Personal Leadership Philosophy
Leadership is more than holding a title and position. It is more than giving directions to juniors. Leadership is about exercising unique abilities to achieve organizational goals. In nursing, a leader seeks to create a healthy work environment, enhance employee retention, improve patient outcomes, and enhance the organization’s performance (Seljemo, Viksveen, & Ree, 2020). In the course of achieving these objectives, I have developed a personal leadership philosophy. I define leadership as an individual’s ability to effect change in an organization by leading by example and motivating others.
Several factors have helped to develop the philosophy. The most influential has been the values I hold as a leader, such as self-awareness and prioritization of personal growth (Raso, Fitpatrick, & Masick, 2020). I am aware of my strengths and weaknesses. I am also conscious of potential sources of bias that could affect my thinking and subsequent decision-making (Seljemo, Viksveen, & Ree, 2020). I occasionally assess myself and seek feedback from my peers on areas that need some work. I then set improvement goals, place realistic targets and work on achieving them.
I also value strategic thinking and innovation. Leaders must think about the direction the organization is taking continually, and this necessitates strategic decision-making (Sherman & Pross, 2010). These qualities not only need emphasis; they must also be modeled. For example, I take a genuine interest in the nursing profession, and I have noticed that my team feeds off this energy and enthusiasm. They take the same approach to their work. I have also maintained a flexible mindset and a willingness to implement new ideas, which helps keep my team and me thinking of innovative and easier ways to carry out our roles. Appreciating the ideas they give makes them feel needed and appreciated, which motivates them to become better in their work.
My mission is to become a leader who inspires others to develop innovative solutions that enhance people’s lives. My vision is to become an honest, humble, impactful, and empathetic leader who consistently mentors and builds the team to manifest their strengths fully. My vision and mission statements are important to me because I believe that a leader must inspire others to see the greatness they carry. Leaders must also cultivate in themselves the values they hope to see in the lives of others because people emulate them.
I am confident about the achievement of my vision because of the strengths I possess. The results of my Clifton Strengths assessment showed that I am a futuristic person who derives strength in the hope of attaining the goals and visions of the future. I am intrigued and inspired by the dream of a better team, better life, and better world. I am also an achiever with a relentless hunger for achievement. I am anxious to put my hands on new tasks and work on new challenges.
Ideation, a fascination with ideas, also drives me. I am delighted by the discovery of meaning behind various phenomena and concepts. I also like to discover the reasons and connections that link different phenomena, and discovering ideas that introduce a new perspective to familiar challenges. I am an analytical who questions ideas to assess their soundness, with objectivity and an appreciation for data. I like to uncover patterns and connections to find meaning or truth. Lastly, I pride myself in being an arranger who likes to take disorderly variables and realign them to the most productive configuration possible. It helps to get things done in the best way, in the path of least resistance.
I have found that to become more effective in leadership, I would need to strengthen at least two behaviors. The first is developing a coaching mindset. Successful leaders take a coaching approach to their leadership by working with teams. The partnership helps to create a shared vision of the goals to be achieved (Raso, Fitpatrick, & Masick, 2020). I have been working with small teams and have found that working together helps to achieve goals faster. Getting to work with more teams will get things done more quickly. It also provides the opportunity to get to know the staff in a personal way.
The second behavior I hope to strengthen is effective listening. Listening makes the teammates feel heard. It gets them to trust the leader and to buy into his vision. I have found that listening is more empowering than speaking (Sherman & Pross, 2010). By listening, a person catches the verbal and nonverbal communication (Sherman & Pross, 2010). I am confident that I will become a better communicator because I can know exactly what the speaker is feeling.
I have an elaborate plan to help me develop a coaching mindset and strengthen my listening skills. I plan to start delegating some tasks that would give others opportunities to grow. I will also offer feedback to team members to encourage them and help them fix any problems. I will also create a developmental plan for each team member and review it occasionally to ensure that they receive opportunities to learn and grow. For better listening, I will practice listening for the speaker’s main points and repeat them to him to know that I heard him. For example, when a person is speaking, I shall practice being fully engaged and keeping my mind wandering. I will also look the speaker in the eyes, avoid interruptions, and offer positive non-verbal feedback that encourages the speaker to continue speaking.
In conclusion, becoming a great leader is a journey that involves continual learning, self-assessment, and improvement for personal development. A good leader helps others to grow and supports the achievement of organizational goals.
References
Raso, R., Fitpatrick, J., & Masick, K. (2020). Clinical nurses’ perceptions of authentic nurse leadership and healthy work environment. Journal of Nursing Administration 50(9), 489-494.
Seljemo, C., Viksveen, P. & Ree, E. (2020). The role of transformational leadership, job demands and job resources for patient safety culture in Norwegian nursing homes: a cross-sectional study. BMC Health Services Research, 20 (7).
Sherman, R. & Pross, E. (2010). Growing future nurse leaders to build and sustain healthy work environments at the unit level. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing 15 (1).
