed her marriages to be worth it in some way; in fact, we can infer that it wasnt worth it to her at all because she gave away the money from her second husband. So, we have to believe that Choice C is the best – the marriages were cold and damaging. The passage states explicitly that her marriage was an icy duty and her third husband was unkind. We also know that they were damaging because her feelings had been crushed and killed by her marriages. Step 5: Practice To get really good at making inferences, youll need to practice making your own inferences first, so start with these free inference practice worksheets.